Chibcha language
Encyclopedia
Chibcha, also known as Muisca or Mosca, is an extinct Chibchan language
Chibchan languages
The Chibchan languages make up a language family indigenous to the Isthmo-Colombian area, which extends from eastern Honduras to northern Colombia and includes populations of these countries as well as Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama...

 of Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

, formerly spoken by the Muisca
Muisca
Muisca was the Chibcha-speaking tribe that formed the Muisca Confederation of the central highlands of present-day Colombia. They were encountered by the Spanish Empire in 1537, at the time of the conquest...

 people, a complex indigenous
Indigenous peoples in Colombia
The indigenous peoples in Colombia comprise a large number of distinct ethnic groups who inhabited the country's present territory prior to its discovery by Europeans around 1500.-Origins:...

 civilization of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 and the present-day Colombian region. Scholars believe the Chibcha language arose in South America and then migrated with people to nearby areas. In 1770, King
King
- Centers of population :* King, Ontario, CanadaIn USA:* King, Indiana* King, North Carolina* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin* King, Waupaca County, Wisconsin* King County, Washington- Moving-image works :Television:...

 Charles III of Spain
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...

 officially banned use of the language in the region as part of a de-indigenization project. The ban remained in law until Colombia passed its constitution of 1991
Colombian Constitution of 1991
The Political Constitution of Colombia, better known as the Constitution of 1991, is the current governing document of the Republic of Colombia. Promulgated on July 4 of 1991 , it replaced the Constitution of 1886...

.

Words of Muyskkubun origin are still used in the departments of Cundinamarca
Cundinamarca Department
- Origin of the name :The name of Cundinamarca comes from Kundur marqa, an indigenous expression, probably derived from Quechua. Meaning "Condor's Nest", it was used in pre-Columbian times by the natives of the Magdalena Valley to refer to the nearby highlands....

 of which Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...

 is the capital, and Boyacá
Boyacá Department
Boyacá is one of the 32 Departments of Colombia, and the remnant of one of the original nine states of the "United States of Colombia".Boyacá is centrally located within Colombia, almost entirely within the mountains of the Eastern Cordillera to the border with Venezuela, although the western end...

. These include curuba (a fruit), toche (a bird), guadua (a bamboo-like plant) and tatacoa (a snake). The Muisca descendants continue many traditional ways, such as the use of certain foods, use of coca
Coca
Coca, Erythroxylum coca, is a plant in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to western South America. The plant plays a significant role in many traditional Andean cultures...

for teas and healing rituals, and other aspects of natural ways, which are a deep part of culture here. Chibcha culture flourished in these areas since at least the 7th century BC.

The only public school in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

 currently teaching Muisca (to about 150 children) is in the town of Cota
Cota, Colombia
Cota is a municipality and town of Colombia in the department of Cundinamarca.Jose Nestor Gonzalez Romero is the mayor of Cota.-External links:...

, about 20 miles by road from Bogotá. The school is named Jizcamox (healing with the hands) in Muisca.

The Chibcha or Muisca called their language Muyskkubun. The Spanish called it Chibcha, derived from Chib (staff) and Cha (man), meaning the "Chief of the Community". Chibchacum, the god of agriculture, was punished by the god Bochica
Bochica
Bochica is a figure in the mythology of the Muisca culture, which existed during the arrival of the Spanish conquistadores in areas comprising parts of present day Colombia and Panama...

and had to hold the earth on his shoulders.

Further reading (in Spanish, use Translate on Google)

These are available through the Virtual Library, Biblioteca Luis Angel Arango Banco de la República, Colombia

External links

  • Muyskkubun Project, in Spanish, with Muyskkubun–Spanish dictionary
  • "Chibcha", Archives, sources in Spanish on the Chibcha language, Rosetta Project
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