Notes on Names of Peaks in the Cordillera Huayhuash. The ...

N otes on N am es o f Peaks in the Cordillera Huayhuash. The Q uechua of different regions of Peru differs considerably. On the eastern slope of the Cordillera H uayhuash it is quite different from th at of the Cordillera Blanca. F o r that reason and because my investigations were lim ited to a few days, these findings are som ew hat tentative. The maps of the Instituto G eográfico M ilitar of Peru seem to be excellent topo­ graphically but the nom enclature is hopelessly inaccurate; for instance the p am pa on the southw estern shore of Lago V iconga is really M atipaqui (broken gourd) but it appears as M atiraqui on the map. Some of the nam es which appear on the map are com pletely unknow n locally; on the southern rim of the range the peak which appears on the map as “M itop u n ta” is actually called Y anacaico (black corral from yana (black) + caico (c o rra l)), getting its nam e from the enclosed valley of the same nam e above which it rises. Jirishanca comes from jirish (hum m ingbird) + janca or shanca (cold place or snow m oun tain ); there is no m ention of the hum m ingbird’s bill, usually given as part of the m eaning of the nam e, though this may be implied because of the shape of the peak. N inashanca comes from nina (fire) + janca or shanca, possibly getting its nam e from red rock. Siulá means cold. Rasac means toad. Puscanturpa means distaff. (The first p art should be pronounced putskan, w hich signifies spinning.) Tsacra is an anim al lair and Puyoc means rotten or m oth-eaten. One inform ant told me that Sarapo means funnel, but this I could not confirm. H. A d a m s C a r t e r