From the 100 Facts for 100 years of Machu Picchu- Fact #3

By Catharine Hamm Los Angeles Times Travel Editor

3. About half the population of Peru is Quechua, a South American Indian group. The group's native tongue is also called Quechua. A dialect of that language was spoken by the Incas.

 Quechua is the second official language of Peru.  It is the pre-Spanish language of the Andes, it was spoken by native people of Peru prior to the Incas, however use of the language was spread to other regions during the time of the Incan Empire.  Today Quechua is spoken in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Argentina and Colombia.

The name Machu Picchu in Quechua translates to Machu old man and Pikchu peak and the name Cusco translates to navel as in the center of the world.