| Ollantay | |
|---|---|
 Drama Ollanta, edition of Ernst Middendorf, 1890, beginning | |
| Characters |
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| Original language | Quechua |
| Genre | Historical drama |
| Setting | Inca Empire |
Ollantay is a dramatic play, originally written in the Quechua language. It is considered by some to be of Inca origin—and as such the oldest and deepest expression of Quechua literature—while others believe it to be of colonial Hispanic origin.[1]
The oldest known manuscript of Ollantay belonged to the priest Antonio Valdés (18th century), who for some time was thought to be the original author; however, other differing manuscripts have been found that suggest the existence of a common, more remote, origin.[2] The most widely accepted theory is that the story is of Incan origin and was preserved through oral tradition until it was adapted for theatrical presentation in colonial times.
Ollantay was first published in 1857 by Johann Jakob von Tschudi, in Quechua and German. The first Spanish version appeared in Lima in 1868, published by José Sebastián Barranca and subtitled "The tribulations of a father and the generosity of a king" (Los rigores de un padre y la generosidad de un rey); since then different versions have been published in a variety of languages.