Xaloztoc (Mdz24v)
This compound glyph for the place name Xaloztoc has two crucial elements: first (phonetically) some sand (xalli), shown as a group of black dots, and then an earth monster's head with his jaws open in order to represent a cave (oztotl). The earth monster's head is like a tepetl (hill, mountain) on its side, with the red and yellow slits at the bottom opening as a mouth. The head has the same two-tone green coloring and the curling rocky outcroppings. The face is multi-colored, with turquoise blue on its nose and the surround for its (open) eye. The lining of the mouth is yellow. The teeth or fangs are white and sharp, with red (gums?) at the base. The locative suffix (-c) is not shown visually.
Stephanie Wood
If we imagine the tepetl (hill, mountain), with its red and yellow horizontal lines at its base, turned on its side, and that two-colored slit opening up like a mouth, we can understand better the meaning of those lines at the base of the tepetl. See also the article on red and yellow interiors.
Stephanie Wood
xaloztoc.puo
Xaloztoc, pueblo
Stephanie Wood
c. 1541, or by 1553 at the latest
Stephanie Wood
arena, cuevas
xal(li), sand, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/xalli
ozto(tl), cave, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/oztotl
Codex Mendoza, folio 24 verso, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/2fea788e-2aa2-4f08-b6d9-648c00..., image 59 of 188.
The Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, hold the original manuscript, the MS. Arch. Selden. A. 1. This image is published here under the UK Creative Commons, “Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License” (CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0).
