View source for Quechuan languages

{{Short description|Language family of the Andes in South America}}
{{Redirect-distinguish|Quechuan|Quechan|Quechan language|K'iche'{{!}}Quiché||}}

{{Infobox language family
| name          = Quechuan
| ethnicity     = [[Quechua people|Quechua]]
| region        = Throughout the central [[Andes|Andes Mountains]] including [[Argentina]], [[Bolivia]], [[Chile]], [[Colombia]], [[Ecuador]], and [[Peru]].
| familycolor   = Quechuan
| family        = One of the world's primary [[Language family|language families]]<br/>(or [[Quechumaran languages|Quechumaran]]?)
| map           = Qichwa-Simikuna.svg
| map2          = Quechuan distribution (w Inca Empire).svg
| mapcaption    = Map showing the distribution of Quechuan languages
| mapcaption2   = Map showing the distribution of the Quechuan languages (solid gray) and the historical extent of the Inca Empire (shaded)
| speakers      = {{sigfig|7.168325|2}} million
| ref           = e25
| child1        = [[Quechua I]]
| child2        = [[#Classification|Quechua II]]
| altname       = Qichwa/Qhichwa, Kichwa|nativename={{lang|qu|Runa Simi}}
| iso1          = qu
| iso2          = que
| iso3          = que
| iso5          = qwe
| glotto        = quec1387
| glottorefname = Quechuan
| ancestor      = 
| glottoname    = 
| notes         = 
}}
{{Infobox ethnonym|person= Runa / Nuna|people= [[Quechua people|Runakuna /<br />Nunakuna]]|language= Runasimi /<br />Nunasimi}}

'''Quechua''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɛ|tʃ|u|ə}},<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/quechua| title = Longman Dictionary| access-date = 2018-06-02| archive-date = 2024-05-26| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070610/https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/quechua| url-status = live}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20161002144232/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/Quechua Oxford Living Dictionaries], British and World English</ref> {{IPA|es|ˈketʃwa|lang}}), also called '''{{lang|qu|Runa simi}}''' ({{IPA|qu|ˈɾʊna ˈsɪmɪ|lang}}, 'people's language') in [[Southern Quechua]], is an [[Indigenous languages of the Americas|indigenous]] [[language family]] that originated in central [[Peru]] and thereafter spread to other countries of the [[Andes]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Cerrón-Palomino |first=Rodolfo |title=Lingüística quechua |date=2003 |publisher=Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos Bartolomé de Las Casas |isbn=978-9972-691-59-1 |edition=2. |series=Monumenta lingüística andina |location=Cuzco}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last1=Adelaar |first1=Willem F. H. |title=The languages of the Andes |last2=Muysken |first2=Pieter |date=2004 |publisher=Cambridge University press |isbn=978-0-521-36275-7 |series=Cambridge language surveys |location=Cambridge (G.B.)}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Torero |first=Alfredo |title=Idiomas de los Andes: linguistica e historia |date=2002 |publisher=Instituto Francés de estudios andinos Editorial horizonte |isbn=978-9972-699-27-6 |series=Travaux de l'Institut Français d'études andines |location=Lima}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |url=https://academic.oup.com/british-academy-scholarship-online/book/28526 |title=Archaeology and Language in the Andes |date=2012-05-17 |publisher=British Academy |isbn=978-0-19-726503-1 |editor-last=Heggarty |editor-first=Paul |edition=1 |language=en |doi=10.5871/bacad/9780197265031.001.0001 |editor-last2=Beresford-Jones |editor-first2=David}}</ref> Derived from a common ancestral "[[Proto-Quechuan language|Proto-Quechua]]" language,<ref name=":0" /> it is the most widely spoken [[Pre-Columbian era|pre-Columbian]] language family of the Americas, with an estimated 8–10 million speakers in 2004,<ref name=adelaar167>Adelaar 2004, pp. 167–168, 255.</ref> and just under 7 million from the most recent census data available up to 2011.<ref name=":2">{{Citation |last=Howard |first=Rosaleen |title=The Quechua Language in the Andes Today: Between Statistics, the State, and Daily Life |date=2011 |url=https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230370579_9 |work=History and Language in the Andes |pages=189–213 |editor-last=Heggarty |editor-first=Paul |access-date=2024-01-09 |series=Studies of the Americas |place=New York |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan US |language=en |doi=10.1057/9780230370579_9 |isbn=978-0-230-37057-9 |editor2-last=Pearce |editor2-first=Adrian J. |archive-date=2024-05-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070611/https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9780230370579_9 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Approximately 13.9% (3.7 million) of Peruvians speak a Quechua language.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017 |title=Perú Resultados Definitivos de los Censos Nacionales |url=https://www.inei.gob.pe/media/MenuRecursivo/publicaciones_digitales/Est/Lib1544/ |access-date=12 December 2023 |website=Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406184615/https://www.inei.gob.pe/media/MenuRecursivo/publicaciones_digitales/Est/Lib1544/ |archive-date= Apr 6, 2023 }}</ref>

Although Quechua began expanding many centuries before<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Heggarty |first=Paul |date=October 2007 |title=Linguistics for Archaeologists: Principles, Methods and the Case of the Incas |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S095977430700039X/type/journal_article |journal=Cambridge Archaeological Journal |language=en |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=311–340 |doi=10.1017/S095977430700039X |s2cid=59132956 |issn=0959-7743 |access-date=2024-01-09 |archive-date=2024-05-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070615/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/cambridge-archaeological-journal/article/abs/linguistics-for-archaeologists-principles-methods-and-the-case-of-the-incas/3D972445C4049C2F304F9BCD23F585EB |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":1" /> the [[Inca Empire|Incas]], that previous expansion also meant that it was the primary language family within the Inca Empire. The Spanish tolerated its use until the [[Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II|Peruvian struggle for independence]] in the 1780s. As a result, various Quechua languages are still widely spoken, being the majority language in a number of [[regions of Peru]], the most-spoken or co-official language in many others, and, as the [[Kichwa language|''Kichwa'']] language, the second most-spoken [[languages of Ecuador|language of Ecuador]], after Spanish.

==History==
{{main|Classical Quechua}}
The Quechua [[linguistic homeland]] may have been Central Peru. It has been speculated that it may have been used in the [[Chavín culture|Chavín]] and [[Wari culture|Wari]] civilizations.<ref>Adelaar, Willem F. H.. Chapter Languages of the Middle Andes in Areal-typological Perspective. Germany, De Gruyter, 2012.</ref> 

Quechua had already expanded across wide ranges of the central Andes long before the expansion of the [[Inca Empire]]. The Inca were one among many peoples in present-day Peru who already spoke a form of Quechua, which in the [[Cusco|Cuzco]] region particularly has been heavily influenced by [[Aymara language|Aymara]], hence some of the characteristics that still distinguish the Cuzco form of Quechua today.  Diverse Quechua regional dialects and languages had already developed in different areas, influenced by local languages, before the Inca Empire expanded and further promoted Quechua as the official language of the Empire.

After the [[Spanish conquest of Peru]] in the 16th century, Quechua continued to be used widely by the indigenous peoples as the "common language". It was officially recognized by the Spanish administration, and many Spaniards learned it in order to communicate with local peoples.<ref>{{cite book | title=De la etnohistoria a la historia en los Andes : 51o Congreso Internacional de Americanistas, Santiago de Chile, 2003 | editor1=Fisher, John | editor2=Cahill, David Patrick | publisher=Congreso Internacional de Americanistas | year=2008 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IFH0Z5_HKVEC&q=%22lenguas+generales%22+peru+Virreinato&pg=PA295 | page=295 | isbn=9789978227398 | access-date=2020-11-07 | archive-date=2024-05-26 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070611/https://books.google.com/books?id=IFH0Z5_HKVEC&q=%22lenguas+generales%22+peru+Virreinato&pg=PA295#v=snippet&q=%22lenguas%20generales%22%20peru%20Virreinato&f=false | url-status=live }}</ref>  The clergy of the [[Catholic Church]] adopted Quechua to use as the language of [[evangelism|evangelization]]. The oldest written records of the language are by missionary [[Domingo de Santo Tomás]], who arrived in Peru in 1538 and learned the language from 1540. He published his ''Grammatica o arte de la lengua general de los indios de los reynos del Perú'' (Grammar or Art of the General Language of the Indians of the Kingdoms of Peru) in 1560.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Torero|first=Alfredo|title=América Latina en sus lenguas indígenas|publisher=Monte Ávila|year=1983|isbn=92-3-301926-8|place=Caracas|chapter=La familia lingûística quechua|author-link=Alfredo Torero}}
</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Torero|first=Alfredo|title=El quechua y la historia social andina|publisher=Universidad Ricardo Palma, Dirección Universitaria de Investigación|year=1974|isbn=978-603-45-0210-9|place=Lima|author-link=Alfredo Torero}}</ref> Given its use by the Catholic missionaries, the range of Quechua continued to expand in some areas.

In the late 18th century, colonial officials ended the administrative and religious use of Quechua. They banned it from public use in Peru after the [[Túpac Amaru II]] rebellion of indigenous peoples.<ref name=adelaar167/> The Crown banned "loyal" pro-Catholic texts in Quechua, such as Garcilaso de la Vega's ''[[Comentarios Reales de los Incas|Comentarios Reales]].''<ref>Aybar cited by Hart, Stephen M. ''A Companion to Latin American Literature,'' p. 6.</ref>

Despite a brief revival of the language immediately after the Latin American nations achieved independence in the 19th century, the prestige of Quechua had decreased sharply. Gradually its use declined so that it was spoken mostly by indigenous people in the more isolated and conservative rural areas. Nevertheless, in the 21st century, Quechua language speakers number roughly 7 million people across South America,<ref name=":2" /> more than any other indigenous language family in the Americas.

As a result of [[Incas in Central Chile|Inca expansion into Central Chile]], there were bilingual Quechua-[[Mapuche language|Mapudungu]] [[Mapuche]] in Central Chile at the time of the [[Conquest of Chile|Spanish arrival]].<ref name="Hernadez" /><ref name="Telles43">{{cite book |last=Téllez |first=Eduardo |title=Los Diaguitas: Estudios |year=2008 |publisher=Ediciones Akhilleus |location=[[Santiago]], Chile |isbn=978-956-8762-00-1 |language=es|page=43}}<!--|access-date=August 27, 2019 --></ref> It has been argued that Mapuche, Quechua, and Spanish coexisted in [[Central Chile]], with significant bilingualism, during the 17th century.<ref name="Hernadez">{{cite journal |last1=Hernández |first1=Arturo |title=Influencia del mapuche en el castellano |journal=Revista Documentos Lingüísticos y Literarios UACh |date=1 January 1981 |issue=7 |url=http://www.revistadll.cl/index.php/revistadll/article/view/73 |access-date=7 November 2020 |archive-date=26 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070637/https://revistadll.cl/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Alongside Mapudungun, Quechua is the indigenous language that has influenced [[Chilean Spanish]] the most.<ref name="Hernadez" />

