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Approximate extent of Mochica before replacement by Spanish.
Distribution of the Mochica language according to the Art of the Yunga language
Mochica is an extinct language formerly spoken along the northern coast of Peru and in an inland village. First documented in 1607, the language was widely spoken in the area during the 17th century and the early 18th century. By the late 19th century, the language was dying out and spoken only by a few people in the village of Etén, in Chiclayo. It died out as a spoken language around 1920, but certain words and phrases continued to be used until the 1960s.[2] A revival movement has appeared in recent times.
It is proven and accepted by linguists that it was spoken by those of the Sican culture, and it is not proven that it was spoken by those of the Moche culture, and it is ruled out that it was spoken by the Chimos, since it is proven that they spoke Quingnam.[citation needed]
The only varieties are according to each researcher who compiled their vocabulary, so we have the variety of Ernst Middendorf, Compañon, Bruning, etc.
Denominations
Colonial sources record several designations for the language now generally known as Mochica: Yunga, Mochica, Muchic/Muchik, and occasional appellatives such as Pescadora. The choice of name varied according to author, period, and context.
The Franciscan friar Luis Jerónimo de Oré (missionary, polyglot, later bishop of Concepción in Chile) in his Rituale seu Manuale Peruanum (1607) refers to the "Mochica" language and also uses the phrase “Mochica de los Yungas” (en: "Mochica of the Yungas").[3] In the latter case, he seems to distinguish between the language itself —called Mochica— and the northern peoples —denominated Yungas. It is worth noting that at the time Yunga was employed not only as a geographic and climatic term, derived from Quechuaexonymyunka (“warm area”), but also to refer to the Mochica as an ethnic group.[4]
In 1644, the diocesan priest and parish vicar of RequeFernando de la Carrera published the Arte de la lengua yunga (Art of the Yunga Language), the only known colonial grammar of this language, where he consistently used the exonym Yunga.[5] His choice reflects the fact that Yunga was, in the colonial lexicon, the Spanish designation (borrowed from Quechuayunka) for the coastal peoples, regions, and languages.[6]
The Augustinian friar Antonio de la Calancha employed the form Muchic in his Crónica moralizadora (1638).[7] In the nineteenth century, the German physician and philologist Ernst W. Middendorf revived that variant and disseminated it as Muchik in works such as Das Muchik oder die Chimu-Sprache (1892).[8] Middendorf identified the language with that of the Chimú, partly because Quingnam (the actual language of the Chimú kingdom) was at that time poorly documented, whereas colonial references and traces of Mochica still existed. Furthermore, nineteenth-century archaeology often grouped Sicán and Moche material into stages labeled “proto-Chimú” or “early Chimú,” which reinforced the misattribution. Later archaeological and linguistic research clarified these associations.[4][6]
In sum, Mochica, Yunga, Muchic/Muchik, and occasionally Pescadora appear in the sources and scholarly tradition. Today, Mochica remains the most widely used term in academic literature, while some revitalization projects prefer Muchik, consciously drawing on colonial spellings and nineteenth-century usage.[4]
Classification
Mochica is usually considered to be a language isolate,[9] but has also been hypothesized as belonging to a wider Chimuan language family. Stark (1972) proposes a connection with Uru–Chipaya as part of a Maya–Yunga–Chipayan macrofamily hypothesis.[10]
Geographic distribution
According to the list of the vicar of Reque and author of the aforementioned Art, Fernando de la Carrera, the peoples who in 1644 spoke the Mochica language were as follows:
The Cultural Office of the district of Mórrope has launched a program to teach the Mochica language in an effort to preserve the region’s ancient cultural legacy. The initiative has been well received by local residents and adopted by numerous schools. Additional cultural activities—such as the crafting of ceramics and decorated gourds (mates)—have also been introduced as part of the revitalization effort.[13]
Previously considered a dead language, Mochica is now taught in 38 schools and has around 80 speakers.[14]
Phonology and orthography
The phonology of Mochica is not known with certainty due to the differing transcriptions used by different authors. In addition, the two primary sources on Mochica were recorded over 200 years apart, with significant phonetic changes having occurred during that time.
