Inca

[ing-kuh]

noun

1. a member of any of the dominant groups of South American Indian peoples who established an empire in Peru prior to the Spanish conquest.

2. a ruler or member of the royal family in the Incan empire.

Inca

/ ˈɪŋkə /

noun

1. a member of a South American Indian people whose great empire centred on Peru lasted from about 1100 _ad to the Spanish conquest in the early 1530s and is famed for its complex culture

2. the ruler or king of this empire or any member of his family

3. the language of the Incas See also Quechua

Other Word Forms

• Incan noun
• Incaic adjective
• pseudo-Incan adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Inca¹

1585–95; < Spanish < Quechua inka ruler of the Inca state

Word History and Origins

Origin of Inca¹

C16: from Spanish, from Quechua inka king

Example Sentences

Peru is home to many of the Americas' most significant archaeological discoveries, including the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu in the Andes and the mysterious Nazca Lines etched into the desert along the central coast.

From BBC

He returned to Peru aged 10 and six years later he wrote his first play, The Escape of the Inca.

From BBC

The leaves were used as currency in the Inca Empire, which ruled the Andes mountains spanning the length of South America, and fed to the victims of human sacrifices before their untimely departures.

From Salon

Pizarro founded Lima in 1535 after defeating the Inca Empire and claiming their lands for the Spanish crown.

From BBC

“We see evidence for this all over the world,” she said, including in Viking and Inca cultures.

From New York Times