Quechua-Aymara and mixed Quechua-Aymara-[[Mapuche language|Mapudungu]] toponymy can be found as far south as [[Osorno Province]] in Chile (latitude 41° S).<ref>{{Cite book |title=Onomástica indígena de Chile: Toponimia de Osorno, Llanquihue y Chiloé |last=Ramírez Sánchez |first=Carlos |publisher=[[Universidad Austral de Chile]] |year=1995 |edition=2nd |location=[[Valdivia]] |language=Spanish}}</ref><ref name=indag2021>{{Cite journal |title=Indagaciones en torno al significado del oro en la cultura mapuche. Una exploración de fuentes y algo más |journal=[[Estudios Atacameños]] |url=https://scielo.conicyt.cl/scielo.php?pid=S0718-10432021000100309&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en |last1=Payàs Puigarnau |first1=Getrudis |date=2021-12-15 |volume=67 |last2=Villena Araya |first2=Belén |doi=10.22199/issn.0718-1043-2021-0028 |s2cid=244279716 |language=Spanish |trans-title=Inquiries on the Meaning of Gold in Mapuche Culture. A review of sources and something more |access-date=2023-04-25 |archive-date=2023-03-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326025834/https://scielo.conicyt.cl/scielo.php?pid=S0718-10432021000100309&script=sci_arttext&tlng=en |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=Toponimia indígena de las provincias de Osorno, Llanquihue y Chiloé |last=Ramírez Sanchez |first=Carlos |publisher=Marisa Cuneo Ediciones |year=1988 |location=Valdivia |pages=28 |language=Spanish}}</ref>

In 2017 the first thesis defense done in Quechua in Europe was done by Peruvian [[:es:Carmen Escalante Gutiérrez|Carmen Escalante Gutiérrez]] at [[Pablo de Olavide University]] ([[Sevilla]]).<ref>{{cite web |title=Pablo de Olavide University |url=https://www.upo.es/portal/impe/web/portada/index.html|website=upo.es |publisher=Pablo de Olavide University |access-date=10 September 2025}}</ref> The same year [[Pablo Landeo]] wrote the first novel in Quechua without a Spanish translation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://americasquarterly.org/fulltextarticle/why-a-quechua-novelist-doesnt-want-his-work-translated/|title = Why a Quechua Novelist Doesn't Want His Work Translated |website=Americas Quarterly |date=October 5, 2016  |last=Londoño |first=Vanessa |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231031183137/https://americasquarterly.org/fulltextarticle/why-a-quechua-novelist-doesnt-want-his-work-translated/ |archive-date= Oct 31, 2023 }}</ref> A Peruvian student, [[:es:Roxana Quispe Collantes|Roxana Quispe Collantes]] of the [[University of San Marcos]], completed and defended the first thesis in the language group in 2019; it concerned the works of poet [[:es:Andrés Alencastre Gutiérrez|Andrés Alencastre Gutiérrez]] and it was also the first non-Spanish native language thesis done at that university.<ref name=CollynsCollantes>{{cite web|author=Collyns, Dan|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/27/peru-student-roxana-quispe-collantes-thesis-inca-language-quechua|title=Student in Peru makes history by writing thesis in the Incas' language|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=2019-10-27|access-date=2019-10-28|archive-date=2024-05-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070611/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/27/peru-student-roxana-quispe-collantes-thesis-inca-language-quechua|url-status=live}}</ref>

Currently, there are different initiatives that promote Quechua in the Andes and across the world: many universities offer Quechua classes, a community-based organization such as [[Elva Ambía]]'s Quechua Collective of New York promote the language, and governments are training interpreters in Quechua to serve in healthcare, justice, and bureaucratic  facilities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://redaccion.lamula.pe/2018/02/20/el-problema-es-que-no-puedas-acceder-a-tus-derechos-solo-por-ser-hablante-de-una-lengua-originaria/albertoniquen/|title = "El problema es que no puedas acceder a tus derechos solo por ser hablante de una lengua originaria"}}</ref>

==Current status==
{{Update|part=section|date=February 2023|updated=}}
[[File:El quechua como lengua materna (censo nacional 2007).png|thumb|upright=1.59|Map of Peru showing the distribution of overall Quechua speakers by district]]In 1975, Peru became the first country to recognize Quechua as one of its official languages.<ref name=NYT1975>{{cite news |title=Peru officially adopting Indian tongue |first=Jonathan Gay |last=Kandell |date=May 22, 1975 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=http://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1975/05/23/issue.html |access-date=April 22, 2016 |archive-date=March 27, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327030201/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1975/05/23/issue.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Ecuador conferred official status on the language in its 2006 constitution, and in 2009, Bolivia adopted a new constitution that recognized Quechua and several other indigenous languages as official languages of the country.<ref name=Andes>{{cite book|title=The Andes: A Geographical Portrait|first=Axel|last=Borsdorf|date=12 March 2015|page=142|publisher=Springer|isbn=9783319035307|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lgEyBwAAQBAJ&q=ecuador+constitution+quechua&pg=PA142|access-date=7 November 2020|archive-date=26 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070611/https://books.google.com/books?id=lgEyBwAAQBAJ&q=ecuador+constitution+quechua&pg=PA142#v=snippet&q=ecuador%20constitution%20quechua&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>

The major obstacle to the usage and teaching of Quechua languages is the lack of written materials, such as books, newspapers, software, and magazines. The Bible has been translated into Quechua and is distributed by certain missionary groups. Quechua, along with [[Aymara language|Aymara]] and minor indigenous languages, remains essentially a [[spoken language]].

In recent years, Quechua has been introduced in [[intercultural bilingual education]] (IBE) in [[Peru]], [[Bolivia]], and [[Ecuador]]. Even in these areas, the governments are reaching only a part of the Quechua-speaking populations. Some indigenous people in each of the countries are having their children study in Spanish for social advancement.<ref>Adelaar 2004, pp. 258–259: "The Quechua speakers' wish for social mobility for their children is often heard as an argument for not transmitting the language to the next generation.... As observed quite adequately by [[Rodolfo Cerrón Palomino|Cerrón Palomino]], "Quechua (and [[Aymaran languages|Aymara]]) speakers seem to have taken the project of assimilation begun by the dominating classes and made it their own."</ref>

[[Radio Nacional del Perú]] broadcasts news and agrarian programs in Quechua for periods in the mornings.

Quechua and Spanish are now heavily intermixed in much of the Andean region, with many hundreds of Spanish loanwords in Quechua. Similarly, Quechua phrases and words are commonly used by Spanish speakers. In southern rural Bolivia, for instance, many Quechua words such as ''wawa'' (infant), ''misi'' (cat), ''waska'' (strap or thrashing), are as commonly used as their Spanish counterparts, even in entirely Spanish-speaking areas. Quechua has also had a significant influence on other native languages of the Americas, such as [[Mapuche language|Mapuche]].<ref name="Moulianetal2015"/>

===Number of speakers===
It is difficult to measure the number of Quechua speakers.<ref name=":2" /> The number of speakers given varies widely according to the sources. The total in ''[[Ethnologue]]'' 16 is 10 million, primarily based on figures published 1987–2002, but with a few dating from the 1960s. The figure for Imbabura Highland Quechua in ''Ethnologue'', for example, is 300,000, an estimate from 1977.

The missionary organization FEDEPI, on the other hand, estimated one million Imbabura dialect speakers (published 2006). Census figures are also problematic, due to under-reporting. The 2001 Ecuador census reports only 500,000 Quechua speakers, compared to the estimate in most linguistic sources of more than 2 million. The censuses of Peru (2007) and Bolivia (2001) are thought to be more reliable.

*Argentina: 900,000 (1971)
*Bolivia: 2,100,000 (2001 census); 2,800,000 South Bolivian (1987)
*Chile: few, if any; 8,200 in ethnic group (2002 census)
*Colombia: 4,402 to 16,000<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.ling.fi/DICCIONARIO.htm| title = Alain Fabre, Diccionario etnolingüístico y guía bibliográfica de los pubelos indígenas sudamericanos| access-date = 2016-09-23| archive-date = 2020-09-25| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200925212732/http://www.ling.fi/DICCIONARIO.htm| url-status = live}}</ref>
*Ecuador: 2,300,000 (Adelaar 1991)
*Peru: 3,800,000 (2017 census<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://censos2017.inei.gob.pe/redatam/|title=Inei – Redatam Censos 2017|access-date=2018-09-17|archive-date=2018-09-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913021542/http://censos2017.inei.gob.pe/redatam/|url-status=dead}}</ref>); 3,500,000 to 4,400,000 (Adelaar 2000)

Additionally, there is an unknown number of speakers in emigrant communities.<ref>{{Cite news
| last = Claudio Torrens
| title = Some NY immigrants cite lack of Spanish as barrier
| newspaper = San Diego Union-Tribune
| date = 2011-05-28
| url = https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sdut-some-ny-immigrants-cite-lack-of-spanish-as-barrier-2011may28-story.html
| access-date = 2022-08-20
| archive-date = 2015-02-01
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150201040607/http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/may/28/some-ny-immigrants-cite-lack-of-spanish-as-barrier/
| url-status = live
}}</ref>

==Classification==
[[File:Quechuan_distribution.svg|thumb|The four branches of Quechua: I (Central), II-A (North Peruvian), II-B (Northern), II-C (Southern)]]
There are significant differences among the varieties of Quechua spoken in the central Peruvian highlands and the peripheral varieties of Ecuador, as well as those of southern Peru and Bolivia. They can be labeled Quechua I (or Quechua B, central) and Quechua II (or Quechua A, peripheral). Within the two groups, there are few sharp boundaries, making them [[dialect continuum|dialect continua]].

However, there is a secondary division in Quechua II between the grammatically simplified northern varieties of Ecuador, Quechua II-B, known there as [[Kichwa language|Kichwa]], and the generally more conservative varieties of the southern highlands, Quechua II-C, which include the old Inca capital of [[Cusco]]. The closeness is at least in part because of the influence of [[Cusco Quechua]] on the Ecuadorean varieties in the Inca Empire. Because Northern nobles were required to educate their children in Cusco, this was maintained as the [[prestige dialect]] in the north.

Speakers from different points within any of the three regions can generally understand one another reasonably well. There are nonetheless significant local-level differences across each. ([[Wanka Quechua]], in particular, has several very distinctive characteristics that make the variety more challenging to understand, even for other Central Quechua speakers.) Speakers from different major regions, particularly Central or Southern Quechua, are not able to communicate effectively.

The lack of [[mutual intelligibility]] among the dialects is the basic criterion that defines Quechua not as a single language, but as a language family. The complex and progressive nature of how speech varies across the dialect continua makes it nearly impossible to differentiate discrete varieties; ''Ethnologue'' lists 45 varieties which are then divided into two groups; Central and Peripheral. Due to the non-intelligibility between the two groups, they are all classified as separate languages.<ref name=Ethnologue>{{cite web| url = http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=que| title = Ethnologue report for Quechua (macrolanguage) (SIL)}}</ref>

As a reference point, the overall degree of diversity across the family is a little less than that of the [[Romance languages|Romance]] or [[Germanic languages|Germanic]] families, and more of the order of [[Slavic languages|Slavic]] or [[Arabic]]. The greatest diversity is within Central Quechua, or Quechua I, which is believed to lie close to the [[Urheimat|homeland]] of the ancestral Proto-Quechua language.

===Family tree===
[[Alfredo Torero]] devised the traditional classification, the three divisions above, plus a fourth, a northern or Peruvian branch. The latter causes complications in the classification, however, as various dialects (e.g. [[Cajamarca–Cañaris Quechua|Cajamarca–Cañaris]], [[Pacaraos Quechua|Pacaraos]], and [[Yauyos–Chincha Quechua|Yauyos]]) have features of both Quechua I and Quechua II, and so are difficult to assign to either.