Vowels
Carrera Daza (1644)
Carrera Daza distinguishes six vowels in Mochica, represented as ⟨a, e, i, o, u, æ⟩, with the latter sometimes being written as ⟨œ⟩ in different editions of his grammar. This vowel is characterized as "begin[ning] as an e and end[ing] as a u, in such a way that there are two vowels in one". A diacritic is used to indicate length, though it is mainly restricted to a few roots (ûtzh 'big') and the ending -ô, used in the genitive construction.
The letter ⟨i⟩ is sometimes used as a palatalization marker by Carrera Daza (e.g. ñaiñ/nʲanʲ/ 'bird' or çio/sʲo/ 'he, it'), and diphthongs did not occur in the Mochica of his time.[15]
Middendorf (1892)
In contrast, Middendorf recognizes 17 vowels, including 11 plain vowels, two "impure" vowels, and four diphthongs. The impure vowels are written as ⟨ů⟩ and ⟨ä⟩. Middendorf admits that he was never able to correctly pronounce them, but characterizes them similarly to the ⟨æ⟩ of Carrera Daza. ⟨ä⟩ is described with a very fleeting u sound, such that in rapid speech it would sould similar to [ɛ] or [e]. ⟨ů⟩ is described as reminiscent of the diphthong /aʊ/.[15][16]
The sixth vowel
The vowel represented by ⟨æ⟩ is hotly debated in the field of Mochica studies. As no sound recordings of Mochica exist, and because the existing descriptions are rather vague, the true phonetic value cannot be discerned and any interpretations remain completely hypothetical. One hypothesis is that the sixth vowel was /ɨ/,[17] commonly found in Amazonian languages. Other hypotheses have given realizations of [ɵ,ø,ʉ,ɘʊ,ɘ,œy̯] and [ǝ].[16]
A comparison table of the vowels in Carrera Daza and Middendorf is given below.
Carrera Daza
a, â
e
i
o, ô
u, û
œ/æ
Middendorf
a, ā, ă
e (ē)
ī, (i), ĭ
ō, (o), ŏ
u, ū, ŭ
ä, ů
Thus, a vowel system of Mochica would resemble the table below:
a case system in which cases are built on each other in a linear sequence; for example, the ablative casesuffix is added to the locative case, which in turn is added to an oblique case form;
all nouns have two stems, possessed and non-possessed;
an agentive case suffix used mainly for the agent in passive clauses; and
a verbal system in which all finite forms are formed with the copula.
Morphology
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (November 2025)
Some suffixes in Mochica as reconstituted by Hovdhaugen (2004):[18]
sequential suffix: -top
purpose suffix: -næm
gerund suffixes: -læc and -ssæc
gerund suffix: -(æ)zcæf
gerund suffix: -(æ)d
Lexicon
Some examples of lexical items in Mochica from Hovdhaugen (2004):[18]
Nouns
Possessed and non-possessed nouns in Mochica:
gloss
possessed noun
non-possessed noun
'lord'
çiec
çiequic
'father'
ef
efquic
'son'
eiz
eizquic
'nostrils'
fon
fænquic
'eyes'
locɥ
lucɥquic
'soul'
moix
moixquic
'hand'
mæcɥ
mæcɥquic
'farm'
uiz
uizquic
'bread, food'
xllon
xllonquic
'head'
falpæng
falpic
'leg'
tonæng
tonic
'human flesh'
ærqueng
ærquic
'ear' (but med in medec 'in the ears')
medeng
medquic
'belly, heart' (pol and polæng appear to be equivalents)
ten (counting people, cattle, reed, etc., i.e. everything that is not money, fruits, and days)
chiæng
hundred (counting fruits, etc.)
Numerals
Mochica numerals:
Numeral
Mochica
1
onæc, na-
2
aput, pac-
3
çopæl, çoc-
4
nopæt, noc-
5
exllmætzh
6
tzhaxlltzha
7
ñite
8
langæss
9
tap
10
çiæcɥ, -pong, ssop, -fælæp, cɥoquixll
20
pacpong, pacssop, etc.
