Quechuan language
- noun
- /ˈkɛtʃuən ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/
- Many communities in Peru still speak Quechuan language as their first language.
Examples
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The Quechuan language was once the official tongue of the Inca Empire.
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Many people in Peru speak the Quechuan languages.
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Linguists have studied the grammar and vocabulary of the Quechuan language extensively.
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The Quechuan language is rich in history.
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Many communities in Peru still speak Quechuan language as their first language.
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Linguists have studied the grammar and vocabulary of the Quechuan language extensively.
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The Quechuan language was once the official tongue of the Inca Empire.
Synonyms
The language spoken by the native people of the Andes, once used by the Inca Empire
People in the Andes still speak a language first used by the Incas
A language or group of related languages spoken by the Quechua people in the Andes
A native language of the Quechua people in parts of South America, once used by the Inca
A native language in the Andes once used by the Incas and still spoken today
A native people and language group in the Andes of Ecuador and Peru
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'Quechuan' (pertaining to the Quechua people) with 'language' (a named spoken system), so it denotes the language(s) of the Quechua people. This adjective+language naming pattern is cross-linguistically common, making the phrase immediately comprehensible to a B1 learner who knows both constituents.
Etymology
Quechuan language gets its name from the people called Quechua, who spoke it across the Andes and used it as the main language of the 'Inca Empire'. So the term refers to that old Inca language and to the group of similar languages still spoken in parts of South America today.