Torero classifies them as the following:

{{tree list}}
* '''Quechuan'''
** [[Quechua I]] or ''Quechua B,'' {{aka}} ''Central Quechua'' or ''Waywash,'' spoken in Peru's central highlands and coast.
*** The most widely spoken varieties are Huaylas, Huaylla Wanca, and Conchuco
** [[Quechua II]] or ''Quechua A'' or ''Peripheral Quechua'' or ''Wanp'una'', divided into
*** Yungay (Yunkay) Quechua or ''Quechua II A,'' spoken in the northern mountains of Peru; the most widely spoken dialect is Cajamarca.
*** [[Northern Quechua]] or ''Quechua II B,'' spoken in Ecuador ([[Kichwa language|Kichwa]]), northern Peru, and Colombia ([[Inga Kichwa]])
**** The most widely spoken varieties in this group are Chimborazo Highland Quichua and Imbabura Highland Quichua.
*** [[Southern Quechua]] or ''Quechua II C,'' spoken in Bolivia, Chile, southern Peru  and Northwest Argentina.
**** The most widely spoken varieties are South Bolivian, Cusco, Ayacucho, and Puno (Collao).
{{tree list/end}}

<!-- This schematic was introduced with the summary of Torero above, but it does not reflect Torero's classification, and its origin is not clear.
{{Clade
| label1=Proto-Quechua
| 1={{Clade
  | label1=[[Quechua I]]
  | 1={{Clade
     | label1=Central
     | 1={{Clade
        | label1='''[[Ancash Quechua|Huaylay]]'''
        | 1={{Clade
           | 1=Huaylas
           | 2=Conchucos}}
        | label2='''[[Alto Pativilca–Alto Marañón–Alto Huallaga Quechua|Alto Pativilca–Alto Marañón–Alto Huallaga]]'''
        | 2={{Clade
           | 1=Alto Pativilca
           | 2=Alto Marañón
           | 3=Alto Huallaga }}
        | label3=Huancay
        | 3={{Clade
           | 1='''[[Yaru Quechua|Yaru]]'''
           | 2='''[[Wanka Quechua|Jauja–Huanca]]'''
           | 3=[[Yauyos–Chincha Quechua|Huangáscar–Topará]] }} }}
     | 2=[[Pacaraos Quechua|Pacaraos]]{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}}
       }}
  | label2=[[Quechua II]]
  | 2={{Clade
     | label1=Yungay <br>(Quechua II-A)
     | 1={{Clade
        | label2='''[[Northern Peruvian Quechua|Northern Peruvian]]'''
        | 2={{Clade
            | 1=Inkawasi–Kañaris
            | 2=Cajamarca}}
        | label1='''[[Yauyos–Chincha Quechua|Central]]'''
        | 1={{Clade
           | 1=Laraos
           | 2=[[Lincha Quechua|Lincha]]
           | 3=Apurí
           | 4=Chocos
           | 5=Madean }} }}
     | label2=Chinchay
     | 2={{Clade
        | label1=[[Northern Quechua|Northern]] <br>(Quechua II-B)
        | 1={{Clade
           | 1='''[[Kichwa|Ecuador–Colombia]]'''
           | 2=[[Chachapoyas Quechua|Chachapoyas]] (Amazonas)
           | 3=[[Lamas Quechua|Lamas]] (San Martín) }}
        | label2='''Classical'''{{Citation needed|date=March 2012}}
        | 2={{Clade
           | 1=† ''quechua''
           | label2= '''[[Southern Quechua]]''' <br>(Quechua II-C)
           | 2={{Clade
              | 1=[[Ayacucho Quechua|Ayacucho]]
              | label2=Cuzco–Collao
              | 2={{Clade
                 | 1=[[Cuzco Quechua|Cuzco]]
                 | 2=Northern Bolivia
                 | 3=[[South Bolivian Quechua|Southern Bolivia]] }}
              | 3=[[Santiago del Estero Quichua|Santiago del Estero]] }}}} }} }}}} }}
-->
[[Willem Adelaar]] adheres to the Quechua I / Quechua II (central/peripheral) bifurcation. But, partially following later modifications by Torero, he reassigns part of Quechua II-A to Quechua I:<ref>Adelaar 2004.{{page needed|date=September 2013}}</ref>

{{Clade
| label1=Proto-Quechua
| 1={{Clade
 | label1=Quechua I
 | 1={{Clade
       | label1=Central
       | 1={{Clade
         | 1='''[[Ancash Quechua|Ancash]]''' (Huaylas–Conchucos)
         | 2='''[[Alto Pativilca–Alto Marañón–Alto Huallaga Quechua|Alto Pativilca–Alto Marañón–Alto Huallaga]]'''
         | 3='''[[Yaru Quechua|Yaru]]'''
         | 4='''[[Wanka Quechua|Wanka]]''' (Jauja–Huanca)
         | 5='''[[Yauyos–Chincha Quechua|Yauyos–Chincha]]''' (Huangáscar–Topará)
             }}
       | 2=[[Pacaraos Quechua|Pacaraos]]
     }}
 | label2=Quechua II
 | 2={{Clade
     | label1='''[[Cajamarca–Cañaris Quechua|Cajamarca–Cañaris]]'''<br>(Quechua II-A, reduced)
     | 1={{Clade
           | 1=[[Lambayeque Quechua|Lambayeque]] (Cañaris)
           | 2=[[Cajamarca Quechua|Cajamarca]]
         }}
     | label2=(Quechua II-A split)
     | 2=[[Lincha Quechua|Lincha]]
     | label3=(Quechua II-A split)
     | 3=Laraos
     | 4={{Clade
       | label1=Northern Quechua <br>(Quechua II-B)
       | 1={{Clade
             | 1='''[[Kichwa language|Kichwa]]''' ("Ecuadorian" or Highlands and Oriente)
             | 2=[[Chachapoyas Quechua|Chachapoyas]] (Amazonas)
             | 3=[[Lamas Quechua|Lamas]] (San Martín)
           }}
       | label2= '''[[Southern Quechua]]'''<br>(Quechua II-C)
       | 2={{Clade
               | 1=[[Ayacucho Quechua|Ayacucho]]
               | 2=[[Cusco Quechua|Cusco]]
               | 3=[[Puno Quechua|Puno]] (Collao)
               | 4=[[North Bolivian Quechua|Northern Bolivian]] (Apolo)
               | 5=[[South Bolivian Quechua|Southern Bolivia]]
               | 6=[[Santiagueño Quechua|Santiago del Estero]]}}
         }} }}
}} }}

Landerman (1991) does not believe a true genetic classification is possible and divides Quechua II so that the family has four geographical–typological branches: Northern, North Peruvian, Central, and Southern. He includes Chachapoyas and Lamas in North Peruvian Quechua so Ecuadorian is synonymous with Northern Quechua.<ref>Peter Landerman, 1991. ''Quechua dialects and their classification.'' PhD dissertation, UCLA</ref>

===Geographical distribution===
Quechua I (Central Quechua, ''Waywash'') is spoken in Peru's central highlands, from the [[Ancash Region]] to [[Huancayo]]. It is the most diverse branch of Quechua,<ref>Lyle Campbell, ''American Indian Languages: The Historical Linguistics of Native America'', Oxford University Press, 1997, p. 189</ref> to the extent that its divisions are commonly considered different languages.

Quechua II (Peripheral Quechua, ''Wamp'una'' "Traveler")
*II-A: Yunkay Quechua (North Peruvian Quechua) is scattered in Peru's occidental highlands.
*II-B: Northern Quechua (also known as ''Runashimi'' or, especially in Ecuador, [[Kichwa language|''Kichwa'']]) is mainly spoken in Colombia and Ecuador. It is also spoken in the Amazonian lowlands of Colombia and Ecuador, and in pockets of Peru.
*II-C: [[Southern Quechua]], in the highlands further south, from [[Huancavelica]] through the [[Ayacucho]], [[Cusco]], and [[Puno]] regions of [[Peru]], across much of [[Bolivia]], and in pockets in north-western [[Argentina]]. It is the most influential branch, with the largest number of speakers and the most important cultural and literary legacy.

===Cognates===
This is a sampling of words in several Quechuan languages:

{| class="wikitable"
|
! [[Ancash Quechua|Ancash]] (I)
! [[Wanka Quechua|Wanka]] ([[Quechua I|I]])
! [[Cajamarca Quechua|Cajamarca]] ([[Quechua II-A|II-A]])
! [[Lamas Quechua|San Martin]] (II-B)
! [[Kichwa language|Kichwa]] (II-B)
! [[Ayacucho Quechua|Ayacucho]] (II-C)
! [[Cusco Quechua|Cusco]] (II-C)
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'one'
| huk<br />{{IPA|[uk ~ huk]}}
| suk, huk<br />{{IPA|[suk]}}, {{IPA|[huk]}}
| suq<br />{{IPA|[soχ]}}
| suk<br />{{IPA|[suk]}}
| shuk<br />{{IPA|[ʃuk]}}
| huk<br />{{IPA|[huk]}}
| huk<br />{{IPA|[hoχ]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'two'
| ishkay <br />{{IPA|[ɪʃkeˑ ~ ɪʃkɐj]}}
| ishkay <br />{{IPA|[iʃkaj]}}
| ishkay <br />{{IPA|[ɪʃkɐj]}}
| ishkay <br />{{IPA|[iʃkaj]}}
| ishkay <br />{{IPA|[iʃki ~ iʃkaj]}}
| iskay<br />{{IPA|[iskæj]}}
| iskay<br />{{IPA|[iskæj]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'ten'
| ćhunka, chunka<br />{{IPA|[ʈ͡ʂʊŋkɐ]}}, {{IPA|[t͡ʃʊŋkɐ]}}
| ćhunka<br />{{IPA|[ʈ͡ʂuŋka]}}
| ch'unka<br />{{IPA|[ʈ͡ʂʊŋɡɐ]}}
| chunka<br />{{IPA|[t͡ʃuŋɡa]}}
| chunka<br />{{IPA|[t͡ʃuŋɡɐ ~ t͡ʃuŋkɐ]}}
| chunka<br />{{IPA|[t͡ʃuŋkɐ]}}
| chunka<br />{{IPA|[t͡ʃuŋkɐ]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'sweet'
| mishki<br />{{IPA|[mɪʃkɪ]}}
| mishki<br />{{IPA|[mɪʃkɪ]}}
| mishki<br />{{IPA|[mɪʃkɪ]}}
| mishki<br />{{IPA|[mɪʃkɪ]}}
| mishki<br />{{IPA|[mɪʃkɪ]}}
| miski<br />{{IPA|[mɪskɪ]}}
| misk'i<br />{{IPA|[mɪskʼɪ]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'white'
| yuraq<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾɑq ~ jʊɾɑχ]}}
| yulaq<br />{{IPA|[julah ~ julaː]}}
| yuraq<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾɑx]}}
| yurak<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾak]}}
| yurak<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾax ~ jʊɾak]}}
| yuraq<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾɑχ]}}
| yuraq<br />{{IPA|[jʊɾɑχ]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'he gives'
| qun<br />{{IPA|[qoŋ ~ χoŋ ~ ʁoŋ]}}
| qun<br />{{IPA|[huŋ ~ ʔuŋ]}}
| qun<br />{{IPA|[qoŋ]}}
| kun<br />{{IPA|[kuŋ]}}
| kun<br />{{IPA|[kuŋ]}}
| qun<br />{{IPA|[χoŋ]}}
| qun<br />{{IPA|[qoŋ]}}
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! 'yes'
| awmi<br />{{IPA|[oːmi ~ ɐwmɪ]}}
| aw <br />{{IPA|[aw]}}
| ari<br />{{IPA|[ɐɾi]}}
| ari<br />{{IPA|[aɾi]}}
| ari<br />{{IPA|[aɾi]}}
| arí<br />{{IPA|[ɐˈɾi]}}
| arí<br />{{IPA|[ɐˈɾi]}}
|}

