Duit language
Extinct Chibcha language of Colombia
title: "Duit language" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["languages-of-colombia", "chibchan-languages", "chibcha-language", "duitama", "extinct-languages-of-south-america"] description: "Extinct Chibcha language of Colombia" topic_path: "linguistics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duit_language" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Extinct Chibcha language of Colombia ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox language"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Duit |
| map | Chibcha lang.png |
| mapcaption | The second-most southern yellow dot indicates roughly the area where Duit was spoken |
| states | Boyacá, Colombia |
| region | Altiplano Cundiboyacense |
| ethnicity | Muisca |
| nation | Muisca Confederation |
| extinct | ? |
| familycolor | American |
| fam1 | Chibcha |
| fam2 | Kuna-Colombian |
| fam3 | Muysccubun |
| script | Only numerals |
| iso3 | none |
| linglist | qrx |
| lingname | (also used for the unrelated Mittlere Neu-Hebriden) |
| glotto | duit1239 |
| glottorefname | Duit |
| :: |
| name = Duit | nativename = | map = Chibcha lang.png | mapcaption = The second-most southern yellow dot indicates roughly the area where Duit was spoken | states = Boyacá, Colombia | region = Altiplano Cundiboyacense | ethnicity = Muisca | nation = Muisca Confederation | extinct = ? | familycolor = American | fam1 = Chibcha | fam2 = Kuna-Colombian | fam3 = Muysccubun | script = Only numerals | iso3 = none | linglist = qrx | lingname = (also used for the unrelated Mittlere Neu-Hebriden) | glotto = duit1239 | glottorefname = Duit
Duit is an extinct Chibcha language, which had been spoken by the Muisca of present-day Boyacá, Colombia. The language appears in the modern name of the pre-Columbian settlement and last ruler Tundama; Duitama.
Description
The language is only known from one fragment analysed by scholar Ezequiel Uricoechea in 1871. The linguist mentioned that the analysed text was part of a larger work that hitherto has not been found. From the short text it was clear that the Duit language differed slightly from the main version of Chibcha, Muysccubun, spoken by the Muisca on the Altiplano Cundiboyacense.
As the Muisca did not have a script, only for their numerals, written Duit language texts do not exist.
Comparison to Muysccubun and numerals
::data[format=table]
| English | Duit | Muysccubun | Numerals as noted by Acosta, Humboldt and Zerda |
|---|---|---|---|
| one | atia | ata | [[File:Muisca cyphers acc acosta humboldt zerda.svg |
| two | bocha | bosa | |
| three | meia | mica | |
| Sun | sa | súa | |
| Moon | tia | chía | |
| star | cúrcha | fagua | |
| Territory | coga | quyca | |
| :: |
References
Bibliography
References
- {{in lang. es [http://pueblosoriginarios.com/biografias/tundama.html Biography Cacique Tundama] - Pueblos Originarios
- Uricoechea, Ezequiel. (1871). "Gramática, vocabulario, catecismo y confesionario de la lengua chibcha, según antiguos manuscritos anónimos e inéditos".
- Izquierdo Peña, 2009
- {{in lang. es [http://muysca.cubun.org/fagua ''fagua''] - Muysccubun online dictionary
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