Quechua for Travelers in Cusco: Useful Words and Phrases

Quechua is a family of languages native to the Andes and the most widely spoken Indigenous language in Peru: in the 2017 National Census, 3,735,682 people aged 5 and over, 13.9% of that population, said they had learned to speak in Quechua. In Cusco, people speak the Cusco-Collao variety of Southern Quechua. As a traveler, a handful of words is enough: allinllachu to say hello, añay or sullpayki to say thank you, and tupananchiskama to say goodbye.

Here in Cusco we hear it every day: in the markets, at festivals and in the communities of the Sacred Valley and the highlands. This guide explains what Quechua is, where it’s spoken, how it’s written and pronounced, and which phrases will come in handy, using words from official materials. Its role in the Inca Empire is covered in our guide to Inca history and culture.

What Is Quechua?

Quechua isn’t a single language but a family of related languages. According to the Database of Indigenous or Native Peoples (BDPI) of Peru’s Ministry of Culture, its varieties are spoken in seven South American countries: Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile and Brazil.

Its speakers call it runa simi or qhichwa simi. In the glossary published by the Ministry of Culture’s office in Cusco (Dirección Desconcentrada de Cultura de Cusco), runa means “person, people” and simi means “mouth.” In official materials, simi is also used for “language”: mama simi is your mother tongue.

Quechua Varieties in Peru

The classic classification by linguist Alfredo Torero, from 1964, divides them into Quechua I, in central Peru, and Quechua II, in the north and south. Since 2013, Peru’s Ministry of Education has used four branches, each with its own official writing manual:

• Southern: Chanka, spoken in Huancavelica, Ayacucho and Apurímac, and Collao, spoken in parts of Apurímac and in Cusco, Puno, Arequipa and Moquegua. The BDPI classifies both as vital.
• Central: in Áncash, Huánuco, Pasco, Junín, La Libertad and the highlands of Lima, with several endangered varieties.
• Northern: in Cajamarca, Lambayeque and Piura.
• Amazonian: the Kichwa of Loreto, San Martín, Madre de Dios and Amazonas.

Cusco Quechua: The Cusco-Collao Variety

The variety spoken in Cusco is the same one spoken in Puno and parts of Apurímac. Its most striking feature is two sets of consonants that other varieties, such as Chanka in Ayacucho, don’t have: aspirated and glottalized consonants. The BDPI explains that these sounds come from ancient contact with Aymara, the language that Quechua replaced across much of the southern Andes.

How Many People Speak Quechua?

The most widely cited figure comes from the 2017 National Census by INEI, Peru’s national statistics institute. Based on the language they learned in childhood, 13.9% of the population aged 5 and over, or 3,735,682 people, learned to speak in Quechua; 82.6% learned in Spanish and 1.7% in Aymara. The BDPI language profile gives a slightly higher figure: 3,805,531 people.

Language and identity aren’t the same thing. In the same census, 22.3% of the population aged 12 and over, or 5,176,809 people, self-identified as Quechua: more people see themselves as Quechua than learned the language as children.

According to the BDPI, around 60% of Peru’s population spoke Quechua in the early 20th century, compared with about 15% in the early 21st century. Even so, in absolute numbers there are more speakers today than in 1876, and at least a third live in urban areas.

Quechua in the Cusco Region

According to the 2025 National Census, whose first results the Ministry of Culture released in July 2026, the Cusco region has 773,130 speakers of Indigenous or native languages, 14.9% of the national total. In many rural communities, Quechua is the everyday language.

Is Quechua an Official Language of Peru?

Yes, in the areas where it predominates. Article 48 of the Peruvian Constitution states that Spanish is an official language and that, “in the areas where they predominate,” so are Quechua, Aymara and the other Indigenous languages, as provided by law. Quechua had already been made official by Decree-Law 21156 of May 27, 1975, as a technical report published by the Ministry of Education points out.

The law that implements that article is Law 29735, published in the official gazette El Peruano on July 5, 2011. Three of its provisions explain what you’ll see in Cusco:

• Rights: everyone may use their native language in public and private life, and be served in their mother tongue by state institutions (Article 4).
• Official status: native languages are official where they predominate, according to the National Registry of Native Languages (Article 9), and there the government must give them the same legal standing as Spanish (Article 10).
• Writing: the Ministry of Education sets uniform spelling rules (Article 21).

You can see the law at work in public services. In July 2026, the Ministry of Culture certified 224 bilingual public servants in the Cusco region, bringing the national total to 3,322 in Cusco-Collao Quechua, Chanka Quechua and Aymara. The BDPI also lists 205 registered Quechua interpreters and translators.