===Quechua and Aymara===
Quechua shares a large amount of vocabulary, and some striking structural parallels, with [[Aymara language|Aymara]], and the two families have sometimes been grouped together as a "[[Quechumaran languages|Quechumaran family]]". This hypothesis is generally rejected by specialists, however. The parallels are better explained by mutual influence and borrowing through intensive and long-term contact. Many Quechua–Aymara cognates are close, often closer than intra-Quechua cognates, and there is a little relationship in the [[affix]]al system. The [[Puquina language]] of the [[Tiwanaku Empire]] is a possible source for some of the shared vocabulary between Quechua and Aymara.<ref name="Moulianetal2015">{{cite journal |last1=Moulian |first1=Rodrigo |last2=Catrileo |first2=María |last3=Landeo |first3=Pablo |title=Afines Quechua en el Vocabulario Mapuche de Luis de Valdivia |journal=RLA. Revista de lingüística teórica y aplicada |date=December 2015 |volume=53 |issue=2 |pages=73–96 |doi=10.4067/S0718-48832015000200004 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Language contact===
Jolkesky (2016) notes that there are lexical similarities with the [[Kunza language|Kunza]], [[Leco language|Leko]], [[Mapudungun languages|Mapudungun]], [[Mochika language|Mochika]], [[Uru-Chipaya languages|Uru-Chipaya]], [[Zaparo languages|Zaparo]], [[Arawak languages|Arawak]], [[Kandoshi language|Kandoshi]], [[Muniche language|Muniche]], [[Pukina language|Pukina]], [[Pano languages|Pano]], [[Barbakoa languages|Barbakoa]], [[Cholon-Hibito languages|Cholon-Hibito]], [[Jaqi languages|Jaqi]], [[Jivaro languages|Jivaro]], and [[Kawapana languages|Kawapana]] language families due to contact.<ref name="Jolkesky-2016">{{cite thesis |last=Jolkesky |first=Marcelo Pinho de Valhery |date=2016 |url=http://www.etnolinguistica.org/tese:jolkesky-2016-arqueoecolinguistica |title=Estudo arqueo-ecolinguístico das terras tropicais sul-americanas |type=Ph.D. dissertation |location=Brasília |publisher=University of Brasília |edition=2 |access-date=2020-06-04 |archive-date=2021-04-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418142223/http://www.etnolinguistica.org/tese:jolkesky-2016-arqueoecolinguistica |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Lexicon o Vocabulario de la lengua general del Peru 1560 first page of vocabulary list.jpg|thumb|''Vocabulary of the general language of the [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Indians]] of Peru, called Quichua'' (1560). From [[Domingo de Santo Tomás]], the first writer in Quechua.]]

==Vocabulary==
Quechua has [[Loanword|borrowed]] a large number of [[Spanish language|Spanish]] words, such as {{lang|qu|piru}} (from {{Lang|es|pero}}, "but"), {{lang|qu|bwenu}} (from {{Lang|es|bueno}}, "good"), {{lang|qu|iskwila}} (from {{Lang|es|escuela}}, "school"), {{lang|qu|waka}} (from {{Lang|es|vaca}}, "cow") and {{lang|qu|wuru}} (from {{Lang|es|burro}}, "donkey").<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Muysken |first1=Pieter |title=Root/affix asymmetries in contact and transfer: case studies from the Andes |journal=International Journal of Bilingualism |date=March 2012 |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=22–36 |doi=10.1177/1367006911403211 |s2cid=143633302 }}</ref>

A number of Quechua words have entered [[English language|English]] and [[English language|French]] via [[Spanish language|Spanish]], including ''[[coca]]'', ''[[condor]]'', ''[[guano]]'', ''[[jerky]]'', ''[[llama]]'', ''[[pampa]]'', ''[[poncho]]'', ''[[puma (genus)|puma]]'', ''[[quinine]]'', ''[[quinoa]]'', ''[[vicuña]]'' ({{Lang|fr|vigogne}} in French), and, possibly, ''[[gaucho]]''. The word ''[[lagniappe]]'' comes from the Quechuan word {{lang|qu|yapay}} "to increase, to add". The word first came into Spanish then [[Louisiana French]], with the French or Spanish article ''la'' in front of it, ''la ñapa'' in Louisiana French or Creole, or {{Lang|es|la yapa}} in Spanish. A rare instance of a Quechua word being taken into general Spanish use is given by ''carpa'' for "tent" (Quechua {{lang|qu|karpa}}).<ref>Edward A. Roberts, ''A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Spanish Language...'', 2014.</ref>

The Quechua influence on [[Latin American Spanish]] includes such borrowings as ''papa'' "potato", ''chuchaqui'' "hangover" in [[Ecuador]], and diverse borrowings for "[[altitude sickness]]": ''suruqch'i'' in [[Bolivia]], ''sorojchi'' in [[Ecuador]], and ''soroche'' in [[Peru]].

In Bolivia, particularly, Quechua words are used extensively even by non-Quechua speakers. These include ''wawa'' "baby, infant", ''chʼaki'' "hangover", ''misi'' "cat", ''jukʼucho'' "mouse", ''qʼumer uchu'' "green pepper", ''jaku'' "let's go", ''chhiri'' and ''chhurco'' "curly haired", among many others. Quechua grammar also enters Bolivian Spanish, such as the use of the suffix ''-ri''. In Bolivian Quechua, ''-ri'' is added to verbs to signify an action is performed with affection or, in the imperative, as a rough equivalent to "please". In Bolivia, ''-ri'' is often included in the Spanish imperative to imply "please" or to soften commands. For example, the standard ''pásame'' "pass me [something]" becomes ''pasarime''.

===Etymology of Quechua===
At first, Spaniards referred to the language of the Inca empire as the ''lengua general'', the ''general tongue''. The name ''quichua'' was first used in 1560 by [[Domingo de Santo Tomás]] in his ''Grammatica o arte de la lengua general de los indios de los reynos del Perú''.<ref name=Adelaar179>Adelaar 2004, p. 179.</ref> It is not known what name the native speakers gave to their language before colonial times and whether it was Spaniards who called it ''quechua''.<ref name=Adelaar179/>

There are two possible etymologies of Quechua as the name of the language. There is a possibility that the name Quechua was derived from ''*qiĉwa'', the native word which originally meant the "temperate valley" altitude ecological zone in the Andes (suitable for maize cultivation) and to its inhabitants.<ref name=Adelaar179/> Alternatively, [[Pedro Cieza de León]] and [[Inca Garcilaso de la Vega]], the early Spanish chroniclers, mention the existence of a people called Quichua in the present [[Apurímac Region]], and it could be inferred that their name was given to the entire language.<ref name="Adelaar179" />

The Hispanicised spellings ''Quechua'' and ''Quichua'' have been used in Peru and Bolivia since the 17th century, especially after the [[Third Council of Lima]]. Today, the various local pronunciations of "Quechua" include {{IPA|qu|ˈqʰeʃwa ~ ˈqʰeswa|}}, {{IPA|qu|ˈχɪt͡ʃwa|}}, {{IPA|qu|ˈkit͡ʃwa|}}, and {{IPA|qu|ˈʔiʈ͡ʂwa|}}.

Another name that native speakers give to their own language is ''runa simi'', "language of man/people"; it also seems to have emerged during the colonial period.<ref name=Adelaar179/>
==Phonology==

===Consonants===
{{Listen|filename=qu-pata_phata_p'ata.ogg|title=Voiceless bilabial plosives|description=Pronunciation of the voiceless bilabial plosives of Cusco Quechua|format=[[Ogg]]}}

Voicing is not [[phoneme|phonemic]] in Cusco Quechua. [[Cusco Quechua]], [[North Bolivian Quechua]], and [[South Bolivian Quechua]] are the only varieties to have [[glottalized consonant]]s. They, along with certain kinds of Ecuadorian [[Kichwa language|Kichwa]], are the only varieties which have [[aspirated consonant]]s. Because reflexes of a given Proto-Quechua word may have different stops in neighboring dialects (Proto-Quechua ''*čaki'' 'foot' becomes ''č'aki'' and Proto-Quechua ''*čaka'' 'bridge' becomes ''čaka''{{Non sequitur|reason=No different dialects are mentioned here|date=March 2023}}), they are thought to be innovations in Quechua from [[Aymara language|Aymara]], borrowed independently after branching off from Proto-Quechua.

===Stress===
Stress is penultimate in most dialects of Quechua. In some varieties, factors such as the [[apocope]] of word-final vowels may cause exceptional final stress. Stress in Chachapoyas Quechua falls word-initially.

==Orthography==
{{main|Quechua alphabet}}
{{further|Southern Quechua#Standard Quechua|l1=Southern Quechua § Standard Quechua}}

Quechua has been written using the [[Roman Alphabet|Roman alphabet]] since the [[Spanish conquest of Peru]]. However, written Quechua is rarely used by Quechua speakers due to limited amounts of printed<!--hiding this because incomprehensible/illogical: referential --> material in the language.

Until the 20th century, Quechua was written with a Spanish-based [[orthography]], for example ''Inca, Huayna Cápac, Collasuyo, Mama Ocllo, Viracocha, quipu, tambo, condor''. This orthography is the most familiar to Spanish speakers, and so it has been used for most borrowings into English, which essentially always happen through Spanish.

In 1975, the Peruvian government of [[Juan Velasco Alvarado]] adopted a new orthography for Quechua. This is the system preferred by the [[Academia Mayor de la Lengua Quechua]], which results in the following spellings of the examples listed above: ''Inka, Wayna Qhapaq, Qollasuyu, Mama Oqllo, Wiraqocha, khipu, tampu, kuntur''. This orthography has the following features:
* It uses ''w'' instead of ''hu'' for {{IPA|/w/}}.
* It distinguishes velar ''k'' from uvular ''q'', both of which were spelled ''c'' or ''qu'' in the traditional system.{{Example needed|date=December 2018}}
* It distinguishes simple, ejective, and aspirated stops in dialects that make these distinctions, such as that of the [[Cusco Region]], e.g. the aspirated ''khipu'' 'knot'.
* It continues to use the Spanish five-vowel system.

In 1985, a variation of this system was adopted by the Peruvian government that uses the Quechuan three-vowel system, resulting in the following spellings: ''Inka, Wayna Qhapaq, Qullasuyu, Mama Uqllu, Wiraqucha, khipu, tampu, kuntur''.

The different orthographies are still highly controversial in Peru. Advocates of the traditional system believe that the new orthographies look too foreign and believe that it makes Quechua harder to learn for people who have first been exposed to written Spanish. Those who prefer the new system maintain that it better matches the phonology of Quechua, and they point to studies showing that teaching the five-vowel system to children later causes reading difficulties in Spanish.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

For more on this, see [[Quechuan and Aymaran spelling shift]].

Writers differ in the treatment of Spanish loanwords. These are sometimes adapted to modern orthography and sometimes left as in Spanish. For instance, "I am Roberto" could be written ''Robertom kani'' or ''Ruwirtum kani''. (The ''-m'' is not part of the name; it is an evidential suffix, showing how the information is known: firsthand, in this case.)

In Cusco, Peru, the ancient capital of the Incas, there is a debate where some scholars claim that Quechua has three vowels while others claim it has five.

