Villanueva (Osu18v)

This painted compound Nahuatl hieroglyph represents the Spanish surname Villanueva. It has two elements. One is water (atl), which may provide the -a- syllable at the end of Villa-. The first part of Villa- is not represented visually. The next element is an animal hide (ehuatl), which contributes a disyllabogram -ehua, which covers part of -nueva. The water surrounds the outside of the hide. The water, which is painted a turquoise blue, has lines of current (movement) and six little splashes, each one with a white droplet or bead at the tip. The hide has a few markings that texture it, as though the hair (perhaps of a deer) is still attached. It also has the animal’s neck covering at the bottom and seven holes near the outer edges which may relate to the location of legs and tail, although there are an extra two holes if that is their origin.