Why Quechua Is Spelled So Many Ways

Cusco, Qosqo and Qusqu. Sacsayhuamán and Saqsaywaman. Huayna Picchu and Wayna Picchu. It’s not a mistake: three writing traditions exist side by side.

1. Spanish-style spelling. For centuries, Quechua names were written using Spanish spelling: “hua” for the wa sound, or “cc” and “c” for sounds Spanish doesn’t have. Many official place names and tourist signs still use it.
2. The official alphabet. The Ministry of Education approved the alphabet for Quechua and Aymara in November 1985 through Ministerial Resolution 1218-85-ED, and in 2013 a directorial resolution set the use of three vowels: a, i, u. It’s the alphabet used in intercultural bilingual education and in the Southern Quechua writing manual (Ministry of Education, 2021). In it, Cusco is written Qusqu, as in the Cusco culture office’s glossary.
3. The Academy’s spelling. The Academia Mayor de la Lengua Quechua (High Academy of the Quechua Language) champions five vowels, in what it calls “qheswa imperial del Qosqo,” the imperial Quechua of Cusco: Qosqo, Saqsaywaman. In 2016, Regional Ordinance 115-2016-CR/CRC of the Cusco Regional Government recognized this five-vowel Quechua for writing in the region.

Three Vowels or Five: The Debate in a Nutshell

Quechua has sounds similar to the Spanish e and o, but they only occur next to the consonants q, qh and q’, and sometimes near r. For those who support the three-vowel system, they are variants of i and u, not separate vowels: that’s why they write qusqu even though it sounds like “qosqo.” That’s the conclusion of a technical report by the Department of Linguistics at Cusco’s Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad (UNSAAC), published by the Ministry of Education in 2021. The Academy argues that every sound should have its own letter. For travelers, it makes no difference: suqta and soqta, “six,” sound exactly the same.

Tip: if you look for a place on a map or online and can’t find it, try other spellings: with hua or wa, with e and o or i and u, with c, cc, k or q. Qenqo and Q’enqo, or Sacsayhuamán and Saqsaywaman, are the same site.

How to Pronounce Quechua

You don’t need perfect pronunciation: any attempt is appreciated. These guidelines will help you read the words in this guide.

Vowels and Stress

• a, i, u sound like the vowels in “father,” “machine” and “rule.”
• Next to q, qh and q’, i opens toward an e and u toward an o: qusqu sounds like “qosqo,” and wiraqucha, “sir,” sounds like “wiraqocha.”
• Stress almost always falls on the second-to-last syllable. A common exception is arí, “yes”: the Cusco culture office’s glossary notes that it’s stressed on the last syllable.

Consonants English Doesn’t Have

• q: pronounced further back than k, deep in the mouth, almost in the throat.
• Aspirated (ph, th, chh, kh, qh): the consonant is followed by a puff of air. The qh becomes a rasping sound, like the ch in Scottish “loch”: qhatu, “market.”
• Glottalized (p’, t’, ch’, k’, q’): you close your throat and release the air all at once, with a small pop: p’unchay, “day,” or q’eswa, “rope.”
• w and h sound as in English; ll sounds like the lli in “million,” and ñ like the ny in “canyon.”

These consonants change meaning. In the Academy’s dictionary, tanta means “gathering,” thanta means “rag” and t’anta means “bread.” And kancha is an enclosed space, while k’ancha means “light.” Always pay attention to the apostrophe and the h.

Useful Quechua Words and Phrases

These phrases are in Cusco-Collao Quechua and come from two official glossaries: the Ministry of Culture’s 2025 glossary for serving the public, and the glossary of the Ministry of Culture’s office in Cusco. Some words come from the Academy’s dictionary. The pronunciation is approximate; the syllable in capitals is the stressed one.

