Quipu: Secret Incan Language

Summary

The Inca Empire, despite lacking key elements like the wheel and writing system, thrived through the use of 'khipu'—a complex recording device made of colored strings with knots. These were used for record-keeping and possibly encoded messages, including history, politics, and astronomy. The Spanish conquest led to the destruction of khipus, but over 1,000 survive today. Ongoing research aims to decipher their code, offering a glimpse into the ancient Andean world.

Takeaways

• 🏛️ The Inca Empire was a dominant civilization in pre-Columbian America, known for its architectural feats and efficient bureaucracy, despite lacking the wheel, writing systems, and iron tools.
• 🧵 The Inca used the 'quipu,' a sophisticated string-based recording device, to store and communicate crucial information across the empire.
• 💡 The quipu consisted of a main cord with pendant strings, each tied in various knots and arranged by color, length, and spacing, encoding information numerically and potentially non-numerically.
• 📊 The primary known use of quipu was for accounting purposes, keeping track of goods like agricultural produce, textiles, and ceramics within the Inca's extensive taxation and redistribution system.
• 🔢 Knots on the quipu represented different numerical values, with single knots for powers of ten, long knots for numbers between two and nine, and figure-eight knots for the value of one.
• 🎓 Inca accountants, or 'quipu kamayuq,' underwent specialized training to master the quipu system, essential for managing the empire's vast resources.
• ❓ The quipu may have stored more than just numbers; 20% of the knots were found to have no numerical value, sparking theories that quipu could encode language, history, and culture.
• 📚 British engineer William Burns Glenn suggested that the quipu represented a base-10 alphabet, with knots standing for consonants of the Inca language.
• 🛡️ After the Spanish conquest in 1532, quipu and their keepers were largely destroyed, with the Spanish seeking to erase Inca memory and history, leaving only around 1,000 surviving quipus today.
• 🔍 Ongoing research, including recent archaeological findings in Peru, aims to decode the full meaning of quipu, potentially unlocking invaluable insights into the Inca civilization.

Q & A

What was the Inca Empire known for despite lacking key elements of 16th-century civilizations?

The Inca Empire was known for its glorious palaces, masterful engineering feats, and an efficient bureaucracy, despite lacking the wheel, minimal use of draft animals, no gunpowder, no steel or iron tools, and no writing system.

What is a 'khipu' and why is it significant?

A 'khipu' is a recording device of the Inca civilization, consisting of a main textile or wooden cord with pendant strings of various colors, lengths, and knot types. It is significant because it encoded the culture, history, and administrative information of the Inca Empire.

How did the Spanish attempt to eradicate the khipu?

The Spanish attempted to eradicate the khipu by destroying them and killing the state workers who could make and interpret them, which led to the death of the device's knowledge.

What were the three types of knots used in khipus and what did they represent?

The three types of knots used in khipus were single knots, long knots, and figure of eight knots. Single knots represented ten or a power of ten, long knots represented figures between two and nine, and figure of eight knots represented a value of one.

What was the Inca taxation system like and how did khipus play a role in it?

The Inca taxation system was highly efficient, involving the collection of goods in kind stored in warehouses along the Great Inca Highway. Khipus were used by the empire's accountants, or 'khipu kamayok', for record-keeping of the goods coming in and out of warehouses.

What other aspects of Inca life might khipus have recorded besides tribute records?

Khipus are believed to have recorded land measurements, censuses, military equipment, army sizes, astronomy, and possibly even encoded messages.

What was the education process like for Inca accountants who worked with khipus?

Inca education for the elite class included one year of khipu study, and 'khipu kameyuk' pursued something akin to a doctorate in khipu craft before serving the empire.

How did the Inca use khipus for standardizing measurements for tribute?

Recent excavations in Peru revealed a grid-like array of squares marked in the sand, believed to standardize measurements for tribute. Farmers would spread their tribute evenly along certain squares as directed by the accountant holding the khipu.

What is the current status of khipu research and what could it reveal about the Inca civilization?

Research on khipus is ongoing, with more well-preserved khipus being unearthed and studied in Peru's dry coastal climate. Cracking the code of khipus could open the door to a lost world and provide insights into the ancient Andean world from the Inca perspective.

Why did the Spanish seek to destroy khipus after the conquest in 1532?

The Spanish sought to destroy khipus after the conquest in 1532, possibly to wipe out the memory of a civilization and eliminate traces of uncivilized or paganistic elements.