30
çocpong, çocssop, etc.
40
nocpong, nocssop, etc.
50
exllmætzhpong, exllmætzhssop, etc.
60
tzhaxlltzhapong, tzhaxlltzhassop, etc.
70
ñitepong, ñitessop, etc.
80
langæsspong, langæssop, etc.
90
tappong, tapssong, etc.
100
palæc
1000
cunô
Sample text
Tonada del Chimo
Sheet music for the tonada del chimo.
The only surviving song in the language is a single tonada, Tonada del Chimo, preserved in the Codex Martínez Compañón among many watercolours illustrating the life of Chimú people during the 18th century:
1st voice: Ja ya llũnch, ja ya llõch Ja ya llũnch, ja ya lloch[sic] In poc cha tanmuisle pecan muisle pecan e necam
2nd voice: Ja ya llũnch, ja ya llõch Ja ya llũnch
1st voice: E menspocehifama le qui ten que consmuiſle Cuerpo lens e menslocunmunom chi perdonar moitin Roc
2nd voice: Ja ya llõch Ja ya llũnh,[sic] ja ya llõch
1st voice: Chondocolo mec checje su chriſto po que si ta mali muis le cuer po[sic] lem. lo quees aoscho perdonar me ñe fe che tas
2nd voice: Ja ya llũnch, ja ya llõch Ja ya llũnch, ja ya llõch
Quingnam, possibly the same as Lengua (Yunga) Pescadora, is sometimes taken to be a dialect, but a list of numerals was discovered in 2010 and suspected to be Quingnam or Pescadora, not Mochica, seems to disprove this.
Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
10
piycan ñof tzhæng cuçias, eiæpmang tzhæng polæng mæn, mo æizi capæc cuçiang nic mæn.
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.
11
Aio ineng, inengô mæich xllon, piy can ñof allô mo lun.
Give us this day our daily bread;
12
Efque can ñof ixllæss aie aca naix efco xllãg muss eio mæich, çio mæn.
And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors;
13
Amoz tocæn ñof xllang muss emællæc zær enicnam næm lecɥ nan ef coñof pissin quich
And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.
Further reading
Brüning, Hans Heinrich (2004). Mochica Wörterbuch / Diccionario mochica: Mochica-castellano, castellano-mochica. Lima: Universidad San Martín de Porres.
Hovdhaugen, Even (2004). Mochica. Munich: LINCOM Europa.
Schumacher de Peña, G. (1992). El vocabulario mochica de Walter Lehmann (1929) comparado con otras fuentes léxicas. Lima: UNSM, Instituto de Investigación de Lingüística Aplicada.
↑ Campbell, Lyle (2012). "Classification of the indigenous languages of South America". In Grondona, Verónica; Campbell, Lyle (eds.). The Indigenous Languages of South America. The World of Linguistics. Vol.2. Berlin: De Gruyter Mouton. pp.59–166. ISBN978-3-11-025513-3.
↑ Stark, Louisa R. (1972). "Maya-Yunga-Chipayan: A New Linguistic Alignment". International Journal of American Linguistics. 38 (2): 119–135. doi:10.1086/465193. ISSN0020-7071. S2CID145380780.
1 2 Adelaar, Willem F. H.; Muysken, Pieter (2004). The languages of the Andes. Cambridge language surveys. Cambridge (G.B.): Cambridge University press. p.322. ISBN978-0-521-36275-7.
↑ Lev, Michael; Stark, Tammy; Chang, Will (2012). "Phonological inventory of Mochica". The South American Phonological Inventory Database (version 1.1.3ed.). Berkeley: University of California: Survey of California and Other Indian Languages Digital Resource.
1 2 Hovdhaugen, Even (2004). Mochica. Munich: LINCOM Europa.
↑ "Bajo y Tamboril para baylar cantando. [Índice:] Tonada del Chimo.". Trujillo del Perú . Volumen 2 (in Spanish). Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes. p.180. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
† indicates an extinct language, italics indicates independent status of a language, bold indicates that a language family has at least 6 members, * indicates moribund status
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