Mochitl (MH809r)

Mochitl (MH809r)
Compound Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This black-line drawing of the compound glyph for the personal name Mochitl (perhaps “Vapor” or the “Guamuchil Flower”) is attested here as a man’s name. The glyph shows what appear to be two speech scrolls, one rolling upward and one downward. These may represent vapor (mochitl) emerging from the mouth of the tribute payer. Surrounding these volutes is what appears to be half a flower, in profile, facing toward the viewer’s right. Alternately, it could be a fan of feathers. Outside of the scalloped edge are short lines that radiate out, suggesting shimmer of the type seen on glyphs with the tonalli element. Examples appear below.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

This glyph requires further investigation. Dictionaries are not very forthcoming for the term mochitl, and the visual does not make it much clearer. The verb mochilia (to stone someone or hit up against something or someone) does not seem to relate.

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
Syntax: 
noun(s)
Writing Features: 
compound fully logographic
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Flowers
Gender (male)
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Plants, Flora
Scrolls (Speech, Song, etc.)
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors: 
black & white drawing (no color)
Shapes and Perspectives: 
scalloped edges
shimmer, vibrance, shine with warmth & movement
volute(s)
Parts (compounds or simplex + notation): 
2
Reading Order (Compounds or Simplex + Notation): 
inherent/internal/merged
Keywords: 

flores, volutas, árboles, feathers, plumas, nombres de hombres

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

mochi(tl), vapor or a tree flower, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mochitl
mochilia, to stone someone or hit up against something or someone, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/mochilia

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

posiblemente, Vapor, o Flor de Guamuchil

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 809r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=692st=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: 
See Also: 

Totonametl (MH536v)

Totonametl (MH525r)

Xochitonal (MH791r)

Xochitonal (MH568r)