Otlica (MH809r)

Otlica (MH809r)
Simplex Glyph

Glyph or Iconographic Image Description: 

This black-line drawing of the simplex glyph for the personal name Otlica (“On the Road”) is attested here as the name of a man who wove mats (petlatl). The glyph for otlica shows two horizontal parallel lines, which represent a road (otli, or ohtli, with the glottal stop). Alternating footprints fill this space, going in the direction of the viewer’s right. The alternation creates a feeling of movement across the landscape, on the road (otlica).

Description, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Added Analysis: 

Otlipan and opan are other ways of saying “on the road.” Otlica literally says “with the road.” The parallel lines filled with footsteps are the most common visual for otli. Sometimes otli (and by extension, footprints alone) are employed as phonetic syllabograms for the sound of the letter “o.”

Added Analysis, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Gloss Image: 
Date of Manuscript: 

1560

Creator's Location (and place coverage): 

Huejotzingo, Puebla

Semantic Categories: 
Cultural Content, Credit: 

Jeff Haskett-Wood

Shapes and Perspectives: 
Keywords: 

ohtli, caminos, senderos, canales, conductos, nombres de hombres

Glyph or Iconographic Image: 
Relevant Nahuatl Dictionary Word(s): 
Glyph/Icon Name, Spanish Translation: 

En el Camino

Spanish Translation, Credit: 

Stephanie Wood

Image Source: 

Matrícula de Huexotzinco, folio 809r, World Digital Library, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_15282/?sp=692st=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).

Historical Contextualizing Image: