quipu

noun /ˈki.pu/

1. A recording device, used by the Incas, consisting of intricate knotted cords.

   Among a cache of 21 quipus recovered from a house, probably that of the chief quipu keeper, seven are clearly related in a three-tier accounting hierarchy.

Where it comes from

Borrowed from Spanish quipu, from Quechua khipu (“knot”).

Adapted from the Wiktionary entry quipu (CC BY-SA 4.0).

← quintatequirkyalone →

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