Imacehual (MH666v)

Imacehual (MH666v)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description:

This simplex glyph for the personal name Imacehual (perhaps short for imacehualli, "Feather Fan for Dancing") is attested here as a man's name. It shows a hand-held device on a stick, perhaps a clump of feathers. A right hand (maitl) is holding the stick. Below the stick are four curving streamers. The hand could be a phonetic indicator for the -ma- in the name, but it could also have a semantic function.

Description, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis:

This is a deceptive noun. It appears to be the noun macehualli in a possessed form. That could have many readings, relating to a commoner, an Indigenous person, or someone with merit who is deserving. In fact, however, it might not be possessed at all, but is an apocopation for the unpossessed noun imacehualli, having something to do with dance. And the glyphs all seem to show hand-held feather fans. See below for other devices and headdresses, typically shown in representations of deities or divine forces, such as Xolotl or Tlaloc, or warrior regalia.

Added Analysis, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image:

Source Manuscript:

Huexotzinco, Matrícula de (MH)

Date of Manuscript:

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage):

Huejotzingo, Puebla

Semantic Categories:

personal name

phonetic possibilities

Syntax:

noun(s)

possessive pronoun

Writing Features:

simplex or element as logogram

Cultural Content & Iconography:

Anatomy, human body parts

Gender (male)

Music, Song, Dance

Names (personal and/or theonym)

Social Hierarchy, Commoners, Elites

Cultural Content, Credit:

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors:

black & white drawing (no color)

Keywords:

bailar, danzas, divisas, vasallos, mérito, merecer, nombres de hombres

Glyph or Iconographic Image:

Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s):

imacehual(li), a hand-held feather fan carried by dancers, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/imacehualli
i- (third person singular possessive), his, her, or its, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/i
macehual(li), commoner or an indigenous person, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/macehualli
mahcehual(li), merit, recompense, fortune, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mahcehualli
-macehual (when possessed), a worthy person, deserving, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/macehual
macehua, to dance, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/macehua
macehualiz(tli), a dance or dancing, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/macehualiztli

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation:

posiblemente, Su Mérito

Spanish Translation, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Image Source:

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 666v, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=413&st=image.

Image Source, Rights:

This manuscript is hosted by the Library of Congress and the World Digital Library; used here with the Creative Commons, “Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License” (CC-BY-NC-SAq 3.0).

Historical Contextualizing Image: