NOTES.

xtinuibah, future of ibah, to write, originally to paint.

xeboço, past tense, third person, plural, of the absolute form of boç, here, as often, used actively. Compare Gram., p. 49.

laabex, passive of laabeh, to inhabit, to settle.

huyu taah, hills and plains, or, the interior and the coast; an expression meaning the whole country.

que cha, they say, used as the French on dit, indicating that the writer is reporting the words of another.

ki, an intensive or affirmative particle, thrown in to add strength to the expression.

ka tata, our fathers, ka mama, our grandfathers and ancestors more remote than fathers. These terms are to be understood in a general sense.

yx nu qahol, you my sons, or yx ka qahol, you our sons, intimates that this account was prepared for the family of the writer.

pa Tulan. The prep. pa (before a vowel pan) means in, at, to, and from. Torresano (MS. Gram.) renders it by the Latin ad, pro, absque, ab, de, e, ex. Brasseur translates these words “being still in Tulan,” which does not make sense.

haka palouh, the other side of the sea. The word palouh appears to be derived from the verb paloh, to lift onesself up, to rise, referring to the waves.

pe vi, and vi pe; on the use of the particle vi, see Grammar, p. 63.

pa Tulan ru bi huyu, from the country or place called Tulan. The word huyu usually means hill or mountain; but it is frequently used in the vague sense of “place,” “locality.”

achij, men, viri, not homines, which latter is vinak.

Xahila, a plural form. The name maybe derived from xahoh, to dance in the sacred or ceremonial dances; or from ahila, to reckon or number.

[196]3. chinamit, the sub-gens. On this see the Introduction. The our referred to include the Xahila, mentioned in the previous paragraph. These four, the Xahila, the Gekaquch, the Baqahol, and the Cibaki, formed the tribe; the remaining four, the Caveki, the Ah Queh, the Ah Pak, and the Ykomagi, were of the same lineage, but not in the confederacy.

Daqui; the letter d does not occur either in Cakchiquel or Nahuatl. The foreign aspect of some of these names seems to point to an ancient influence of some allophyllic tongue.

The mythological references to Tulan, abouil, the Chay Abah, Xibilbay, etc., have been discussed in the Introduction. The passage corresponds to the first chapter of the third book of the Popol Vuh.

Tulan, Tullan; these variations are in the original.

xtiho; translated by Brasseur, “the trial was made;” but it is the imperfect passive of tih, which means “to give to another something to eat or drink.”

xaki, plural of xak, generic word for leaf.

utiuh, koch; besides these, two other animals are named in the Popol Vuh.

achak is the general word for excrement, either of men or brutes; also, refuse, waste products in general.

tiuh tiuh is the name of a small variety of hawk. “El gavilan pequeño.” Guzman, Compendio de Nombres en Lengua Cakchiquel. MS.

mani a xhao, “and he talked not.” The connective a, like[197] navipe, and pe, all three of which may usually be translated by “and,” is not placed at the beginning of the clause. ha is to speak in the general sense; hence, habal, a language. Synonyms of this are tin cha, I say; tin tzihoh, I speak words, I harangue; tin biih, I name, I express myself; and quin ucheex, I tell or say, especially used in repeating what others have said (Coto, Vocabulario). These words are of frequent use in the text.

Rubanic chay abah ri apal, etc.; this obscure passage was, I think, entirely misunderstood by Brasseur. The word apal is derived from the neuter form ape of the active tin apih, I shut up or enclose, and means “that which is shut up,” lo cerrado, and apibal, the active form in the next line, means “that which shuts up,” i. e., gates or doors. It will be remembered (see ante, p. 26) that the gates of Iximche were constructed partly of, or ornamented with, obsidian, and the same is supposed here of the gates of the mythical city or place of Tulan.

ki-kan; our burden, our tribute. The passage seems to indicate that they left their former country to escape subjection.

oh qui tzih; the passage may be translated “theirs were the words which incited us,” i. e., to revolt and to depart.

“The wood and stone which deceive,” that is, the idols of wood and stone which they worshiped.

On the word labalinic, see Introduction, p. 47.

Chee abah, wood and stone; understood to refer to the idols of these substances.

