Mihuacan (TK206v)

Mihuacan (TK206v)
Compound Hieroglyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This black-line drawing of the compound Nahuatl hieroglyph for the place name Mihuacan (perhaps, “Place With Arrows”) is composed of three elements. The start of the name, Mi-, derives from the arrow (mitl) in the middle of the compound and with the point down. The possessive -hua- phonetic syllable comes from the grasping hand, which indicates possession. The little flow of water (atl) on the left side, with its lines of current and alternating droplets or beads and turbinate shells at the tips of the diverging sprays, underscores the presence of an “a” vowel, which could point to the -can locative suffix. It is worth noting that the grasping hand emerges from a sleeve that has lines giving it a three-dimensionality.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

While many sources translate mitl as “dart” in this digital collection objects that look more like arrows dominate the visuals. See some examples below. Also, Alfonso Lacadena (PARI Journal, 2008) should be credited with noting the “grasping hand” as representative of a “hua” syllable.

Side Note: The folio numbers are not always clear in the copy published online by the British Museum. Marc Thouvenot gives this page the number K04_B in his TLACHIA digital collection, https://tlachia.iib.unam.mx/tepetlaoztoc/K04_B.

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss or Text Image: 
Gloss/Text Diplomatic Transcription: 

.mihuacā.

Gloss/Text Normalization: 

Mihuacan

Gloss/Text Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript: 
Tepetlaoztoc, Codex (aka Kingsborough) (TK)
Date of Manuscript: 

c. 1556

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Tepetlaoztoc, East of Lake Tetzcoco

Semantic Categories: 
phonetic dimensions
place name
Syntax: 
noun(s)
possessive pronoun (no-, to-, i-, etc.)
syllable: a/atl (from atl)
syllable: hua or huan (grasping hand possessive)
Writing Features: 
compound of phonogram(s) & logogram(s)
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Anatomy, human body parts
Movement
Names (places)
Water
Weapons, Shields, Armor
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors: 
black
brown
white/neutral
Shapes and Perspectives: 
facing left
profile view
three-dimensionality
Parts (compounds or simplex + notation): 
3
Reading Order (Compounds or Simplex + Notation): 
multidirectional
Other Cultural Influences: 
Spanish/European
Keywords: 

flecha, arma, mano, agarrar, poseer, nombres de lugares, topónimo, topónimos, fonetismo

Glyph or Iconographic Image: 
Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s): 

mi(tl), arrow or dart, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mitl
-hua, singular possessive, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/hua
-can, locative suffix, where, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/can-2

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

posiblemente, Lugar con Flechas

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

The Codex Kingsborough, also known as the Códice de Tepetlaoztoc, and the Memorial de los indios de Tepetlaoztoc, is not on display. It was transferred from the British Library and is now held by the British Museum. It is shared on line at: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/E_Am2006-Drg-13964

Image Source, Rights: 

©The Trustees of the British Museum. Shared under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license. Please also cite the <em>Visual Lexicon of Aztec Hieroglyphsem>, ed. Stephanie Wood (Eugene, Ore.: Wired Humanities Projects, 2020-present) and this URL.

Orthography: 
intrusive period
Historical Contextualizing Image: 
See Also: 

mitl (Mdz2r)

mitl (Mdz23r)

Tecocohuatl (MH519v)

Cahuaxochitl (MH736r)