Note 14 — INTRODUCTION.
Reading edition
melahuacuicatl: this is translated by Tezozomoc, "a straight and true song."14 It is a compound of melahuac, straight, direct, true; and cuicatl, song. It was a beginning or opening song at the festivals, and apparently derived its name from its greater intelligibility and directness of expression. A synonym, derived from the same root, is tlamelauhcayotl, which appears in the title to some of the songs in the present collection.