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[personal profile] prettygoodword
llama (LAH-muh) - n., a domesticated South American camelid (Lama glama) raised as a pack animal and for its wool.

guanaco (gwah-NAH-koh) - n., a wild South American camelid (Lama guanicoe) of open areas of the Andes sought after for its wool.

vicuña or vicuna (vai-KOO-nyuh, vi-KOO-nuh) - n., a wild South American camelid (Lama vicugna) of upland areas of the Andes sought after for its wool.


The genetics is very complicated, but basically, llamas are domesticated guanacos with a little vicuña cross-breeding, while alpacas are domesticated vicuñas with a little guanaco cross-breeding -- notably, vicuñas and alpacas are more gracile than guanacos and llamas. All three names are (via Spanish) from the Classical Quechua names for them, llama, wanaku, and wik'uña. This one's a llama:

a llama sans pajama
Thanks, WikiMedia!

As to why alpaca (al-PAK-uh), a domesticated South American camelid (Lama pacos) raised for its wool, is a bonus and not a main entry, that's because its name is not from Quechua, but Aymara, the unrelated dominant language of the Andes of northern Bolivia, with about 1.7 million speakers today. (Aymara won't be getting a theme week, because that's basically the only word we've gotten from it.)

---L.

Date: 2025-10-07 03:19 pm (UTC)
lilysea: Serious (Default)
From: [personal profile] lilysea
Guanaco are one of the favourite foods of mountain lions

Date: 2025-10-07 04:31 pm (UTC)
lilysea: Serious (Default)
From: [personal profile] lilysea
David Attenborough has a mother hunting guanaco for her cubs in one of his documentaries.

It's hard work for her!

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