'Quechua' originates from Spanish, specifically from the Quechua language word 'qichwa' (also spelled 'kichwa' or 'qeswa'), where the root referred to a 'central / temperate valley' region and by extension the people and their speech.

'Quechua' entered Spanish from the indigenous Quechua word 'qichwa'; Spanish forms (Quechua, Quichua) were then borrowed into English as 'Quechua'.

Initially it referred to the valley-region term and the people/language of that area; over time it became the standard name in Spanish and English for the people, the language, and the language family.