Apanecatl (MH504v)

This is a black-line drawing of the simplex glyph for the personal name Apanecatl, which was short for Atempanecatl or Atecpanecatl, according to Susan Gillespie, The Aztec Kings, 1989, 258. According to the Crónica Mexicayotl, Apanecatl was a legendary teomama (deity bearer) in the migration that eventually reached and founded Mexico City. The name includes "Apan" (from apantli, canal or waterway), suggesting a reading of "Canal Person." The glyph shows two major elements a three-part stream of water (atl) with droplets and shells at the tips, and an upright, white, rectangular flag or banner (panitl) in a profile view, facing the viewer's right. The -ecatl part of the name (affiliation or ethnicity) is not shown visually.