José María Arguedas Altamirano (18 January 1911 – 28 November 1969) was a Peruviannovelist, poet, and anthropologist. Arguedas was a mestizo of Spanish and Quechua descent [1]who wrote novels, short stories, and poems in both Spanish and Quechua .
Generally remembered as one of the most notable figures of 20th-century Peruvian literature, Arguedas is especially recognized for his intimate portrayals of indigenous Andean culture. Key in his desire to depict indigenous expression and perspective more authentically was his creation of a new language that blended Spanish and Quechua and premiered in his debut novel Yawar Fiesta.

ON ANDEAN FIESTAS AND THE INDIAN
23

QUECHUA SONGS
37

To Be Wandering
39

The Fire that I Have Started
40

That She May Not Find Dew
41

I Nurse a Fly
42

You Were Crying Alone Little Duck
44

Ay Purple Flower
46

Falcon of the Heights
69

Like a River My Weeping
70

Yunca
71

THE THRESHING SONGS OF ANGASMAYO
73

First Song
75

Guavas
77

Green Olive Tree
79

Little Lizard
80



A Wandering Hummingbird
47

In this Growing Darkness
48

The Bird that Hides Itself
49

The Black Water
50

Without Anyone Without Anyone
51

Crystalline River
52

Leavetalking
53

Divided Herb
54

Flying High in the Air
55

Celso Medina
56

Emerald Hummingbird
57

The Sand of the River
58

When You Find Yourself Alone
59

The Ischu Is Weeping
60

Snow Storm
61

Like Two Doves
62

Carnival Song
63

Tambobamba Carnival
65

Tell Her that I Have Wept
66

The Sweet Water
67

What Sorrow Will She Dream
68

The Bagre Fish
81

Cerbaschay
82

Bachelor
84

Lima Lima Flower
85

Ninth Song
87

Majordomo
89

Eleventh Song
90

QUECHUA TALES
91

The Hail
93

The Youth Who Rose to the Sky
96

The Little Bull with the Shiny Skin
105

The Flour Dealer
109

The Head of the Town and the Demon
113

The Condors Lower
126

Miguel Wayapa
139

The Snakes Sweetheart 147

Isicha Puytu
156

ON THE SONGS AND TALES
171

EDITORS NOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
185

The Quechua people, the "singing mountaineers" of Peru, still sing the songs that their Inca ancestors knew before the Spaniards invaded the Andes. Some of these songs, collected and translated into Spanish by José María Arguedas and María Lourdes Valladares from the Quechua language and the Huanca dialect, are now presented for the first time in English in the beautiful translations of Ruth Stephan, author of the recent prize-winning novel, The Flight. Also included in this rich collection are nine folk tales collected by Father Jorge A. Lira, translated into Spanish by Sr. Arguedas, and into English by Kate and Angel Flores.