Groundbreaking Translation of "Don Quixote" Into Quechua
At 85, Professor Demetrio Túpac Yupanqui, who has spent his life teaching Quechua, has brought new attention to the language in a pioneering translation of "Don Quixote." Quechua is an indigenous South American language spoken by about 5 million people in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, and other Andean countries. It was the primary language of the Incan empire but had no written alphabet. When Yupanqui translated Cervantes' "Don Quixote" into Quechua in 2006, it was viewed as "a sign of what is to be done on a broader scale in the Andean republics if Quechua speakers are to be brought fully into their respective national communities," says Bruce Mannheim, an anthropologist at the University of Michigan who specializes in Quechua. Yupanqui has also taught the language to military officers, civil servants, and a few foreigners. Books, magazines, and television programs are now available in Quechua, helping speakers remain linked to the wider world. There are plans for teaching the language in schools along with English. Microsoft has translated some of its software into Quechua, while Google has released a Quechua-version of its search engine. Meanwhile, Bolivia's government wants to make fluency in Quechua or another indigenous language compulsory in the civil service. In Peru, two lawmakers have started using Quechua in congressional sessions.
From "Armed With a Pen, and Ready to Save the Incas' Mother Tongue"
New York Times (06/07/08) Romero, Simon
Source: ATA June Newsletter
