Quechua The language of the Incas The Inca empire contained different tribes who spoke different languages, but the most widely spoken was Quechua, which became the official language of the Incas. It is still spoken today by over 8 million people. In Peru, about 1/3 of the people speak Quechua.

Quechua The language of the Incas Since the Spanish took over in the Inca territories, the main language of most of this territory is español, but the Spanish language in these areas, especially in Peru has adopted hundreds of Quechua words.

Even some English words actually came from Quechua words. For example, the Incas ate a lot of papas.

That’s the origin of the Spanish word for patata

And of the English word for potato

Another Quechua word that came into the English language is also a type of comida. Kinwa is a very healthy grain that is used in many cereals today. Do you know what is is called in English?

It’s called quinoa Has anyone ever heard of it?

Los Inca had a word in Quechua, ch’arki meaning dried. This is the origin of an English word meaning dried meat. Can anyone guess the word?

It’s JERKY!! Anyone care for some beef Jerky??

There is yet another comida word that comes the Inca language… rimay Hint: It is a type of bean and it is also the name of the capital city of Peru. Can anyone guess?

Did you guess… lima (bean)?

Another word you may know that comes from Quechua is pampa which meant flat. Now we use pampas in Spanish and English to describe the flatlands in Argentina. Los incas used the word wakcha for a poor person. That is the origin of the Spanish and English word gaucho. Has anyone heard this word?

There are a lot of animal words that come from Quechua. Los incas used this animal to carry heavy loads. Hint: it is written the same in Quechua, español and English, but pronounced differently.

You should know we are talking about …. LLAMA

Two animals that are similar to the llama, the incas used for their wool. They are also Quechua words that became English ones. Los incas called the first one…. wik’uña

That’s the origin of the Spanish and English words vicuña

The second, the Incas called allpaka

That’s the origin for the Spanish and English words alpaca

The name of a type of big gato also comes from Quechua. Hint: It is not a lion, tiger, cheetah, jaguar or leopard

It is a … puma

There is yet another animal word that we got from Quechua. It is a big flying animal that the Inca called kuntur.

That’s the origin of the Spanish word for cóndor

And of the English word for condor

Preguntas de discusión Can you remember some of the Quechua (Inca language) words that became Spanish or English words? Why do you think these Quechua words survived and others did not?

Melissa Eve Warhaftig Ángel Lozada King Juan Carlos I of Spain Center New York University 2002 Developed with support from the Coca-Cola Foundation and an anonymous foundation.