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Quechuan language

Quechuan language

9.9
A group of languages first used by the Inca and still spoken in parts of South America
  • noun
  • /ˈkɛtʃuən ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/
translation icon : idioma quechua
  • Many communities in Peru still speak Quechuan language as their first language.

Examples

  • The Quechuan language was once the official tongue of the Inca Empire.

  • Many people in Peru speak the Quechuan languages.

  • Linguists have studied the grammar and vocabulary of the Quechuan language extensively.

  • The Quechuan language is rich in history.

  • Many communities in Peru still speak Quechuan language as their first language.

  • Linguists have studied the grammar and vocabulary of the Quechuan language extensively.

  • The Quechuan language was once the official tongue of the Inca Empire.

Synonyms

Quechua
vsQuechuan language
1 9.4

The language spoken by the native people of the Andes, once used by the Inca Empire

is the more formal term stressing closely related languages as a group
Quechua language
vsQuechuan language
8.5

People in the Andes still speak a language first used by the Incas

focuses more on the classification as several closely related languages
Quechuan
vsQuechuan language
9.9

A language or group of related languages spoken by the Quechua people in the Andes

highlights origin with the imperial culture while keeping the family scope
Kechuan language
vsQuechuan language
9.9

A native language of the Quechua people in parts of South America, once used by the Inca

is broader, treating those varieties as a group of related languages
Kechua
vsQuechuan language
9.9

A native language in the Andes once used by the Incas and still spoken today

keeps the same sense but uses the standard form for the language group
Quichua
vsQuechuan language
9.9

A native people and language group in the Andes of Ecuador and Peru

refers specifically to the language family rather than the people plus language

Surface Forms

Morphology

Quechuan + language

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.