Nencauh (MH568r)

Nencauh (MH568r)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This black-line drawing of the simplex glyph for the personal name Nencauh (“Negligent One,” or "Abandoned One," attested here as a man’s name) shows a blocky figure that may intend to represent a representation of a divine force or doll (nenetl). It starts at the shoulders and goes up through the face and ends with two protrusions on top of the head. It is difficult to say if this represents a female figure; two points on top of the head are reminiscent of the Cuauhtecolotl, which seems like something of a divine force the way it is drawn, and one of the Xolotl glyphs (see below).

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

The use of nenetl as a starting syllable "Nen-" typically features a figurine of a deity and sometimes a doll, but the meaning is really a negative adjective for personality traits or other unfortunate circumstances that might befall a person. (See other examples of this Nen- below). So, this nenetl becomes a phonetic syllable with a very different meaning.

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image: 
Gloss Diplomatic Transcription: 

diego necauh

Gloss Normalization: 

Diego Nencauh

Gloss Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

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

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Huejotzingo, Puebla, Mexico

Semantic Categories: 
phonetic dimensions
personal name
Syntax: 
ne or nen syllable
noun(s)
verb
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Gender (male)
Names (men's, but w/ female dimension)
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Personality, Behavior
Religion (Indigenous)
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Colors: 
black & white drawing (no color)
Shapes and Perspectives: 
frontal view
Keywords: 

phonetic syllables, sílabas fonéticas, work, labor, trabajo, dolls, muñecas, nenetl, imágenes de deidades, esculturas de piedra, genitales de mujeres, mal comportamiento, madera, herramienta agrícola, coa

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

nencauh, negligent or abandoned person, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/nencauh
cahua, to leave, abandon, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/cahua
nene(tl), deity image, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/nenetl

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

La Persona Negligente, o El Abandonado

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 568r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=215&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).

Orthography: 
dropped "n"
Historical Contextualizing Image: 
See Also: 

Nentequitl (MH492v)

Nentequitl (MH543r)

Nenquizqui (MH492v)

Nenca (MH505r)

Cuauhtecolotl (MH525v)

Zaocnen (MH624v)

Necoc (MH626r)

Xolotl (MH638v)