Topalcehual (Verg25r)

Topalcehual (Verg25r)
Compound Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This compound Nahuatl hieroglyph is a black-line drawing of the personal name Topalcehual (perhaps, “Our Black Shadow”), attested here as a man’s name. The compound seems to be fully phonetic, with the To- deriving from the bird (tototl), the -pal- from the word for black (palli), and the -cehual from the near homophone cihuatl. An alternative reading could be “Our Black Woman.”

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

The pretentious element (topal) does not seem required in the analysis, but further research could help clarify the meaning of this name. In the compound hieroglyph for Topalcehual on folio 23 recto, the black element is a crescent shape, whereas here it is something of a hook. Perhaps both items are carved obsidian, and they both speak to the color black.

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss or Text Image: 
Gloss/Text Diplomatic Transcription: 

po. topalçehual

Gloss/Text Normalization: 

Pedro Topalcehual

Gloss/Text Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript: 
Vergara, Codex (Verg)
Date of Manuscript: 

1539

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

near Tepetlaoztoc, near Tetzcoco

Semantic Categories: 
homophony, rebus
personal name
phonetic dimensions
Syntax: 
noun(s)
syllable: pal (from palli, black)
syllable: to or ton (from tototl)
Writing Features: 
compound fully phonographic
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Color names
Gender (female)
Gender (male)
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors: 
black & white drawing (no color)
Shapes and Perspectives: 
facing left
profile view
Parts (compounds or simplex + notation): 
3
Reading Order (Compounds or Simplex + Notation): 
multidirectional
Other Cultural Influences: 
Spanish/European
Keywords: 

mujer, mujeres, negro, pájaro, pájaros, creciente, crecientes, fonetismo, nombres de hombres, men’s names

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

to-, first person plural possessive, “our,” https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/node/175783
pal(li), black, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/palli
cehual(li), the shadow cast by something, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/cehualli
cihua(tl), a woman, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/cihuatl
topal, pretentious, presumptuous, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/topal

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

posiblemente, Nuestra Sombra Negra

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Available at Codex Vergara, folio 25r, https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b84528032/f57.item.zoom, accessed 22 February 2026. The Vergara is associated with Tepetlaoztoc, in the larger region of Tetzcoco, c. 1539–1543.

Image Source, Rights: 

The non-commercial reuse of images from the Bibliothèque nationale de France is free as long as the user is in compliance with the legislation in force and provides the citation: “Source gallica.bnf.fr / Bibliothèque nationale de France” or “Source gallica.bnf.fr / BnF.” We would also appreciate a citation to the Visual Lexicon of Aztec Hieroglyphs, https://aztecglyphs.wired-humanities.org/.

Orthography: 
"çe" for ce
Historical Contextualizing Image: 
See Also: 

Topalcehual (Verg23r)