Clorinda Matto de Turner (11 November 1852 in Cusco – 25 October 1909) was a Peruvian writer who lived during the early years of Latin American independence.

Growing up in Cuzco, the former Inca capital, Matto spent most of her days on her family's estate, Paullo Chico, which is near the village of Coya.

Unable to improve her financial situation in Tinta, Matto de Turner moved to Arequipa where she worked as editor in chief at the newspaper La Bolsa Americana.

She also wrote the drama Himacc-Suacc (1884) and translated the four Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistle to the Romans into the Quechua language spoken by the indigenous people in the Cuzco Region of Peru.

[1] This novel was controversial because it was about a love affair between a white man and an indigenous woman, which was considered a disgrace among Latin American society during this time, and because it spoke of the immorality of the priests during that period.

She also published a controversial story written by a Brazilian writer by the name of Henrique Coelho Neto in her newspaper, El Perú Illustrado.

[1] In 1900, she wrote Boreales, Miniaturas y Porcelanas (Northerners, Miniatures, and Porcelain) a collection of essays which includes "Narraciones históricas," an important historiographical contribution that shows her deep sorrow at being exiled from Peru and her longing to return.

In Buenos Aires Matto de Turner founded Búcaro Americano; she also gave numerous public lectures and wrote many articles for the press.

In 1908, when she visited Europe for the first time in her life, she made sure to carefully document this in the book Viaje de Recreo (Trip of Amusement).