Quechuan

[kech-wuh n]

adjective

of or relating to the Quechua language or people.

noun, plural Quech·uans, (especially collectively) Quech·uan.

Quechua.

Origin of Quechuan

First recorded in 1835–45; Quechu(a) + -an

Quechua

or Kech·ua, Kech·uan, Quech·uan, Quich·ua

[kech-wah, -wuh]

noun, plural Quech·uas, (especially collectively) Quech·ua for 2.

the language of the Inca civilization, presently spoken by about 7 million people in Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.

a member of an Indian people of Peru speaking Quechua.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for quechuan

Quechua

Kechua Quichua

noun

plural -uas or -ua a member of any of a group of South American Indian peoples of the Andes, including the Incas

the language or family of languages spoken by these peoples, possibly distantly related to the Tupï-Guarani family

Derived FormsQuechuan, Kechuan or Quichuan, adjective, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for quechuan

Quechua

Indian people of Peru and surrounding regions, 1811, from Spanish, from Quechua kechua "plunderer, destroyer." Also the name of their language. Related: Quechuan.