Language/Classical-quechua/Grammar/Pronouns

Classical Quechua Grammar - Pronouns

Hi Classical Quechua learners! 😊
In today's lesson, we will be discussing pronouns in Classical Quechua. Pronouns are an important part of any language, and they can be tricky to learn. But don't worry, by the end of this lesson you will have a good understanding of how to use pronouns in Classical Quechua.

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns are used to refer to people or things. In Classical Quechua, there are three types of personal pronouns: singular, dual, and plural.

Singular

The singular pronouns are used to refer to one person or thing. The singular pronouns in Classical Quechua are as follows:

• First Person Singular: qam (I)
• Second Person Singular: qan (you)
• Third Person Singular: pay (he/she/it)

For example:

Qam qillqayta. (I write.)
Qan qillqayta. (You write.)
Pay qillqayta. (He/she/it writes.)

Dual

The dual pronouns are used to refer to two people or things. The dual pronouns in Classical Quechua are as follows:

• First Person Dual: qayku (we two)
• Second Person Dual: qanku (you two)
• Third Person Dual: payku (they two)

For example:

Qayku qillqaykuna. (We two write.)
Qanku qillqaykuna. (You two write.)
Payku qillqaykuna. (They two write.)

Plural

The plural pronouns are used to refer to more than two people or things. The plural pronouns in Classical Quechua are as follows:

• First Person Plural: qaymi (we)
• Second Person Plural: qanmi (you)
• Third Person Plural: paymi (they)

For example:

Qaymi qillqaykuna. (We write.)
Qanmi qillqaykuna. (You write.)
Paymi qillqaykuna. (They write.)

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns are used to indicate ownership or possession. In Classical Quechua, possessive pronouns are formed by adding the suffix -nqa to the personal pronoun.

For example:

Qamnqa qillqayta. (I write my own.)
Qannqa qillqayta. (You write your own.)
Paynqa qillqayta. (He/she/it writes his/her/its own.)

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are used to refer back to the subject of the sentence. In Classical Quechua, reflexive pronouns are formed by adding the suffix -yki to the personal pronoun.

For example:

Qamyki qillqayta. (I write myself.)
Qanyki qillqayta. (You write yourself.)
Payyki qillqayta. (He/she/it writes himself/herself/itself.)

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are used to point out specific people or things. In Classical Quechua, demonstrative pronouns are formed by adding the suffix -qa to the personal pronoun.

For example:

Qamqa qillqayta. (I write this one.)
Qanqa qillqayta. (You write that one.)
Payqa qillqayta. (He/she/it writes that one.)

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Related Lessons

• Negation
• Gramatical generalities
• Questions
• Adjectives
• Conditional Mood
• Plurals