Ecacoacatl (MH485v)

A great many glyphs in this collection start with Eca- when one might expect Eheca-. We are preserving the proclivity of the gloss for Eca-, while also pointing to the likelihood of an unintentional oral abbreviation of Eheca- to Eca-. The gloss here does not reduplicate the first syllable in Ecatl, a common personal name, but, just as with those names, this is likely a reference to Ehecatl, the divine force of wind and a day sign in the calendar. The serpent adds a significant meaning, of course, and the -catl suffix may refer to an ethnicity, a person from a specific place. This suffix is usually appended to a place name, substituting for -co, as explained in our Online Nahuatl Dictionary.

This contextualizing image shows that this man is drawn in full body, unlike most of the men in the census. Thus, he had an important local role. He is dress in Indigenous-style clothing, but he has a baptismal name, Alonso.