Çaih, for Cakih, the spring. Father Coto has the following under the words: “Estio vel verano, Çakih; pa çak ih, en el estio vel verano. Y nota que los que nosotros decimos en saliendo el verano, o que quando para, estos lo entrinden al contrario; porque decin, mixel çak ih, mani chic ru ih hab, ya salió el verano, no ay mas aguero.”

The whole paragraph is obscure, but seems to describe their leaving the sandy shore of the sea, passing out of sight of land, then coming in sight of it again, and going ashore.

Etamayom, from the root et, mark, sign; etamah, to know, to be skilled in an art; etamayom, he who knows (see Grammar, pp. 27, 56). Brasseur’s rendering, “le Voyant,” is less accurate. See his translation of this passage in the Hist. du Mexique, Tome II, p. 92.

okikan; Brasseur gives to this the extraordinary rendering, “parfumés d’ambre.” But Coto states that it was the term applied to the loads of roasted maize, which were the principal sustenance of the natives on their journeys.

[199]Nonovalcat, Xulpit; the first of these names is decidedly Nahuatl, and recurs in the Maya Chronicles. See Introduction, p. 44. The second is clearly of Maya origin. These localities are located by Brasseur on the Laguna de Terminos, near the mouth of the Usumacinta.

Zuyva; this famous name in Aztec mythology, was also familiar to the Maya tribes. (See The Maya Chronicles, p. 110.) The term ah zuyva seems here employed as a general term for the Nahuatl-speaking nations. (See above, p. 44.)

Ca; I do not find this word in any dictionary; perhaps it is for ca, a variety of wasp.

“When we asked each other,” etc. Here follow some fragments of legends, explaining the origin of the names of the tribes. They are quite imaginary.

Tohohil, from tohoh, to resound in the water and the sky (sonar el rio y el ayre, Dicc. Cak. Anon.); not clangor armorum, as Brasseur translates it, but sounds of nature. Tohil was the name of the principal Quiche divinity, and was supposed by Brasseur and Ximenez to be an abbreviated form of Tohohil. But I have given reasons for supposing it to mean “justice,” “equity,” and this legend was devised to explain it, when its true etymology had become lost. (See my Names of the Gods in the Kiche Myths, p. 23.)

Cakix; the bird so called, the Ara macao, of ornithologists, was one of the totemic signs of the Zotzil families of the Cakchiquels. The author here intimates that the name Cakchiquel is from cakix and chi, month, forgetting that he has already derived it from cak chee (Sec. 16).

Chitaah; “in the valley.”

ucumatz; see notes on Sec. 38.

Ahcic ama; “the town on high,” built on some lofty eminence.

Akahal; the derivation suggested is from akah, a honey-comb or wasp’s nest.

Çaker. This is an important word in Xahila’s narrative. It is derived from çak, white; hence, çaker, to become white; also, to dawn, to become light; metaphorically, of persons to become enlightened or civilized. The active form, çakericah, means to inform, to acquaint with, to instruct.

[200]21. Nima oxom, nima chah, Brasseur translates, “great ravines, enormous oaks;” chăh is oak, chāh, ashes; ox, to strike fire, to clash stones together. hopiytzel, “the bad place where the flesh is torn from the body,” referring probably to sharp stones and thorns. Popo abah, the Council Stone.

Molomu chee, “wood gathered together or piled up.” It is noteworthy that this, which seems to be the name of a place, means in Cakchiquel the same as Quauhtemallan, Guatemala, in Nahuatl. Perhaps the Aztec allies of Alvarado merely translated the Cakchiquel name of the country. (See Introduction, p. 22, note.)

Xahun chi lol; a difficult phrase, translated by Brasseur, “le dernier rejeton;” lol is applied to a condition of desertion and silence, as that of an abandoned mill or village. On halebal, see Introduction, p. 46.

