Xaxal (MH896r)

Xaxal (MH896r)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This black-line drawing of the simplex glyph for the personal name Xaxal (perhaps “Sandy Soil”) is attested here as a man’s name. The glyph shows a rectangle that suggests a parcel of land (tlalli), and inside the rectangle are larger circles and dots, perhaps all of it suggesting sand (xalli) of different shapes and sizes.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

Below are some other glyphs that include the element of sand (xalli). It is often just dots, but it can also have small circles mixed in. It can be contained in a circle or a rectangle, or it can fill another shape, such as a tepetl (hill or mountain) or a body of water. Sometimes it is just dots with no borders.

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image: 
Gloss Diplomatic Transcription: 

toribio . xaxal

Gloss Normalization: 

Toribio Xaxal

Gloss Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

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)
reduplication (in gloss/text)
reduplication (visual)
Writing Features: 
simplex or element as logogram
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Agriculture, Gardens, Stock Raising
Gender (male)
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Stones, Rocks, Lapidary, Masonry
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors: 
black & white drawing (no color)
Shapes and Perspectives: 
circle(s) (small, often concentric)
frontal view
rectangular
Keywords: 

arena, tierra, agricultura, nombres de hombres

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

xaxal(li), sandy soil, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/xaxalli

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

Tierra Arenosa

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 896r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=864&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: 
intrusive period
Historical Contextualizing Image: 
See Also: 

xalli (Mdz40r)

xalli (MH495r)

Xalli (MH497r)

Xalte (MH498v)

Xaltetl (MH567r)

Xalten (MH737v)

Xalle (MH669r)

Teuhcaxal (MH778v)

Xalac (Mdz28r)