English	Quechua	Approximate pronunciation
Hello, how are you?	¡Allinllachu!	ah-lyin-LYA-choo
How are you?	¿Imaynallan kachkanki?	ee-my-na-LYAN kach-KAN-kee
Fine, thanks	Allinllan kachkani	ah-lyin-LYAN kach-KA-nee
Good morning	Allin p’unchay	AH-lyin P’OON-chai
Good afternoon	Allin sukha	AH-lyin SOO-kha
Good evening / Good night	Allin tuta	AH-lyin TOO-ta
Thank you	Añay / Sullpayki	AH-nyai / sool-PAI-kee
Thank you very much	Añaychayki askhata	ah-nyai-CHAI-kee ahs-KHA-ta
See you later	Tupananchiskama	too-pa-nan-chees-KA-ma
See you tomorrow	Paqarinkama	pa-qa-reen-KA-ma
What’s your name?	¿Iman sutiyki?	EE-man soo-TEE-kee
My name is…	Ñuqaq sutiyqa…	NYO-qaq soo-TEE-qa
Yes / No	Arí / Manam	ah-REE / MA-nam
Excuse me	Pampachaykuway	pam-pa-chai-koo-WAI
Sir / Ma’am	Wiraqucha / Mama	wee-ra-QO-cha / MA-ma
How much?	¿Hayk’a?	HAI-k’a
Water	Unu / Yaku	OO-noo / YA-koo
Bread / Chicha (corn beer)	T’anta / Aqha	T’AN-ta / AH-qha
Corn / Salt / Chili pepper	Sara / Kachi / Uchu	SA-ra / KA-chee / OO-choo
Market	Qhatu	QHA-too
House / Town / Path	Wasi / Llaqta / Ñan	WA-see / LYAQ-ta / nyan
Hill / Lake / River	Urqu / Qucha / Mayu	OOR-qo / QO-cha / MA-yoo
Sun / Moon	Inti / Killa	EEN-tee / KEE-lya

There are small differences between sources, just as there are between towns: the national glossary writes ¿Imam sutiyki? and Ñuqap sutiyqa, while the Cusco one writes ¿Iman sutiyki? and Ñuqaq sutiyqa. Both forms are understood.

Thank You in Quechua: Añay, Sullpayki and Yusullpay

The Cusco culture office’s glossary lists four ways to say “thank you very much”: sullpay, yusullpay, añay and sullpayki. The Ministry of Culture’s national glossary translates “thank you” as añay, and the Academy’s dictionary defines añay as “thanks, gratitude.”

Online you’ll often see sulpayki, with a single l: it’s the same word, spelled differently. To thank someone for something specific, you use the verb añaychay: añaychayki askhata, “I thank you very much,” is the Academy’s example. With añay or sullpayki, you’ll be understood all over Cusco.

Hello, How Are You and Goodbye

Quechua has no exact word for “hello”: people usually ask how you are. ¡Allinllachu! works as a greeting, and the Cusco glossary translates it that way: “¡Allinllachu Parwa!” is “Hello, Parwa!” If someone says it to you, answer allinllan kachkani, “I’m fine.” To say goodbye, tupananchiskama means “see you later” (the national glossary spells it tupananchikkama), and paqarinkama means “see you tomorrow.”

With older people, use wiraqucha or tayta for “sir” and mama for “ma’am.” Quechua distinguishes brothers and sisters according to who is speaking: a man calls his sister pana and a woman calls hers ñaña; a woman calls her brother tura and a man calls his wawqi. With the ending -y, “my,” these words become an affectionate greeting, as in the Ministry of Culture’s glossary: allin p’unchay, panay, “good morning, sister.”

Numbers from 1 to 10

At the markets you’ll be served in Spanish, but Quechua numbers are good practice. The table compares the official three-vowel spelling, used in the Cusco culture office’s glossary, with the five-vowel spelling of the Academy’s dictionary.

Number	Official alphabet	Academy spelling	Approximate pronunciation
1	huk	huk	hook
2	iskay	iskay	EES-kai
3	kimsa	kinsa	KEEM-sa
4	tawa	tawa	TA-wa
5	pichqa	pisqa	PEECH-qa
6	suqta	soqta	SOQ-ta
7	qanchis	qanchis	QAN-chees
8	pusaq	pusaq	POO-saq
9	isqun	isqon	EES-qon
10	chunka	chunka	CHOON-ka

It’s not only the vowels that change: kimsa and kinsa, or pichqa and pisqa, also reflect the way different areas speak. Tens are formed with chunka: iskay chunka is twenty, and pachak is one hundred.

Cusco Place Names and What They Mean

We only give the meanings recorded in the Academy’s dictionary and in the official glossaries. Several interpretations of the name Cusco itself circulate, and we don’t treat any of them as certain.

• Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu: machu means “old” and wayna means “young.” The Academy translates Machupikchu as “old peak or summit” and Waynapikchu as “young hill or peak.” More in our guide to Huayna Picchu.
• Q’eswachaka: q’eswa is a rope twisted from plant fiber and chaka means “bridge”: it’s the rope bridge that four Quechua communities rebuild every year. Everything about it in our guide to the Q’eswachaka bridge.
• Qorikancha: qori means “gold” and kancha is an enclosed space; the Academy translates it as “enclosed quarter of gold.” Visit it with our guide to the Qorikancha.
• Q’enqo: according to the Academy, it means “zigzag.” It lies within the Sacsayhuamán archaeological park; more in our guide to Qenqo.
• Sacsayhuamán: waman means “falcon.” The Academy explains the name as “bristling head of a falcon,” though that isn’t the only interpretation around. More in our guide to Sacsayhuamán.
• Qoyllurit’i: rit’i means “snow,” and the Academy translates the name of the sanctuary as “snow of stars.”
• Willkamayu: the Quechua name of the Vilcanota River, “sacred river” according to the Academy; mayu means “river.”
• Ausangate: Awsanqati in Quechua, the great snow-capped peak southeast of the city, is one of the apus, the guardian spirits that dwell on the summits. More in our guide to Ausangate.
• Inti Raymi: inti means “sun” and raymi, “festival of great solemnity.”

Where You’ll Hear Quechua in Cusco

• Markets: between vendors and shoppers who come in from the provinces. It’s the best place to hear everyday Quechua and try out your first words. What to eat there is in our guide to traditional Cusco food.
• Rural communities: in the Sacred Valley, in the highlands and along the trekking routes, Quechua is the home language of many muleteers, cooks and weavers.
• Festivals: in the dances, songs and offerings of the towns. Dates for each one are in our Cusco festivals calendar.
• Qoyllurit’i: the pilgrimage to the sanctuary, in the Sinakara valley, begins 58 days after Easter Sunday. According to UNESCO, which inscribed it on its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2011, it brings together some 90,000 people from the area around Cusco, organized into eight “nations.”
• Television and radio: on December 12, 2016, TV Perú launched Ñuqanchik, “we,” the first Quechua-language newscast on public television, also aired on Radio Nacional. It started out Monday to Friday at 5:30 a.m.; since the schedule has changed, check TV Perú’s programming.
• On the way to Lake Titicaca: in Puno you’ll hear Quechua and Aymara; the Ministry of Culture’s glossary for public services around the lake uses both languages. If you’re heading on, read our guide to Lake Titicaca from Cusco.

How to Learn Quechua and Use It Respectfully

An allinllachu as you walk into a shop or an añay as you leave usually brings a smile. To use it well:

1. Greet people first, in Spanish or Quechua, before asking, buying or taking photos.
2. Use respectful forms: wiraqucha, tayta or mama with older people.
3. Don’t treat it as a show: it’s a living language spoken by millions, in the countryside and in the city.
4. Welcome corrections and ask how something is said “here”: words change from one town to the next.

Important: speaking Quechua is a right recognized by Law 29735, not a tourist curiosity. Ask permission before photographing people, including those who pose with llamas or alpacas downtown, and don’t record ceremonies or offerings without permission.

To learn on your own, the Ministry of Education’s online repository offers the Southern Quechua writing manual for free, and the Cusco culture office’s basic glossary includes vocabulary, greetings and dialogues. For classes, ask about current courses at the Academia Mayor de la Lengua Quechua and at UNSAAC.

The Academia Mayor de la Lengua Quechua

This Cusco institution is devoted to the Quechua language and is a point of reference in the city. Its best-known work is the Diccionario Quechua-Español-Quechua, or Simi Taqe, whose second edition, from 2005, was published by the Cusco Regional Government. It includes many place names and archaeological sites in the region, useful for understanding the names you’ll come across.

The Academy champions writing with five vowels, a position not shared by the Ministry of Education or by the UNSAAC report. In the foreword to its dictionary, the Regional Government notes that a 2003 regional ordinance declared November 8 Quechua Language Day in the region.

Summary: Quechua on Your Trip to Cusco

• What it is: a family of Andean languages spoken in seven countries. Cusco speaks the Cusco-Collao variety of Southern Quechua.
• How many speak it: 3,735,682 people aged 5 and over learned to speak in Quechua, 13.9% of that population, according to the 2017 Census.
• Status: official where it predominates, under the Constitution and Law 29735.
• Spelling: the official alphabet uses three vowels (Qusqu) and the Academy uses five (Qosqo). They sound the same.
• Pronunciation: watch for the deep q, the aspirated consonants with h and the glottalized ones with an apostrophe.
• To get started: allinllachu (hello), añay or sullpayki (thank you), arí (yes), manam (no) and tupananchiskama (see you later).
• Where to hear it: markets, rural communities, festivals, Qoyllurit’i and the Ñuqanchik newscast.
• Respectfully: greet people first, ask before taking photos and welcome corrections.