Quetzallapitzqui (MH711r)

Quetzallapitzqui (MH711r)
Compound Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This colorful painting of the compound glyph for the personal name, Quetzallapitzqui (perhaps “Quetzal Wind-Instrument Player”), shows a horizontal, yellow wind instrument with three finger holes. The top of the instrument has some hatching, which gives it a three-dimensionality. The interior of the horn is white. Coming out from behind the instrument are ten green quetzal feathers (quetzalli), also horizontal. The tlapitzqui part of the name is suggested by the way the tribute payer’s face is incorporated as someone who is blowing the instrument.

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

In the gloss, the “a” after the element “quetzal” raises a little question. Pitza means to play a wind instrument, but apitza means to have diarrhea. The guess that this is a chirimía is supported by colonial Nahuatl manuscripts that mention it; it came into Nahuatl as a loan from Spanish. Here’s a photo of one that survives in Mexico open-source. Nahua community bands in Puebla about a century ago might have a huehuetl (drum), a military drum, and one or two chirimías, as captured in this sound recording shared by INAH. For another European-introduced musical instrument, see below.

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image: 
Gloss Diplomatic Transcription: 

juao guetzalapitzg~

Gloss Normalization: 

Juan Quetzallapitzqui

Gloss Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Source Manuscript: 
Huexotzinco, Matrícula de (MH)
Date of Manuscript: 

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Huejotzingo, Puebla, Mexico

Semantic Categories: 
personal name
Syntax: 
noun(s)
Writing Features: 
compound fully logographic
Cultural Content & Iconography: 
Feathers
Gender (male)
Music, Song, Dance
Names (personal and/or theonym)
Sensory Perception
Technology (all types), plus Tools
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Colors: 
green (light)
white/neutral
yellow or golden
Shapes and Perspectives: 
facing right
horizontal
profile view
shading and parallel line hatching
three-dimensionality
Parts (compounds or simplex + notation): 
2
Reading Order (Compounds or Simplex + Notation): 
right to left
Other Cultural Influences: 
Spanish/European
Keywords: 

plumas, feathers, quetzales, instrumentos de viento, chirimía, nombres de hombres

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

quetzal(li), quetzal feathers, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/quetzalli
pitza, to play a wind instrument, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/pitza
tlapitzqui, a wind instrument player, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/tlapitzqui
chirimía, a single-reed wind instrument, https://nahuatl.wired-humanities.org/content/chirim%C3%ADa

Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

posiblemente, Músico con Quetzal-Chirimía

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 711r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=500.

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: 
"g" for c, q, or x
Historical Contextualizing Image: 
See Also: 

Chamil (MH529r)