﻿Vol.2] 
  CONTEMPORARY 
  QUECHUA 
  — 
  MISHKIN 
  413 
  

  

  Spanish 
  only 
  are 
  a 
  minority 
  of 
  the 
  whole 
  population, 
  and 
  are 
  concen- 
  

   trated 
  mainly 
  along 
  the 
  coast. 
  The 
  Quechua 
  speakers, 
  as 
  the 
  table 
  of 
  

   political 
  divisions 
  demonstrates, 
  make 
  up 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  the 
  popula- 
  

   tion 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  and 
  southern 
  departments. 
  Cuzco, 
  with 
  326,238 
  

   using 
  Quechua 
  exclusively 
  and 
  77,378 
  bilingual 
  residents 
  of 
  a 
  total 
  of 
  

   411,298, 
  is 
  98 
  percent 
  Quechua 
  speaking. 
  In 
  Ayacucho, 
  all 
  but 
  1 
  per- 
  

   cent 
  of 
  the 
  population 
  can 
  and 
  do 
  speak 
  Quechua. 
  The 
  center 
  of 
  

   Ay 
  mar 
  a 
  in 
  Peru 
  is 
  Puno, 
  while 
  some 
  Ay 
  mar 
  a 
  islands 
  exist 
  in 
  Tacna 
  

   and 
  Moquegua. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  apparent 
  that 
  bilingualism 
  is 
  a 
  common 
  phenomenon 
  in 
  Peru. 
  

   Approximately 
  16.5 
  percent 
  of 
  the 
  population 
  over 
  5 
  years 
  of 
  age 
  are 
  

   classified 
  as 
  bilingual 
  (Sp&msh-Quechua 
  and 
  Spamsh-Aymara) 
  . 
  A 
  

   small 
  percentage 
  of 
  the 
  population 
  can 
  justifiably 
  be 
  called 
  trilingual, 
  

   using 
  Spanish, 
  Quechua, 
  and 
  Ay 
  mar 
  a 
  with 
  equal 
  frequency 
  in 
  the 
  

   round 
  of 
  daily 
  activities. 
  The 
  town 
  of 
  Puno 
  is 
  perhaps 
  the 
  best 
  case 
  

   of 
  a 
  trilingual 
  center. 
  

  

  Proficiency 
  in 
  handling 
  Spanish 
  and 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  languages 
  is 
  

   often 
  taken 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  mark 
  of 
  a 
  Mestizo. 
  Standing 
  between 
  the 
  

   Spanish-speaking 
  Coastal 
  citizen 
  and 
  the 
  Andean 
  Indian, 
  the 
  Mestizo 
  

   is 
  the 
  interpreter, 
  the 
  middleman, 
  the 
  social, 
  economic, 
  and 
  political 
  

   link 
  between 
  the 
  two 
  poles 
  of 
  Peruvian 
  life. 
  But 
  the 
  linguistic 
  crite- 
  

   rion 
  alone 
  does 
  not 
  define 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  the 
  Mestizo 
  group 
  ; 
  other 
  cul- 
  

   tural 
  factors 
  tending 
  to 
  give 
  the 
  Mestizo 
  greater 
  numerical 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  

   political 
  importance 
  come 
  into 
  play. 
  

  

  Whatever 
  distinctions 
  are 
  made 
  between 
  Mestizo 
  and 
  Indian 
  must 
  

   depend 
  for 
  their 
  validity 
  upon 
  the 
  object 
  of 
  such 
  distinctions. 
  In 
  

   reality, 
  the 
  two 
  groups 
  merge. 
  A 
  few 
  European 
  traits 
  have 
  pene- 
  

   trated 
  to 
  even 
  the 
  most 
  isolated 
  Indian 
  cultures; 
  similarly, 
  certain 
  

   concepts 
  peculiarly 
  Indian 
  have 
  found 
  their 
  way 
  to 
  the 
  most 
  conser- 
  

   vative 
  Spanish 
  descendants. 
  Except 
  for 
  a 
  small 
  and 
  distinct 
  element, 
  

   which 
  is 
  wholly 
  Western 
  in 
  its 
  mode 
  of 
  life 
  and 
  thinking, 
  the 
  various 
  

   levels 
  that 
  comprise 
  Peruvian 
  national 
  culture 
  are 
  fluid 
  in 
  character, 
  

   each 
  spilling 
  over 
  into 
  the 
  next. 
  Any 
  segment 
  of 
  the 
  population 
  

   curve 
  will 
  contain 
  groups 
  representing 
  varying 
  degrees 
  of 
  Indian 
  and 
  

   Mestizo 
  status. 
  The 
  same 
  individual 
  may 
  be 
  considered 
  Indian 
  from 
  

   one 
  point 
  of 
  view 
  or 
  be 
  classified 
  as 
  a 
  Mestizo 
  from 
  another. 
  To 
  take 
  

   an 
  obvious 
  example, 
  the 
  QuechuaS^msh. 
  division 
  of 
  the 
  bilingual 
  

   population, 
  a 
  seemingly 
  homogeneous 
  unit, 
  naturally 
  breaks 
  down 
  

   into 
  (1) 
  those 
  for 
  whom 
  Quechua 
  is 
  primary 
  and 
  Spanish 
  secondary, 
  

   (2) 
  those 
  for 
  whom 
  Spanish 
  is 
  the 
  primary 
  language, 
  and 
  (3) 
  those 
  

   equally 
  proficient 
  in 
  the 
  two 
  languages. 
  Or 
  by 
  another 
  type 
  of 
  anal- 
  

   ysis 
  one 
  might 
  distinguish 
  those 
  literate 
  in 
  both 
  languages, 
  those 
  

   literate 
  in 
  only 
  one, 
  exceptional 
  speaking 
  ability 
  in 
  both 
  or 
  in 
  one 
  lan- 
  

   guage, 
  average 
  or 
  poor 
  speaking 
  ability 
  in 
  both 
  or 
  in 
  one, 
  knowledge 
  

   of 
  a 
  market 
  vocabulary 
  (500 
  words) 
  in 
  one 
  or 
  the 
  other 
  language, 
  etc. 
  

  

  