Mixcoatl (MH483v)

Mixcoatl (MH483v)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This compound glyph drawn with black lines represents the personal name Mixcoatl ("Cloud Serpent," attested here as a man's name). It shows a cluster of clouds (mixtli) on the left side and an upright serpent (coatl) on the right. The serpent is shown in profile, with its head looking to the viewer's right and its forked tongue protruding. Its spotted body is partly curled, and its tail (without rattles) points to the left.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

Cloud Serpent was a popular name for Nahua men, especially notable in the Matrícula de Huexotzinco. According to Sahagún, it was a divine force among the Chichimecs, and carried a powerful significance for the Nahuas. Some scholars have seen it as a divinity associated with hunting, others as part of a Tlaloc complex (of clouds, rain, lightning, etc.), and others as a symbol for a whirlwind (remolino).

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image: 
Gloss Diplomatic Transcription: 

mixcouatl

Gloss Normalization: 

Mixcoatl

Gloss Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript: 
Huexotzinco, Matrícula de (MH)
Date of Manuscript: 

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Huejotzingo, Puebla

Semantic Categories: 
personal name
Syntax: 
noun(s)
Writing Features: 
compound fully logographic
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Animals, incl. Birds, Bugs, Insects, Reptiles, etc.
Celestial Phenomena
Gender (male)
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Religion (Indigenous)
Tongue Protruding/Noticeable
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Xitlali Torres and Stephanie Wood

Colors: 
black & white drawing (no color)
Shapes and Perspectives: 
bifurcated
facing right
profile view
scalloped edges
segmented
spiraling, swirling, coiling, curling
spotted or mottled
Parts (of compounds or simplex + notation): 
2
Reading Order (Compounds or Simplex + Notation): 
downward
left to right
Keywords: 

serpents, serpientes, clouds, nubes

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

Mixcoatl, a deity, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mixcoatl
mix(tli), cloud(s), https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mixtli
coa(tl), serpent/snake, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/coatl

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

El Serpiente de la Nubes

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 483v, World Digital Library.

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: 
See Also: 

Mixcoatl (MH490r)

Mixcoatl (MH485r)

Mixcoatl (MH638r)