Kevin White, age 15, of Greenville, Miss., for his question:
WHO ARE THE INCAS?
The Inca Indians had developed a powerful empire in South America before Christopher Columbus and other Europeans arrived. Although they had good communications, a strong political and social system and well organized armies, they were conquered by Spanish troops who had guns, horses and steel armor.
The Inca empire extended more than 2,500 miles from north to south in 1532, centered in the Andes Mountains of present day Peru. The population was around 7 million. The people spoke the official language, Quechuan.
After the Spanish conquest, heavy taxes were imposed and the Incas became almost slaves. The population dropped to less than 2 million.
Today the number of persons who speak Quechuan is up to more than 6 million. Most of these people, who are descendants of the early Incas, live in the mountains of Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. There are also about 1.5 million Aymara Indians in Peru and Bolivia whose ancestors were once subjects of the Inca empire.
Back in the olden days, each tribe conquered by the Inca had to learn the official language. The old empire actually owed its success to its highly developed social and political system that efficiently used all of the manpower and the wide variety of resources of its vast territories.
The capital of the Inca empire was Cuzco, a city located at about 11,000 feet above sea level which served as a ceremonial center. There were many temples and government buildings. A Temple of the Sun was covered with gems and gold.
Craftsmen turned out beautiful pottery as well as cast and hammered gold, silver, bronze and copper tools and weapons. They wove fine cloth from alpaca, llama and vicuna wool as well as from cotton.
Children did not go to school but learned from their parents at home. Some of the girls were sent to special classes held in Cuzco where they learned to serve in the emperor's palace, or to be wives of noblemen.
Unfortunately, the Inca never developed a true writing. They did, however, come up with a system of recording numbers and also used a memory aid in reciting Inca verse or history.
The recording system employed knotted strings to form what was called a "quipu." Here's how you pronounce that word: key poo. From the main cord dangled smaller strings, sometimes of different colors, with groups of knots tied at intervals. Professional "quipu" keepers memorized the meaning of each and repeated it when an official wanted a report.
Agriculture formed the backbone of the Inca economy. Part of each harvest was stored in special warehouses for distribution to different parts of the empire during hard times, and to support the army, priests and leaders.
Irrigation ditches in the coastal valleys supplied all with water. The crops grown included maize, squash, beans, chili peppers, peanuts, cotton, sweet potatoes, avocados and other plants.