The Peruvian linguist [[Rodolfo Cerrón Palomino]] has proposed an orthographic norm for all of [[Southern Quechua]]: this Standard Quechua (''el Quechua estándar'' or ''Hanan Runasimi'') conservatively integrates features of the two widespread dialects [[Ayacucho Quechua]] and [[Cusco Quechua]]. For instance:<ref>To listen to recordings of these and many other words as pronounced in many different Quechua-speaking regions, see the external website [http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Sounds The Sounds of the Andean Languages] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070109094302/http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Sounds/ |date=2007-01-09 }}. It also has an entire section on the new [http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Sounds/Home/HomeSpelling.htm Quechua and Aymara Spelling] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111174055/http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Sounds/Home/HomeSpelling.htm |date=2013-11-11 }}.</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!English
!Ayacucho
!Cusco
!Standard Quechua
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| to drink
| upyay
| uhyay
| upyay
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| fast
| utqa
| usqha
| utqha
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| to work
| llamkay
| llank'ay
| llamk'ay
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| we (inclusive)
| ñuqanchik
| nuqanchis
| ñuqanchik
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| (progressive suffix)
| -chka-
| -sha-
| -chka-
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
| day
| punchaw
| p'unchay
| p'unchaw
|}

The Spanish-based orthography is now in conflict with Peruvian law. According to article 20 of the decree ''Decreto Supremo No 004-2016-MC'', which approves regulations relative to Law 29735, published in the official newspaper El Peruano on July 22, 2016, adequate spellings of the [[toponym]]s in the normalized alphabets of the indigenous languages must progressively be proposed, with the aim of standardizing the spellings used by the National Geographic Institute ''(Instituto Geográfico Nacional, IGN)'' The IGN implements the necessary changes on the official maps of Peru.<ref name=decree>{{cite news|url=http://busquedas.elperuano.com.pe/normaslegales/decreto-supremo-que-aprueba-el-reglamento-de-la-ley-n-29735-decreto-supremo-n-004-2016-mc-1407753-5/|title=Decreto Supremo que aprueba el Reglamento de la Ley N° 29735, Ley que regula el uso, preservación, desarrollo, recuperación, fomento y difusión de las lenguas originarias del Perú, Decreto Supremo N° 004-2016-MC|access-date=July 10, 2017|archive-date=October 29, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171029100122/http://busquedas.elperuano.com.pe/normaslegales/decreto-supremo-que-aprueba-el-reglamento-de-la-ley-n-29735-decreto-supremo-n-004-2016-mc-1407753-5/|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Grammar==

===Morphological type===
Quechua is an [[Agglutinative language|agglutinating language]], meaning that words are built up from basic roots followed by several [[suffix]]es, each of which carries one meaning. Their large number of [[suffix]]es changes both the overall meaning of words and their subtle shades of meaning. All varieties of Quechua are very regular agglutinative languages, as opposed to [[isolating language|isolating]] or [[fusional language|fusional]] ones [Thompson]. Their normal sentence order is SOV ([[subject–object–verb]]). Notable grammatical features include bipersonal [[grammatical conjugation|conjugation]] (verbs agree with both subject and object), [[evidentiality]] (indication of the source and veracity of knowledge), a set of [[topic (linguistics)|topic]] [[grammatical particle|particles]], and suffixes indicating who benefits from an action and the speaker's attitude toward it, but some varieties may lack some of the characteristics.

===Pronouns===
{| border="1" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0"  style="float:right; margin:0 0 1em 1em; background:#f9f9f9; border:1px gray solid; border-collapse:collapse; font-size:95%; vertical-align:center;"
| colspan=2 rowspan=2 style="background:white;border-top:2px white solid;border-right:1px solid gray;border-bottom:1px solid gray;border-left:2px white solid;"|
| colspan="2"  style="text-align:center; background:#9fb6cd;"|<big>'''Number'''</big>
|-  style="text-align:center; background:#b9d3ee;"
||'''''Singular'''''
||'''''Plural'''''
|-
| rowspan=3 style="background:#9FB6CD"|<big>'''Person'''</big>
|  style="text-align:center; background:#b9d3ee;"|'''''First'''''
|Ñuqa
|Ñuqanchik ''(inclusive)''
Ñuqayku ''(exclusive)''
|-
|  style="text-align:center; background:#b9d3ee;"|'''''Second'''''
|Qam
|Qamkuna
|-
|  style="text-align:center; background:#b9d3ee;"|'''''Third'''''
|Pay
|Paykuna
|}
In Quechua, there are seven [[pronoun]]s, gender distinction does not exist. First-person plural pronouns (equivalent to "we") may be [[clusivity|inclusive or exclusive]]; which mean, respectively, that the [[Interlocutor (linguistics)|addressee]] ("you") is or is not part of the "we". Quechua also adds the suffix ''-kuna'' to the second and third person singular pronouns ''qam'' and ''pay'' to create the plural forms, ''qam-kuna'' and ''pay-kuna''. In Quechua IIB, or "Kichwa", the exclusive first-person plural pronoun, "ñuqayku", is generally obsolete.

===Adjectives===
[[Adjective]]s in Quechua are always placed before nouns and are invariable.

===Numbers===
*[[Cardinal number (linguistics)|Cardinal number]]s. ''ch'usaq'' (0), ''huk'' (1), ''iskay'' (2), ''kimsa'' (3), ''tawa'' (4), ''pichqa'' (5), ''suqta'' (6), ''qanchis'' (7), ''pusaq'' (8), ''isqun'' (9), ''chunka'' (10), ''chunka hukniyuq'' (11), ''chunka iskayniyuq'' (12), ''iskay chunka'' (20), ''pachak'' (100), ''waranqa'' (1,000), ''hunu'' (1,000,000), ''lluna'' (1,000,000,000,000, i.e. a [[trillion]]).
*Ordinal numbers. To form ordinal numbers, the word ''ñiqin'' is put after the appropriate cardinal number (''iskay ñiqin'' = "second"). The only exception is that, in addition to ''huk ñiqin'' ("first"), the phrase ''ñawpaq'' is also used in the somewhat more restricted sense of "the initial, primordial, the oldest".

===Nouns===
Like pronouns, they are genderless. There are no articles either. [[Noun]] roots accept suffixes that indicate [[grammatical number|number]], [[grammatical case|case]], and the [[grammatical person|person]] of a [[possession (linguistics)|possessor]]. In general, the possessive suffix precedes that of number. In the [[Santiago del Estero]] variety, however, the order is reversed.<ref>{{cite web
|first = Jorge R.
|last = Alderetes
|title = Morfología nominal del quechua santiagueño
|year = 1997
|url = http://usuarios.arnet.com.ar/yanasu/Cap3-1.htm
|access-date = 2008-01-21
|archive-date = 2017-10-11
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171011125336/http://usuarios.arnet.com.ar/yanasu/Cap3-1.htm
|url-status = dead
}}</ref> From variety to variety, suffixes may change. The use of the ''-kuna'' plural suffix is largely facultative in nouns, like in many languages where number indication is optional.

{| style="margin:auto;"  class="wikitable"
|+ Examples using the word ''wasi'' (house)
! colspan=2 | Function
! Suffix
! Example
! (translation)
|-
| suffix indicating number
| plural
| -kuna
| wasi'''kuna'''
| houses
|-
| rowspan=7 | possessive suffix
| 1.person singular
| -y, -:
| wasi'''y''', wasi'''i'''
| my house
|-
| ''2.person singular''
| -yki
| wasi'''yki'''
| your house
|-
| ''3.person singular''
| -n
| wasi'''n'''
| his/her/its house
|-
| ''1.person plural (incl)''
| -nchik
| wasi'''nchik'''
| our house (incl.)
|-
| ''1.person plural (excl)''
| -y-ku
| wasi'''yku'''
| our house (excl.)
|-
| ''2.person plural''
| -yki-chik
| wasi'''ykichik'''
| your (pl.) house
|-
| ''3.person plural''
| -n-ku
| wasi'''nku'''
| their house
|-
| rowspan=18 | suffixes indicating case
| [[Nominative case|nominative]]
| –
| wasi
| the house (subj.)
|-
| [[Accusative case|accusative]]
| -(k)ta
| wasi'''ta'''
| the house (obj.)
|-
| [[Instrumental case|instrumental]]
| -wan
| wasi'''wan'''
| with the house, and the house
|-
| [[Abessive case|abessive]]
| -naq/-nax/-naa
| wasi'''naq'''
| without the house
|-
| [[Dative case|dative]]/[[Benefactive case|benefactive]]
| -paq/-pax/-paa
| wasi'''paq'''
| to/for the house
|-
| [[Genitive case|genitive]]
| -p(a)
| wasi'''p(a)'''
| the house's
|-
| [[Causative case|causative]]
| -rayku
| wasi'''rayku'''
| because of the house
|-
| [[Locative case|locative]]
| -pi
| wasi'''pi'''
| at the house
|-
| [[Allative case|directional]]
| -man
| wasi'''man'''
| towards the house
|-
| [[Inclusive case|inclusive]]
| -piwan, puwan
| wasi'''piwan''', wasi'''puwan'''
| including the house
|-
| [[Terminative case|terminative]]
| -kama, -yaq
| wasi'''kama''', wasi'''yaq'''
| up to the house
|-
| [[Perlative case|transitive]]
| -(ni)nta
| wasi'''nta'''
| through the house
|-
| [[Ablative case|ablative]]
| -manta, -piqta, -pu
| wasi'''manta''', wasi'''piqta'''
| off/from the house
|-
| [[Comitative case|comitative]]
| -(ni)ntin
| wasi'''ntin'''
| along with the house
|-
| [[Immediate case|immediate]]
| -raq/-rax/-raa
| wasi'''raq'''
| first the house
|-
| [[Intrative case|intrative]]
| -pura
| wasi'''pura'''
| among the houses
|-
| [[Exclusive case|exclusive]]
| -lla(m)
| wasi'''lla(m)'''
| only the house
|-
| [[Comparative case|comparative]]
| -naw, -hina
| wasi'''naw''', wasi'''hina'''
| than the house
|}

===Adverbs===
[[Adverb]]s can be formed by adding ''-ta'' or, in some cases, ''-lla'' to an adjective: ''allin – allinta'' ("good – well"), ''utqay – utqaylla'' ("quick – quickly"). They are also formed by adding suffixes to [[demonstrative]]s: ''chay'' ("that") – ''chaypi'' ("there"), ''kay'' ("this") – ''kayman'' ("hither").

There are several original adverbs. For Europeans, it is striking that the adverb ''qhipa'' means both "behind" and "future" and ''ñawpa'' means "ahead, in front" and "past".<ref>This occurs in English, where "before" means "in the past", and Shakespeare's Macbeth says "The greatest is behind", meaning in the future.</ref> Local and temporal concepts of adverbs in Quechua (as well as in [[Aymara language|Aymara]]) are associated to each other reversely, compared to European languages. For the speakers of Quechua, we are moving backwards into the future (we cannot see it: it is unknown), facing the past (we can see it: it is remembered).

