1. Formation of plural in Quechua
In English, the most common formation of plural nouns is by adding an –s suffix to the singular noun, in Quechua you must add the suffix -kuna.
We saw a little of this with the pronouns qankuna (you [guys]) and paykuna (they), which are formed by adding -kuna to qan (you) and pay (he/she).
Let’s look at some examples and increase our vocabulary:
| P’unchay | Day | P’unchaykuna | Days |
| Sonqo | Heart | Sonqokuna | Hearts |
| Llaqta | City, Town | Llaqtakuna | Cities, towns |
| Ñan | Path | Ñankuna | Paths |
| Rumi | Stone | Rumikuna | Stones |
| Runa | Person | Runakuna | Persons |
| Wasi | House | Wasikuna | Houses |
| Ch’aska | Star | Ch’askakuna | Stars |
| Wawa | Baby, child, offspring | Wawakuna | Babies, children, offsprings |
| Orqo | Mountain, hill | Orqokuna | Mountains, hills |
2. Possessive endings in Quechua and suffix -q/-pa
To indicate possession in Quechua you have to add endings very similar to those of the present simple.
When the word ends in a consonant, add -ni before the possessive ending.
Regarding the suffix -q/-pa, this is added to pronouns, proper names, nouns, among others; -q is used when the noun ends in a vowel, and -pa when it ends in a consonant. Pronouns can be tacit or omitted.
| Pronoun | Word ending in vowel | Word ending in consonant | Meaning |
| Noqaq | -y | –niy | My |
| Qanpa | -yki | –niyki | Your |
| Paypa | -n | –nin | His / Her |
| Noqanchispa | -nchis | –ninchis | Our |
| Noqaykuq | -yku | –niyku | Our |
| Qankunaq | -ykichis | –niykichis | Your |
| Paykunaq | -nku | –ninku | Their |
The suffix -q/-pa indicates belonging, property, possession, it can be translated: of, belonging to, property of. Examples:
- Juanpa: of Juan, belonging to Juan
- Mariaq: of Maria, belonging to Maria
- Llaqtaq: of the city, belonging to the city
- Qanpa: of you, belonging to you
Words ending in vowel
Let’s see how these possessives endings and the suffix “-q” are used with the word “Wasi” (house) which ends in a vowel:
Display3| Pronoun (optional) | Noun | English (literally) |
| Noqaq | wasiy | My house (my house of me) |
| Qanpa | wasiyki | Your house (your house of you) |
| Paypa | wasin | His/Her house (his/her house of him/her) |
| Noqanchispa | wasinchis | Our house (our house of us) [also belongs to the hearer] |
| Noqaykuq | wasiyku | Our house (our house of us) [does not belong to the hearer] |
| Qankunaq | wakiykichis | Your house (your house of you [guys]) |
| Paykunaq | wasinku | Their house (their house of them) |
When the “i” is next to the “y” in the same syllable, a long “i” is pronounced as in “tree”.
Let’s see what happens when we add the suffix -kuna and omit the pronouns:
| Quechua | Español |
| Wasiykuna | My houses |
| Wasiykikuna | Your houses |
| Wasinkuna | His/Her houses |
| Wasinchiskuna | Our houses (also belongs to the hearer) |
| Wasiyku | Our houses (does not belong to the hearer). In this case the suffix –kuna is not added. |
| Wasiykichiskuna | Your houses (The houses of you [guys]) |
| Wasinku | Their houses In this case the suffix –kuna is not added. |
Words ending in consonant
Let’s look at the possessives of the word yanapaq (helper, assistant):
| Ending | Quechua | Español |
| -niy | Yanapaqniy | My assistant |
| -niyki | Yanapaqniyki | Your assistant |
| -nin | Yanapaqnin | His/Her assistant |
| -ninchis | Yanapaqninchis | Our assistant (also the assistant of the hearer) |
| -niyku | Yanapaqniyku | Our assistant (not the assistant of the hearer) |
| -niykichis | Yanapaqniykichis | Your assistant |
| -ninku | Yanapaqninku | Their assistant |
And what would the plural be like? So:
| Quechua | Español |
| Yanapaqniykuna | My assistants |
| Yanapaqniykikuna | Your assistants |
| Yanapaqninkuna | His/Her assistants |
| Yanapaqninchiskuna | Our assistants (also the assistant of the hearer) |
| Yanapaqniyku | Our assistants (not the assistant of the hearer) In this case the suffix -kuna is not added. |
| Yanapaqniykichiskuna | Your assistants |
| Yanapaqninku | Their assistants In this case the suffix -kuna is not added. |