wiphala means A square, multicolored emblem with a checkered pattern, used as a flag to represent some of the indigenous peoples of the Andes, particularly the Aymara. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 83 out of 100.
Why this word is great
WIPHALA — [Noun] A square, tessellated flag of forty-nine colored squares, emblematic of the indigenous peoples of the Andes, particularly the Aymara. Its etymology flows from the living tongues of Bolivian Quechua or Aymara, from roots *wiphay*, a call of triumph, and *pala*, meaning something woven. Unlike a "flag"—a cloth asserting the singular authority of a nation-state—or a "banner"—a long strip for a transient cause—the wiphala is a woven cosmology. It is the geometric distillation of a terraced mountainside, the chromatic code of the solstice, and a defiant rectangle of color against the immense taupe of the altiplano—a declaration that a people is not a border, but a brilliant, inseparable spectrum; a testament that order is not imposed, but recalled from the fabric of the land itself.
name
- A square, multicolored emblem with a checkered pattern, used as a flag to represent some of the indigenous peoples of the Andes, particularly the Aymara.
noun
- A square emblem, commonly used as a flag, representing the native peoples of the central Andes of Bolivia.“Mr. Morales spoke before thousands of supporters in downtown La Paz on Saturday, some of whom were waving the wiphala, a multicolored flag representing indigenous people in Bolivia.”