The Light of Machu Picchu
Page 36
Balsa – A wooden raft made of balsa wood.
Borla (Spanish) or mascapaicha (Quechua) – Along with the llautu and the feathered curiguingue, this woolen fringe makes up the royal headpiece of the Sapa Inca.
Cancha – An open inner courtyard; also, a collection of three or four buildings around such a courtyard, forming a single living area.
Chaquiras – small pearls from pink shells (mullus), which are made into necklaces or woven into ceremonial costumes.
Chaski – Runners who carry messages by relay.
Chicha – Ceremonial beverage; a fermented beer, generally made from maize.
Chuño – Naturally dehydrated potatoes that keep for months.
Chuspa – Small woven pouch decorated with religious motifs and used to carry coca leaves.
Collcas – Circular or rectangular buildings made up of a single room and used as warehouses to store foodstuffs, weavings, weapons, and luxuries.
Coya – Title accorded to the Inca’s principal wife.
Cumbi – The finest quality of woven fabric, usually made from vicuña wool.
Curaca – Local chief or official.
Curiguingue – Small falcon, the black and white feathers of which were used to decorate the Sapa Inca’s headpiece.
Guanaco – From the Quechua huanaco, an undomesticated Andean member of the Camelidae family, related to the llama.
Hatunruna – Quechua word meaning ‘peasant’.
Huaca – Quechua word meaning ‘sacred’. By extension, any location or sanctuary in which a divinity is kept.
Huara – Shorts. Boys were given a pair of these during the initiation rite called the huarachiku.
Ichu – A type of wild grass that grows at high altitudes and is used mainly to thatch roofs.
Inti Raymi – One of the major festivals of the Inca calendar; occurs during the winter solstice.
Kallanka – Long building with doors that generally give onto the square of an administrative center.
Llautu – Long woolen plaits wrapped several times around the wearer’s head to form a headpiece.
Manta – Spanish word meaning ‘blanket’, but used to denote the cape worn by Inca men (llacolla) and women (lliclla)
Mascapaicha – See borla.
Mullus – Shells from the Pacific coast, usually of a red or pink color. They were widely used during Inca religious rites, either in their natural state or after having been worked.
Pachacuti – A great upheaval signaling the beginning of a new era.
Panaca – Lineage from an Inca sovereign.
Papas – Potatoes.
Plateros – Spanish word denoting those metalworkers who specialized in precious metals.
Pututu – Large seashell, used as a trumpet.
Quinua – An Andean cereal rich in protein.
Quipu – A device of strings in which knots were tied. The knots served as a mnemonic system for keeping records.
Sapa Inca – Literally, ‘Unique Lord’. The title of the Inca sovereign.
Tambo – Inns set at regular intervals along the Empire’s roads. In such places the traveler could find food and shelter, as well as fresh clothes, all provided by the State.
Tiana – A small bench or stool reserved exclusively for the Inca and for Curacas, and which was a symbol of power.
Tocapu – A geometric motif with symbolic meanings used to decorate Inca weavings.
Tumi – A ceremonial knife, the bronze blade of which is set at a ninety-degree angle to the handle.
Tupu – A long needle made of gold, silver, bronze or copper, used to clasp a cape, or manta, together.
Unku – A sleeveless, knee-length tunic worn by men.
Ushnu – A small pyramid set on the square of an Inca settlement and reserved for the use of those in power.
Viscacha – A rodent of the genus Marmota, with a tail similar to a squirrel’s, that lives in scree.
First published in the United Kingdom in 2003 by Simon & Schuster
This edition published in the United Kingdom in 2019 by
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Copyright © A. B. Daniel, 2003
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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
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ISBN 9781788633512
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places and events are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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