===Verbs===
The [[infinitive]] forms have the suffix ''-y'' (e.g.''., much'a'' 'kiss'; ''much'a-y'' 'to kiss'). These are the typical endings for the [[indicative]] in a Southern Quechua (IIC) dialect:
{| style="margin:auto;"  class="wikitable"
!
! Present
! Past
!Past habitual
! Future
! [[Pluperfect]]
!Optative
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! ñuqa
| -ni
| -rqa-ni
| -qka-ni
| -saq
| -sqa-ni
| -yman
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! qam
| -nki
| -rqa-nki
| -qka-nki
| -nki
| -sqa-nki
| -nki-man
-waq
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! pay
| -n
| -rqa(-n)
| -q
| -nqa
| -sqa
| -nman
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! ñuqanchik
| -nchik
| -rqa-nchik
| -qka-nchik
| -su-nchik
| -sqa-nchik
| -nchik-man
-sun(-chik)-man

-swan
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! ñuqayku
| -yku
| -rqa-yku
| -qka-yku
| -saq-ku
| -sqa-yku
| -yku-man
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! qamkuna
| -nki-chik
| -rqa-nki-chik
| -qka-nki-chik
| -nki-chik
| -sqa-nki-chik
| -nki-chik-man
-waq-chik
|- style="background:#f0f8ff;"
! paykuna
| -n-ku
| -rqa-(n)ku
| -q-ku
| -nqa-ku
| -sqa-ku
| -nku-man
|}

The suffixes shown in the table above usually indicate the [[grammatical subject|subject]]; the person of the [[grammatical object|object]] is also indicated by a suffix, which precedes the suffixes in the table. For the second person, it is ''-su-'', and for the first person, it is ''-wa-'' in most Quechua II dialects.  In such cases, the plural suffixes from the table (''-chik'' and ''-ku'') can be used to express the number of the object rather than the subject. There is a lot of variation between the dialects in the exact rules which determine this.<ref>Wunderlich, Dieter (2005). [http://www.zas-berlin.de/fileadmin/mitarbeiter/wunderlich/Quechua_Leipzig.pdf Variation der Person-Numerus-Flexion in Quechua] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526071115/http://www.zas-berlin.de/fileadmin/mitarbeiter/wunderlich/Quechua_Leipzig.pdf |date=2024-05-26 }}. Flexionsworkshop Leipzig, 14. Juli 2005]</ref><ref>Lakämper, Renate, Dieter Wunderlich. 1998. Person marking in Quechua: a constraint-based minimalist analysis. Lingua 105: pp. 113–48.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.phil-fak.uni-duesseldorf.de/sfb282/C9/lak/ |title = Lakämper, Renate. 2000. Plural- und Objektmarkierung in Quechua. Doctoral Dissertation. Philosophische Fakultät der Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929210539/http://www.phil-fak.uni-duesseldorf.de/sfb282/C9/lak/ |archive-date=29 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In Central Quechua, however, the verbal morphology differs in a number of respects: most notably, the verbal plural suffixes ''-chik'' and ''-ku'' are not used, and plurality is expressed by different suffixes that are located ''before'' rather than after the personal suffixes. Furthermore, the 1st person singular object suffix is ''-ma-'', rather than ''-wa-''.<ref>Adelaar 2007: 189</ref>

===Grammatical particles===
[[Grammatical particle|Particles]] are indeclinable: they do not accept suffixes. They are relatively rare, but the most common are ''arí'' 'yes' and ''mana'' 'no', although ''mana'' can take some suffixes, such as ''-n''/''-m'' (''manan''/''manam''), ''-raq'' (''manaraq'' 'not yet') and ''-chu'' (''manachu?'' 'or not?'), to intensify the meaning. Other particles are ''yaw'' 'hey, hi', and certain loan words from Spanish, such as ''piru'' (from Spanish ''pero'' 'but') and ''sinuqa'' (from ''sino'' 'rather').

===Evidentiality===
The Quechuan languages have three different morphemes that mark [[evidentiality]].  Evidentiality refers to a morpheme whose primary purpose is to indicate the source of information.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 3.</ref>  In Quechuan languages, evidentiality is a three-term system: there are three evidential morphemes that mark varying levels of source information. The markers can apply to first, second, and third persons.<ref name="Aikhenvald 2004, p. 377">Aikhenvald 2004, p. 377.</ref> The chart below depicts an example of these morphemes from [[Wanka Quechua]]:<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 42.</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Evidential morphemes
! ''-m(i)'' || ''-chr(a)'' || ''-sh(i)''
|-
| Direct evidence || Inferred; conjecture || Reported; hearsay
|}
<section begin="list-of-glossing-abbreviations"/><div style="display:none;">
DIR:direct evidence
CONJ:conjecture
</div><section end="list-of-glossing-abbreviations"/>

The parentheses around the vowels indicate that the vowel can be dropped when following an open vowel.{{Clarify|reason=Clearly, none of them follows a vowel. Is the intention to indicate that they are dropped when another vowel follows?|date=May 2025}} For the sake of cohesiveness, the above forms are used to discuss the evidential morphemes. There are dialectal variations to the forms. The variations will be presented in the following descriptions.

The following sentences provide examples of the three evidentials and further discuss the meaning behind each of them.

====''-m(i)'' : Direct evidence and commitment====
<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 60.</ref>
Regional variations: In [[Cusco Quechua]], the direct evidential presents itself as ''–mi''  and ''–n''.

The evidential ''–mi'' indicates that the speaker has a "strong personal conviction the veracity of the circumstance expressed."<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 57.</ref>  It has the basis of direct personal experience.

Wanka Quechua<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 61.</ref>
{{interlinear|indent=3
|ñawi-i-wan-'''mi''' lika-la-a
|eye-1P-with-DIR see-PST-1
|I saw them with my own eyes.}}

====''-chr(a)'' : Inference and attenuation====
<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 95.</ref>
 
In Quechuan languages, not specified by the source, the inference morpheme appears as ''-ch(i), -ch(a), -chr(a)''.

The ''-chr(a)'' evidential indicates that the utterance is an inference or form of conjecture. That inference relays the speaker's non-commitment to the truth-value of the statement. It also appears in cases such as acquiescence, irony, interrogative constructions, and first person inferences. These uses constitute nonprototypical use and will be discussed later in the ''changes in meaning and other uses'' section.

Wanka Quechua<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 103.</ref>
{{interlinear|indent=3
|kuti-mu-n'a-qa-'''chr''' ni-ya-ami
|return-{{gcl|AFAR|translocative (at a distance)}}-{{gcl|3FUT|third person future}}-now-CONJ say-{{gcl|IMPV|imperfective}}-1-DIR
|I think they will probably come back.}}

====''-sh(i)'' : Hearsay====
<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 123.</ref>
Regional variations: It can appear as ''–sh(i)'' or ''–s(i)'' depending on the dialect.

With the use of this morpheme, the speaker "serves as a conduit through which information from another source passes." The information being related is hearsay or revelatory in nature. It also works to express the uncertainty of the speaker regarding the situation. However, it also appears in other constructions that are discussed in the ''changes in meaning'' section.

Wanka Quechua<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 127.</ref>
{{interlinear|indent=3
|shanti-'''sh''' prista-ka-mu-la
|Shanti-HSY borrow-REF-{{gcl|AFAR|translocative (at a distance)}}-PST
|(I was told) Shanti borrowed it.}}

Hintz discusses an interesting case of evidential behavior found in the Sihaus dialect of [[Ancash Quechua]]. The author postulates that instead of three single evidential markers, that Quechuan language contains three pairs of evidential markers.<ref>Hintz 1999, p. 1.</ref>

====Affix or clitic====
The evidential morphemes have been referred to as markers or morphemes. The literature seems to differ on whether or not the evidential morphemes are acting as affixes or clitics, in some cases, such as Wanka Quechua, enclitics. Lefebvre and Muysken (1998) discuss this issue in terms of case but remark the line between affix and clitic is not clear.<ref>Lefebvre & Muysken 1998, p. 89.</ref> Both terms are used interchangeably throughout these sections.

====Position in the sentence====
Evidentials in the Quechuan languages are "second position enclitics", which usually attach to the first constituent in the sentence, as shown in this example.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 68-69.</ref>

{{interlinear|indent=3
|huk-'''si''' ka-sqa huk machucha-piwan payacha
|once-HSY be-SD one old.man-WITH woman
|Once, there were an old man and an old woman.}}

They can, however, also occur on a focused constituent.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|Pidru kunana-'''mi''' wasi-ta tuwa-sha-n
|Pedro now-DIR.EV house-ACC build-PROG-3SG
|It is now that Pedro is building the house.}}

Sometimes, the affix is described as attaching to the focus, particularly in the Tarma dialect of [[Yaru Quechua]],<ref>Weber 1986, p. 145.</ref> but this does not hold true for all varieties of Quechua. In Huanuco Quechua, the evidentials may follow any number of topics, marked by the topic marker ''–qa'', and the element with the evidential must precede the main verb or be the main verb.

However, there are exceptions to that rule, and the more topics there are in a sentence, the more likely the sentence is to deviate from the usual pattern.
{{interlinear|indent=3
|Chawrana-qa puntataruu-qu trayaruptin-qa wamrata-qa mayna-'''shi''' Diosninchi-qa heqarkaykachisha syelutana-shi
|so:already-TOP at:the:peak-TOP arriving-TOP child-TOP already-IND our:God-TOP had:taken:her:up to:heaven:already-IND
|When she (the witch) reached the peak, God had already taken the child up into heaven.}}

====Changes in meaning and other uses====
Evidentials can be used to relay different meanings depending on the context and perform other functions. The following examples are restricted to Wanka Quechua.

'''''The direct evidential, -mi'''''

The direct evidential appears in wh-questions and yes/no questions. By considering the direct evidential in terms of prototypical semantics, it seems somewhat counterintuitive to have a direct evidential, basically an evidential that confirms the speaker's certainty about a topic, in a question. However, if one focuses less on the structure and more on the situation, some sense can be made. The speaker is asking the addressee for information so the speaker assumes the speaker knows the answer. That assumption is where the direct evidential comes into play. The speaker holds a certain amount of certainty that the addressee will know the answer. The speaker interprets the addressee as being in "direct relation" to the proposed content; the situation is the same as when, in regular sentences, the speaker assumes direct relation to the proposed information.<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 87.</ref>

{{interlinear|indent=3
|imay-'''mi''' wankayuu-pu kuti-mu-la
|when-DIR Huancayo-ABL return-{{gcl|AFAR|translocative (at a distance)}}-PAST
|When did he come back from Huancayo?
<br />(Floyd 1999, p. 85)}}

The direct evidential affix is also seen in yes/no questions, similar to the situation with wh-questions. Floyd describes yes/no questions as being "characterized as instructions to the addressee to assert one of the propositions of a disjunction."<ref>Floyd 1999, p. 89.</ref> Once again, the burden of direct evidence is being placed on the addressee, not on the speaker. The question marker in Wanka Quechua, ''-chun'', is derived from the negative –chu marker and the direct evidential (realized as –n in some dialects).

{{interlinear|indent=3
|tarma-kta li-n-'''chun'''
|Tarma-ACC go-3-{{gcl|Y/N?|yes/no question}}
|Is he going to Tarma?
<br />(Floyd 1999, p. 89)}}

====Inferential evidential, -chr(a)====

While ''–chr(a)'' is usually used in an inferential context, it has some non-prototypical uses.

''Mild Exhortation''
In these constructions the evidential works to reaffirm and encourage the addressee's actions or thoughts.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|mas kalu-kuna-kta li-la-a ni-nki-'''chra'''-ri
|more far-PL-ACC go-PST-1 say-2-CONJ-EMPH
|Yes, tell them, "I've gone farther."
<br />(Floyd 1999, p. 107)}}

This example comes from a conversation between husband and wife, discussing the reactions of their family and friends after they have been gone for a while. The husband says he plans to stretch the truth and tell them about distant places to which he has gone, and his wife (in the example above) echoes and encourages his thoughts.

