collA

Colla is a term that appears in several unrelated contexts, including anthropology, linguistics, language names, and everyday vocabulary. The most widely cited historical use refers to an indigenous group of the Andes, sometimes called the Colla or Qulla.

In the context of indigenous peoples, the Colla (or Qulla) were a group of Aymaran-speaking communities that inhabited parts of the southern Andes, spanning areas of present-day Bolivia, northern Chile, and northwestern Argentina, with extensions into Peru. They organized into a regional confederation prior to and during the early stages of Inca expansion. The name Colla also appears in the Inca imperial division known as Collasuyu, the southern quarter of the empire named after the Colla peoples. Following the Spanish conquest, the Colla differed in status and culture as colonial and postcolonial dynamics reshaped their communities. In historical and linguistic sources, Colla can denote both the people and their languages.

Linguistically, the term Colla is used to refer to languages or dialects associated with the Colla peoples. Classifications vary by source, but the designation is commonly linked to varieties within the broader Aymaran language family.

In modern usage, Colla also appears as an Italian surname. It is borne by individuals and families of Italian origin and has spread to other regions through migration.

The word collа in Italian means glue or paste, a sense that is distinct from the ethnolinguistic and geographic uses described above.