Ahuililama (Verg23v)

This compound Nahuatl hieroglyph is a black-line drawing of the personal name Ahuililama, attested here as a man’s name. It is a man’s name, but it refers to an “elder woman” (ilama) who enjoys sex. The woman’s head is in profile, facing left. She has the traditional hairstyle for a married or adult woman, the neaxtlahualli or axtlahuilli. Water (atl) flows below this head, seemingly providing the “A-” start to the name. There is nothing particularly aged about this woman. It is interesting how a man might have the name of an elder woman, especially one who was possibly considered illicit.