''Acquiescence''
With these, the evidential is used to highlight the speaker's assessment of inevitability of an event and acceptance of it. There is a sense of resistance, diminished enthusiasm, and disinclination in these constructions.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|paaga-lla-shrayki-'''chra'''-a
|pay-POL-{{gcl|1›2FUT|first subject, second object, future}}-CONJ-EMPH
|I suppose I'll pay you then.
<br />(Floyd 1999, p. 109)}}

This example comes from a discourse where a woman demands compensation from the man (the speaker in the example) whose pigs ruined her potatoes. He denies the pigs as being his but finally realizes he may be responsible and produces the above example.

''Interrogative''
Somewhat similar to the ''–mi'' evidential, the inferential evidential can be found in content questions. However, the salient difference between the uses of the evidentials in questions is that in the ''–m(i)'' marked questions, an answer is expected. That is not the case with ''–chr(a)'' marked questions.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|ima-lla-kta-'''chr''' u-you-shrun llapa ayllu-kuna-kta-si chra-alu-l
|what-{{gcl|LIM|limitative (just)}}-ACC-CONJ give-ASP-{{gcl|12FUT|first person inclusive, future}} all family-PL-ACC-{{gcl|EVEN|evidential (hearsay)}} arrive-ASP-SS
|I wonder what we will give our families when we arrive.
<br />(Floyd 1999, p. 111)}}

''Irony''
Irony in language can be a somewhat complicated topic in how it functions differently in languages, and by its semantic nature, it is already somewhat vague.  For these purposes, it is suffice to say that when irony takes place in Wanka Quechua, the ''–chr(a)'' marker is used.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|chay-nuu-pa-'''chr''' yachra-nki
|that-{{gcl|SIM|similarity}}-GEN-CONJ know-2
|(I suppose) That's how you learn [that is the way in which you will learn].
<br />(Floyd 199, p. 115)}}

This example comes from discourse between a father and daughter about her refusal to attend school. It can be interpreted as a genuine statement (perhaps one can learn by resisting school) or as an ironic statement (that is an absurd idea).

====Hearsay evidential, -sh(i)====

Aside from being used to express hearsay and revelation, this affix also has other uses.

''Folktales, myths, and legends''

Because folktales, myths, and legends are, in essence, reported speech, it follows that the hearsay marker would be used with them.  Many of these types of stories are passed down through generations, furthering this aspect of reported speech. A difference between simple hearsay and folktales can be seen in the frequency of the ''–sh(i)'' marker.  In normal conversation using reported speech, the marker is used less, to avoid redundancy.

''Riddles''

Riddles are somewhat similar to myths and folktales in that their nature is to be passed by word of mouth.

{{interlinear|indent=3
|ima-lla-'''shi''' ayka-lla-'''sh''' juk machray-chru puñu-ya-n puka waaka
|what-{{gcl|LIM|limitative (just)}}-HSY how^much-{{gcl|LIM|limitative (just)}}-HSY one cave-LOC sleep-{{gcl|IMPF|imperfect}}-3 red cow
|What is it? How much? A red cow is sleeping in a cave. [ans: a tongue]
|(Floyd 1999, p. 142)}}

====Omission and overuse of evidential affixes====

In certain grammatical structures, the evidential marker does not appear at all. In all Quechuan languages the evidential will not appear in a dependent clause. No example was given to depict this omission.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 72.</ref>
Omissions occur in Quechua. The sentence is understood to have the same evidentiality as the other sentences in the context. Quechuan speakers vary as to how much they omit evidentials, but they occur only in connected speech.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 79.</ref>

An interesting contrast to omission of evidentials is overuse of evidentials. If a speaker uses evidentials too much with no reason, competence is brought into question.  For example, the overuse of –m(i) could lead others to believe that the speaker is not a native speaker or, in some extreme cases, that one is mentally ill.<ref name="Aikhenvald 2004, p. 377"/>

====Cultural aspect====

By using evidentials, the Quechua culture has certain assumptions about the information being relayed. Those who do not abide by the cultural customs should not be trusted. A passage from Weber (1986) summarizes them:
# (Only) one's experience is reliable.
# Avoid unnecessary risk by assuming responsibility for information of which one is not absolutely certain.
# Do not be gullible. There are many folktales in which the villain is foiled by his gullibility.
#Assume responsibility only if it is safe to do so. Successful assumption of responsibility builds stature in the community.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 358.</ref>

Evidentials also show that being precise and stating the source of one's information is extremely important in the language and the culture. Failure to use them correctly can lead to diminished standing in the community. Speakers are aware of the evidentials and even use proverbs to teach children the importance of being precise and truthful. Precision and information source are of the utmost importance. They are a powerful and resourceful method of human communication.<ref>Aikhenvald 2004, p. 380.</ref>
[[File:Acta Independencia argentina quechua.jpg|thumb|Act of Argentine Independence, written in Spanish and Quechua (1816)]]

==Literature==

As in the case of the [[List of pre-Columbian cultures|pre-Columbian Mesoamerica]], there are a number of Andean texts in the local language which were written down in Latin characters after the European conquest, but which express, to a great extent, the culture of pre-Conquest times. For example, Quechua poems thought to date from Inca times are preserved as quotations within some Spanish-language chronicles dealing with the pre-Conquest period. However, the most important specimen of Quechua literature of this type is the so-called [[Huarochirí Manuscript]] (1598), which describes the mythology and religion of the valley of [[Huarochirí Province|Huarochirí]] and has been compared to "an Andean Bible" and to the Mayan [[Popol Vuh]]. From the post-conquest period (starting from the middle of the 17th century), there are a number of anonymous or signed Quechua dramas, some of which deal with the Inca era, while most are on religious topics and of European inspiration. The most famous dramas are ''[[Ollantay]]'' and the plays describing the death of [[Atahualpa]]. [[Juan de Espinosa Medrano]] wrote several dramas in the language. Poems in Quechua were also composed during the colonial period. A notable example are the works of [[Juan Wallparrimachi]], a participant in the [[Bolivian War of Independence]].<ref name=adelaar254/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/robert_beer/history.htm |title=History |publisher=Homepage.ntlworld.com |access-date=2012-11-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515235927/http://homepage.ntlworld.com/robert_beer/history.htm |archive-date=2013-05-15 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

As for Christian literature, as early as 1583, the Third Provincial Church Council of Lima, which took place in 1583, published a number of texts dealing with Christian doctrine and rituals, including a trilingual [[catechism]] in Spanish, Quechua and Aymara<ref>{{Cite journal |last=López Lamerain |first=Constanza |date=2011 |title=El iii concilio de lima y la conformación de una normativa evangelizadora para la provincia eclesiástica del perãš |url=http://intushistoria.uai.cl/index.php/intushistoria/article/view/90 |journal=Intus-Legere Historia |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=51–58 |doi=10.15691/07198949.90 |doi-broken-date=1 July 2025 |issn=0719-8949}}</ref> and a number of other similar texts in the years from 1584 to 1585. More texts of this type were published until the middle of the 17th century, mostly adhering to a [[Classical Quechua#Standard Colonial Quechua|Quechua literary standard]] that had been codified by the Third Council for this purpose.<ref>Saenz, S. Dedenbach-Salazar. 1990. Quechua Sprachmaterialen. In: Meyers, A., M. Volland. Beiträge zur Kulturgeschichte des westlichen Südamerika. Forschungsberichte des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen. P. 258.</ref> There is at least one Quechuan version of the [[Bible]].<ref name=CollynsCollantes/>

Dramas and poems continued to be written in the 19th and especially in 20th centuries as well; in addition, in the 20th century and more recently, more prose has been published. However, few literary forms were made present in the 19th century as European influences limited literary criticism.<ref>Carnival Theater: Uruguay's Popular Performers and National Culture</ref> While some of that literature consists of original compositions (poems and dramas), the bulk of 20th century Quechua literature consists of traditional folk stories and oral narratives.<ref name=adelaar254>Adelaar 2004, pp. 254–256.</ref> [[Johnny Payne]] has translated two sets of Quechua oral short stories, one into Spanish and the other into English.

[[Demetrio Túpac Yupanqui]] wrote a Quechuan version of ''[[Don Quixote]]'',<ref name=CollynsCollantes/> under the title {{Lang|qu|Yachay sapa wiraqucha dun Qvixote Manchamantan}}.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://elpais.com/internacional/2018/05/04/mundo_global/1525424117_877511.html|title=Demetrio Túpac Yupanqui, el traductor al quechua de 'El Quijote', muere a los 94 años|work={{Lang|es|[[El País]]}}|date=2018-05-04|access-date=2019-10-28}}</ref>

==Media==
A news broadcast in Quechua, "Ñuqanchik" (all of us), began in Peru in 2016.<ref>{{cite web|author=Collyns, Dan|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/14/peru-nuqanchik-quechua-broadcast-inca-empire|title=Peru airs news in Quechua, indigenous language of Inca empire, for first time|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=2016-12-14|access-date=2019-10-28|archive-date=2024-05-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526070717/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/14/peru-nuqanchik-quechua-broadcast-inca-empire|url-status=live}}</ref>

Many Andean musicians write and sing in their native languages, including Quechua and Aymara. Notable musical groups are [[Los Kjarkas]], [[:es:Kala Marka|Kala Marka]], [[J'acha Mallku]], [[Savia Andina]], Wayna Picchu, Wara, Alborada, [[Uchpa]], and many others.

There are several Quechua and Quechua-Spanish bloggers, as well as a Quechua language podcast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://globalvoices.org/2011/09/09/peru-the-state-of-quechua-on-the-internet/|title=Peru: The State of Quechua on the Internet · Global Voices|date=2011-09-09|website=Global Voices|access-date=2017-01-02}}</ref>

The 1961 Peruvian film ''[[Kukuli]]'' was the first film to be spoken in the Quechua language.<ref name="latinosinlondon">{{cite web |url=http://latinosinlondon.wordpress.com/2011/11/18/kukuli/ |title=Film Kukuli (Cuzco-Peru) |access-date=2012-11-10 |work=Latinos in London|date=18 November 2011 }}</ref>

In the 1977 science fiction film [[Star Wars (film)|''Star Wars'']], the alien character [[Greedo]] speaks a simplified form of Quechua.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hutchinson |first=Sean |title='Star Wars' Languages Owe to Tibetan, Finnish, Haya, Quechua, and Penguins |url=https://www.inverse.com/article/8880-star-wars-languages-owe-to-tibetan-finnish-haya-quechua-and-penguins |access-date=2022-04-10 |website=Inverse |date=8 December 2015 |language=en |archive-date=2023-01-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115164149/https://www.inverse.com/article/8880-star-wars-languages-owe-to-tibetan-finnish-haya-quechua-and-penguins |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[first-person shooter]] game ''[[Overwatch 2]]'' features a Peruvian character, Illari, with some voice lines being in Quechua.

