xocoyolli (Mdz41r)

xocoyolli (Mdz41r)
Element from a Compound

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description:

This element for the xocoyolli plant (sorrel, the herb or the vegetable) has been carved from the compound sign for the place name, Xocoyoltepec. The plant here is shown in two stems, each with green foliage. The stems are red, and the leaves look something like four-leaf clover.

Description, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis:

According to ethnobotanist Richard Tan, xocoyoles (Hispanized) are "a large class of plants with a characteristic sourness, used to flavor dishes," although they can also be enjoyed by just munching on the leaves when one is out in the field. He says they are also referred to in Spanish as "agritos," because of their sour taste. He adds that "Many Begonia species are xocoyoles, but many edible Oxalis species are, too." (Personal communication 9 March 2022.)

Perhaps the coyolli part of the name refers to bell-shaped leaves or flowers, and the sourness (xococ) could feed into the name, too.

Added Analysis, Credit:

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript:

Mendoza/Mendocino, Codex (Mdz)

Date of Manuscript:

c. 1541, but by 1553 at the latest

Creator's Location (and place coverage):

Mexico City

Writing Features:

simplex or element as logogram

Cultural Content & Iconography:

Food, Eating, Cooking

Plants, Flora

Glyph or Iconographic Image:

Image Source:

Codex Mendoza, folio 41 recto, https://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/objects/2fea788e-2aa2-4f08-b6d9-648c00..., image 92 of 188.

Image Source, Rights:

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).