Miraflores District, Lima

The city, founded as San Miguel de Miraflores,^[2] acquired its present name (lit. 'look at the flowers') because of the nearly year-round bougainvillea bloom, even in the mid-16th century, when it was still an Inca village.^[3]

Prior to the arrival of the Spanish, Miraflores was one of the locations inhabited by members of the ancient Lima culture, which preceded the Inca Empire. The Huaca Pucllana (formerly Hispanicized as Juliana) serves as its only remaining remnant in the district, originally much larger in size.^[4]

Once Spanish rule was established, the area became part of the district of Magdalena Vieja.^[2] Established as San Miguel de Miraflores, it takes its name from the Miraflores Charterhouse, having become a district on January 2, 1857 under the presidency of Ramón Castilla and containing a number of estates (Armendáriz, Balconcillo, Barboncito, La Palma, Conde San Isidro, Lince, Limatambo, Santa Cruz and Chacarilla), as well as the lands at Leuro and Ocharán.

Miraflores was the site of encounters between José de San Martín and Viceroy Pezuela that took place during the Peruvian War of Independence, on September 24, 1820. During the War of the Pacific, the district was the site of the eponymous battle, where two thousand people died as a result and the district was sacked and burned by the Chilean Army. In 1898, it was limited to the north by the lands of the Surquillo estate, to the west by Bellavista street, to the east by the railroad tracks that reached Lima and to the south by the first blocks of Larco and Porta streets.

As the city of Lima grew, Miraflores was absorbed into its metropolitan area during the early 20th century. Prior to the 1920s, its territory included the current districts of La Victoria (1920), San Isidro (1931), Lince (1936), part of Santiago de Surco (1944), Surquillo (1949), San Luis (1968) and San Borja (1983).

During the 1940s, the Iglesia Matriz Virgen Milagrosa was built next to the district's central park,^[5] replacing the original San Miguel de Miraflores Church.^[6]

On July 16, 1992, during the era of terrorism, a street in the district was targeted in a terrorist attack perpetrated by the Shining Path, which led to a crackdown on Peruvian insurgent groups, culminating in the group's leader being captured on September of the same year.^{[citation needed]} The Tarata bombing was one of the largest attacks in the country and occurred near Avenida Larco. A monument was constructed in the site of the attack.

Miraflores is under the jurisdiction of its own district municipality, as well as that of the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima.

The district has a total land area of 9.62 km². Its administrative center is located 79 meters above sea level.

Miraflores is a biodiverse district, with a large variety of animal species, including those off its coast, and over 200 species of plants.^[11][12] As of 2026, most plant species have been introduced into the country, while only a fifth are native to Peru.^[12] The most prevalent species are Schinus terebinthifolia, Tecomaria capensis, Schinus molle, and Tecoma stans.^[12]

According to the 2017 national census done by the INEI, the district has 99,337 inhabitants and a population density of 10,326 persons per km² (26,744 persons per sq mile). Miraflores has a high Human Development Index at 0.986 and the lowest population living below the poverty line in Lima at 1.80%.^[13] Along with its northern neighbor, San Isidro, Miraflores is inhabited primarily by upper-class residents and is consistently listed as one of the most expensive districts in the country.

The district has a pre-Inca mud-brick temple called the Huaca Pucllana, one of a number of archeological sites found in Lima.^[1]

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