Pre-Columbian Writing and Academic Communication Review

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering Pre-Columbian writing systems, academic communication techniques like the conversatorio, project reports, Indian culture, and basic Spanish grammar.

Amate

A variety of ficus bark used to manufacture sheets of paper for fixing pictorial texts in Mesoamerica.

Tlacuiloa

A Nahuatl word meaning "to write painting" or "to paint writing," designating the traditional Aztec writing system.

Tlacuilo

The "writer-painter" who produced Mesoamerican picture-texts using the association of phonetic and semantic elements.

Códices

Mesoamerican "picture-texts" considered the first American books, formed by strips of paper, skins, or cloth.

Quipus

An Incan system consisting of a main cord with thinner hanging strings and various types of knots used to represent numbers and record inventories.

Quipucamayos

Specialized Incan scribes who managed and interpreted different classes of quipus, such as statistical, demographic, and historical.

Quilca

The Quechua word for the concept of writing, referring to graphic representations on seeds or small stones used for memorizing messages.

Tocapus

Logographic signs found in Incan textile designs, where each sign represents a word, according to the theory of Victoria de la Jara.

Conversatorio

An academic oral communication exercise built through an organized, informal dialogue to exchange ideas about a topic of interest.

Coloquio académico

A synonym for a conversatorio that facilitates the participation of special guests with authority on a specific subject.

Informe

An expository text used to present results obtained through bibliographic, experimental, or experiential research.

Podocnemis unifilis

A freshwater turtle species (charapa) that measures between $38\,cm$ and $50\,cm$ and weighs between $5\,kg$ and $12\,kg$.

Música indostaní

One of the two major groups of Indian music, specifically belonging to the northern region of the country.

Música carnática

The traditional classical music of southern India which is more theoretical and follows stricter composition rules than northern music.

Shiva Nataraja

The god of music and dance in Hindu tradition, symbolizing the movement of creation, preservation, and dissolution.

Damaru

A drum held in the right hand of Shiva Nataraja, serving as a symbol of creation starting with the sound of the $om$.

Mama Negra

A traditional festival in Latacunga, Ecuador, celebrated around November 11 to honor the Independence of the city and the Virgin of the Mercedes.

Oración simple

A grammatical structure composed of a word or set of words communicating a complete idea, consisting of a subject and a predicate.

Sujeto tácito

A subject that is not explicitly present in a sentence but is understood through the context and the verb ending.

Sinonimia

The use of synonyms to provide cohesion and unity to a text, avoiding excessive repetition of terms.