On Zakioxol, and the conflict with him, see the Introduction, p. 42.

xcha a ok xul; “aprés qu’il eut parlé, il joua sur la flute.” Brasseur. The Abbé here mistook the preterit of ul to arrive, for the noun xul, a flute.

ru ux huyu. The ambiguity of the word huyu, here, as often, offers difficulty in ascertaining the precise sense of the original. It means mountain or hill, woods or forest, or simply place or locality. While ux, means literally “heart,” it also has the sense, “soul, spirit.” (Coto, Vocabulario, MS. s. v. Corazon.) Hence, the phrase may be translated “the Spirit of the Forest,” or “of the Mountain.” Brasseur prefers the latter, while I lean to the former.

roqueçam, from the root oc, to enter; applied to garments “that which is entered,” or put on. Compare our slang expression, “to get into one’s clothes.”

xahpota, see Introduction, p. 18.

[201]Cholama; “the tribe of the Chols,” or “of the corn fields.” The Chols were a Maya tribe, who lived around Palenque (see Stoll, Ethnographie der Rep. Guatemala, pp. 89-93), but the reference in the text is not to them, nor yet to the Mams, as Brasseur thought, but to a nation speaking a non-Maya tongue.

Vaya vaya ela opa. I have given several reasons for the opinion that these words are in the Xinca language. See my essay On the Xinca Indians of Guatemala, in the Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, 1885.

vapal abah, “the lintel stone,” here used in the metaphorical sense of “the corner stone.”

chicop Çakbim; the savage or barbarian Zakbim. See Introduction, p. 39.

ri retal; the sign or mark. Brasseur translates it “limit” or “landmark” of the Ahquehays. These were one of the noble families of the Quiche stock.

Tecpan, “the royal house.” See Introduction, p. 13.

umah chi qui ux; Brasseur translates these words, “cuirassés sur la poitrine,” and says this was the name of the Pokomams (Hist. Mex., II, p. 126). uum is leather or skin, and ux is heart; but umah, and later, xumax, is a verb, signifying to lower, to depress.

“The venison and honey.” This sentence is apparently a gibe or jeer, addressed by the defenders of Cakhay to Gagavitz after his attack on their city had been repulsed.

xakotien a titil a ana abah. Brasseur translates, “il ne nous est resté que les vieilles femmes et les pierres dejà hautes.” This illustrates how far he is from the correct meaning at times. For these words, see notes to Sec. 41.

habak Nicnic, the quivering mud, perhaps the quicksand. This strange name adds to the obscurity of the legend.

akbatzulu. The punning explanation of this name refers to its similarity to ak, to place in front of another; also to shoot with arrows, or to stone. Its real derivation seems to be akba, from akaba, to reveal, disclose, and tzulu, to embrace, sleep together. (Compare chee tzulu, later on.)

[203]Chee tzulu, “the interlaced trees.”

Uchum, the fifth month of the Cakchiquel calendar. See Introduction, p. 29.

Chi tulul, “at the zapote trees.”

Qabouil Abah, “the Stone God,” possibly the Chay Abah before referred to.

Çuu cumatz; the latter is the generic term for snake, but the meaning of the prefix is uncertain. Perhaps it should read çuxçu, to move in spiral lines, as is described in the text. This miraculous form was one of Gagavitz’s metamorphoses.

Nak ruma tiqui am, etc. These words of the hero Gagavitz are not easy to translate. They seem to chide the Cakchiquels for their weakness in seeking women, and to announce his intention to remain among the Tzutuhils.

ru hac pe ri neāh coon; perhaps this should be translated, “the organs of the women have conquered.”

abah uval; the precious stone offered by Baahol as the price of royalty, indicates that such carved gems were in high esteem. uval is translated by Guzman and others, “diamond;” but it was probably native jade.

Chuluc balam, literally “tiger piss,” the name of a common medicinal plant, used in Guatemala as a diuretic (Guzman). In this connection it either means the totem of a gens, or refers to a magic rite. The former seems to be indicated by the term chicop (see Introd. p. 39).

xahun chi raxon ru halebal, a punning allusion to the name of the hill Paraxone. Brasseur translates it “qui possédent l’un et l’autre ces oiseaux bleus enchanteurs.”

uu cot; cot, eagle; u, the general term for various species of quetzals, birds with brilliant green plumage. The reference seems to be to one of the magical metamorphoses of aavitz.