==See also==
{{Portal|Andes}}
{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
*[[Languages of Peru]]
*[[Andes]]
*[[Quechua people|Quechua People]]
*[[Aymara language]]
*[[List of English words of Quechua origin|List of English words of Quechuan origin]]
*[[Quechuan and Aymaran spelling shift]]
*[[South Bolivian Quechua]]
*[[Sumak Kawsay]]
* [[International Mother Language Day]]
* [[Intercultural bilingual education]]
* [[List of English words from Indigenous languages of the Americas]]
* [[Indigenous languages of the Americas]]
}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* Rolph, Karen Sue. ''Ecologically Meaningful Toponyms: Linking a lexical domain to production ecology in the Peruvian Andes''. Doctoral Dissertation, Stanford University, 2007.
* {{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UiwaUY6KsY8C&pg=PA179|title=The Languages of the Andes|isbn=9781139451123|last1=Adelaar|first1=Willem F. H|author-link=Willem Adelaar|date=2004-06-10|publisher=Cambridge University Press|access-date=2016-01-05|archive-date=2024-05-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240526071114/https://books.google.com/books?id=UiwaUY6KsY8C&pg=PA179#v=onepage&q&f=false|url-status=live}}
* [[Willem Adelaar|Adelaar, Willem]]. ''The Languages of the Andes''. With the collaboration of P.C. Muysken. Cambridge language survey. Cambridge University Press, 2007, {{ISBN|978-0-521-36831-5}}
* Cerrón-Palomino, Rodolfo. ''Lingüística Quechua'', Centro de Estudios Rurales Andinos 'Bartolomé de las Casas', 2nd ed. 2003
*Cole, Peter.  "Imbabura Quechua", North-Holland (Lingua Descriptive Studies 5), Amsterdam 1982.
* Cusihuamán, Antonio, ''Diccionario Quechua Cuzco-Collao'', Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos "Bartolomé de Las Casas", 2001, {{ISBN|9972-691-36-5}}
* Cusihuamán, Antonio, ''Gramática Quechua Cuzco-Collao'', Centro de Estudios Regionales Andinos "Bartolomé de Las Casas", 2001, {{ISBN|9972-691-37-3}}
* Mannheim, Bruce, ''The Language of the Inka since the European Invasion'', University of Texas Press, 1991, {{ISBN|0-292-74663-6}}
* Rodríguez Champi, Albino. (2006). Quechua de Cusco. ''Ilustraciones fonéticas de lenguas amerindias'', ed. Stephen A. Marlett. Lima: SIL International y Universidad Ricardo Palma. [http://lengamer.org/publicaciones/trabajos/quechua_cusco_afi.pdf Lengamer.org] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181221063223/http://lengamer.org/publicaciones/trabajos/quechua_cusco_afi.pdf |date=2018-12-21 }}
*Aikhenvald, Alexandra. Evidentiality. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.
*Floyd, Rick. The Structure of Evidential Categories in Wanka Quechua. Dallas, TX:  Summer Institute of Linguistics, 1999. Print.
*Hintz, Diane. "The evidential system in Sihuas Quechua: personal vs. shared knowledge"  The Nature of Evidentiality Conference, The Netherlands, 14–16 June 2012. SIL International. Internet. 13 April 2014.
*Lefebvre, Claire, and Pieter Muysken. Mixed Categories: Nominalizations in Quechua.  Dordrecht, Holland: Kluwer Academic, 1988. Print.
*Weber, David. "Information Perspective, Profile, and Patterns in Quechua." Evidentiality:  The Linguistic Coding of Epistemology. Ed. Wallace L. Chafe and Johanna Nichols. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Pub, 1986. 137–55. Print.
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|30em}}
* [[Willem Adelaar|Adelaar, Willem F. H.]] [https://web.archive.org/web/20130521172146/http://es.scribd.com/doc/91245441/Towards-a-reconstruction-of-the-history-of-Quechuan%E2%80%93Aymaran-interaction Modeling convergence: Towards a reconstruction of the history of Quechuan–Aymaran interaction] About the origin of Quechua, and its relation with Aymara, 2011.
* [[Willem Adelaar|Adelaar, Willem F. H.]] ''Tarma Quechua: Grammar, Texts, Dictionary''. Lisse: Peter de Ridder Press, 1977.
* Bills, Garland D., Bernardo Vallejo C., and Rudolph C. Troike. ''An Introduction to Spoken Bolivian Quechua''. Special publication of the Institute of Latin American Studies, the [[University of Texas at Austin]]. Austin: Published for the Institute of Latin American Studies by the University of Texas Press, 1969. {{ISBN|0-292-70019-9}}
* Coronel-Molina, Serafín M.'' Quechua Phrasebook''. 2002 Lonely Planet {{ISBN|1-86450-381-5}}
* Curl, John, ''Ancient American Poets''. Tempe AZ: Bilingual Press, 2005.{{ISBN|1-931010-21-8}} [http://red-coral.net/Pach.html Red-coral.net] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112005003/http://red-coral.net/Pach.html |date=2020-11-12 }}
* Gifford, Douglas. ''Time Metaphors in Aymara and Quechua''. St. Andrews: [[University of St. Andrews]], 1986.
* {{Citation
 |last=Heggarty and David Beresford-Jones
 |first=Paul
 |year=2012
 |title=Archaeology and Language in the Andes
 |place=Oxford
 |publisher=Oxford University Press
 }}
* Harrison, Regina. ''Signs, Songs, and Memory in the Andes: Translating Quechua Language and Culture''. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1989. {{ISBN|0-292-77627-6}}
* Jake, Janice L. ''Grammatical Relations in Imbabura Quechua''. Outstanding dissertations in linguistics. New York: Garland Pub, 1985. {{ISBN|0-8240-5475-X}}
* King, Kendall A. ''Language Revitalization Processes and Prospects: Quichua in the Ecuadorian Andes''. Bilingual education and bilingualism, 24. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters LTD, 2001. {{ISBN|1-85359-495-4}}
* King, Kendall A., and Nancy H. Hornberger. ''Quechua Sociolinguistics''. Berlin: [[Mouton de Gruyter]], 2004.
* Lara, Jesús, Maria A. Proser, and James Scully. ''Quechua Peoples Poetry''. Willimantic, Conn: Curbstone Press, 1976. {{ISBN|0-915306-09-3}}
* Lefebvre, Claire, and [[Pieter Muysken]]. ''Mixed Categories: Nominalizations in Quechua''. Studies in natural language and linguistic theory, [v. 11]. Dordrecht, Holland: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1988. {{ISBN|1-55608-050-6}}
* Lefebvre, Claire, and Pieter Muysken. ''Relative Clauses in Cuzco Quechua: Interactions between Core and Periphery''. Bloomington, Ind: Indiana University Linguistics Club, 1982.
* Muysken, Pieter. ''Syntactic Developments in the Verb Phrase of Ecuadorian Quechua''. Lisse: Peter de Ridder Press, 1977. {{ISBN|90-316-0151-9}}
* Nuckolls, Janis B. ''Sounds Like Life: Sound-Symbolic Grammar, Performance, and Cognition in Pastaza Quechua''. Oxford studies in anthropological linguistics, 2. New York: [[Oxford University Press]], 1996. ISBN
* Parker, Gary John. ''Ayacucho Quechua Grammar and Dictionary''. Janua linguarum. Series practica, 82. The Hague: Mouton, 1969.
* Plaza Martínez, Pedro. Quechua. In: Mily Crevels and Pieter Muysken (eds.) ''Lenguas de Bolivia'', vol. I, 215–284. La Paz: Plural editores, 2009. {{ISBN|978-99954-1-236-4}}. (in Spanish)
* Sánchez, Liliana. Quechua-Spanish Bilingualism: Interference and Convergence in Functional Categories. Language acquisition & language disorders, v. 35. Amsterdam: J. Benjamins Pub, 2003. {{ISBN|1-58811-471-6}}
* Weber, David. ''A Grammar of Huallaga (Huánuco) Quechua''. University of California publications in linguistics, v. 112. Berkeley: [[University of California Press]], 1989. {{ISBN|0-520-09732-7}}
* Quechua bibliographies online at:  [http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Main/i_BIBL.HTM quechua.org.uk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925212828/http://www.quechua.org.uk/Eng/Main/i_BIBL.HTM |date=2020-09-25 }}
{{refend}}

;Dictionaries and lexicons
*Parker, G. J. (1969). Ayacucho Quechua grammar and dictionary. (Janua linguarum: Series practica, 82). The Hague: Mouton.
*Cachique Amasifuén, S. F. (2007). Diccionario Kichwa-Castellano / Castellano- Kichwa. Tarapoto, San Martín: Aquinos.
*Cerrón-Palomino, R. (1994). Quechua sureño, diccionario unificado quechua- castellano, castellano-quechua. Lima: Biblioteca Nacional del Perú.
*Cusihuamán G., A. (1976). Diccionario quechua: Cuzco-Collao. Lima: Ministerio de Educación.
*Shimelman, A. (2012–2014). Southern Yauyos Quechua Lexicon. Lima: PUCP.
*Stark, L. R.; Muysken, P. C. (1977). Diccionario español-quichua, quichua español. (Publicaciones de los Museos del Banco Central del Ecuador, 1). Quito: Guayaquil.
*Tödter, Ch.; Zahn, Ch.; Waters, W.; Wise, M. R. (2002). Shimikunata asirtachik killka inka-kastellanu (Diccionario inga-castellano) (Serie lingüística Peruana, 52). Lima: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
*Weber, D. J.; Ballena D., M.; Cayco Z., F.; Cayco V., T. (1998). Quechua de Huánuco: Diccionario del quechua del Huallaga con índices castellano e ingles (Serie Lingüística Peruana, 48). Lima: Summer Institute of Linguistics.
*Weber, N. L.; Park, M.; Cenepo S., V. (1976). Diccionario quechua: San Martín. Lima: Ministerio de Educación.

==External links==
{{InterWiki|Southern Quechua|code=qu}}
{{Incubator|code=qug|language=Northern Kichwa}}
{{Incubator|code=qvc|language=Northern Peruvian Quechua}}
{{Incubator|code=qwh|language=Ancash Quechua}}
{{Incubator|code=qub|language=Yaru-Huánuco Quechua}}
{{Incubator|code=qvw|language=Wanka Quechua}}
{{Incubator|code=qux|language=Yauyos Quechua}}
{{Wikibooks|Quechua}}
{{wikivoyage|Quechua phrasebook}}
{{Wiktionary|Appendix:Quechua Swadesh list}}
* [http://www.andes.org/q_index.html Quechua lessons] at www.andes.org {{in lang|es|en}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140704121911/http://quechuas.net/Q/ Detailed map of the varieties of Quechua according to SIL (fedepi.org)]
* [https://ailla.utexas.org/islandora/object/ailla%3A124417 Quechua Collection] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125121127/https://ailla.utexas.org/islandora/object/ailla%3A124417 |date=2020-11-25 }} of Patricia Dreidemie at the [[Archive of the Indigenous Languages of Latin America]]. 
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20150423114649/http://www.ailla.utexas.org/search/collection.html?c_id=125 Huancavelica Quechua Fieldnotes of Willem de Ruese], copies of handwritten notes on Quechua pedagogical and descriptive materials, from the [[Archive of the Indigenous Languages of Latin America]].
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20171011125334/http://www.clacs.illinois.edu/documents/quechua/QuechuaDicc.pdf Diccionario Quechua: Español–Runasimi–English]—Dictionary of [[Ayacucho Quechua]] from Clodoaldo Soto Ruiz.
* [http://www.runasimi.de/ information about Quechua in a variety of languages]
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=Wez3soqHu0EC&q=Ernst+W.+Middendorf Quechua dramatic and lyrical works (Dramatische und lyrische Dichtungen der Keshua-Sprache) by Ernst Middendorf] (bilingual Quechua – German edition, 1891)
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=DVxFAQAAIAAJ&q=Ernst+W.+Middendorf Ollantay (Ollanta: ein drama der Keshuasprache), ed. by Ernst Middendorf] (bilingual Quechua – German edition, 1890)

{{Quechuan languages}}{{South American languages}}{{Language families}}{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Quechua Language}}
[[Category:Quechuan languages| ]]
[[Category:Agglutinative languages]]
[[Category:Indigenous languages of the Andes]]
[[Category:Language families]]
[[Category:Subject–object–verb languages]]