chicop uch, the “zopilote,” or carrion vulture. Possibly this refers to a gens so designated.

a chimin, etc. As my translation differs considerably from Brasseur’s, I add his: “En se mariant ils firent l’euvre de la chair vraiment trop grande. Etant entrés pour se baigner, ils y rompirent leur nature et gaspillèrent leur semence. Beaucoup y entrèrent dit-on, pour compléter l’euvre charnelle, on la commit une seconde fois, le jeu s’y établit absolument, et l’on forniqua par devant et par derrière.”

axto. See the Introduction, p. 40.

mez, the house cat, but as this animal was not known to the natives before the Conquest, some other animal must be intended.

holom ocox, “head fungus.” I follow Brasseur in translating this the maguey thorns, without being able to justify it.

Chay Abah. See Introduction, p. 43.

chi ohom, from oh, to dance the sacred dances in their religious rites, “the place of the sacred ceremonies.”

Cay Noh, Two Noh, Cay Batz, Two Batz, named after the days of their birth. See Introduction, p. 33.

[205]48. On the positions of the alel and ahuchan, see Introduction, p. 37.

ret ri Çactecauh, “the sign of Zactecauh.” The precise meaning of this expression escapes me.

hopiytzel. See Sec. 30 for the occurrence alluded to.

Quite to the far East, literally, “and even to the sunrise.”

babal, anything drawn out in threads, gold thread, cotton thread, etc. If the word is to be construed adjectively, puak bapal would mean “worked metal.”

Ochal or Qabouil Çivan; the latter name means “the god of the ravine.” The location of this city is unknown, except that it was near the Pacific. The general position of the Akahals was to the east of the Cakchiquels. See Brasseur, Hist. Mexique, Tom. II, pp. 502, 530.

chuvi vi te, etc. The translation is doubtful. I follow Brasseur.

cunum cachak, a term of contempt; literally “their genitals, their dung.”

The Ratzamut. See Introd., p. 21.

tok relic chic ahauh lahuh noh; perhaps this should read, “then came the chief Lahuh Noh.” So Brasseur translates it.

“Quatre femmes alors s’étant révetues de cottes de mailles, ensanglantèrent leurs arcs et prirent part à la bataille; elles s’étaient accompagnés de quatres jeunes gens et leurs flêches allèrent frapper au milieu du tapis de Chucuybatzin, lancés qu’ elles étaient par ces héros.... Le capitaine de bataille exposa ensuite les nudités de ces femmes devant les murailles des Zotziles et des Xahiles d’ou ces femmes étaient sorties.”

The future student will decide between these very diverse explanations of the text.

[207]120. The doves; possibly flights of wild pigeons.

400 men. Alvarado writes cuatro mil hombres, “four thousand men.”

Pa hul, etc. This obscure passage is translated by Brasseur in his MS. as follows: “Vous avez vu la-bas leur tombeau qui est au milieu des autres;” whereas, in his Hist. du Mexique, Tom. IV, p. 651, he translates the whole of this reply of the Cakchiquel king by these words: “Eh quoi! aurais-je envoyé mes guerriers et mes braves mourir pour vous et chercher un tombeau à Gumarcaah, si j’avais eu des intentions si perfides!”

This comparison will illustrate how differently he construed the passage, and also what excessive license he took with his authorities.

[208]On his return from Spain, Alvarado landed at Puerto de Caballos, April 4, 1539, and reached the city of Guatemala Sept. 16th of the same year.

“On account of his lineage,” Ruma ru chinamital; the expression is not clear.

The Adelantado died July 5, 1541, from an injury received while attacking the stronghold of Nochistlan.

The mission referred to is mentioned by Torquemada, Monarquia Indiana, Lib. XIX, Cap. XIV. Pedro de Angulo and his companion reached Guatemala in 1539.

181. “There was but little between them,” Xa a halal qui cohol ahauh; this expression is not clear. There appears to be considerable vagueness in the writer’s chronology in this passage.

“He did not condemn any one, because he had no time,” Mani xuban ru atbaltzih, mani xyaloh; an ignorant statement, since he held the Presidency about four years.

The reading of the last sentence is doubtful.

[209]