Tenochtitlan
English
Etymology
From Classical Nahuatl Tenochtitlan.
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Tenochtitlan
- The capital of the Aztec empire (now Mexico City).
Translations
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Classical Nahuatl
Etymology
The ligatured locative suffix -ti-tlan ("below, beneath, at the base of") is preceded by the element *Tenoch-, which is of disputed etymology. The name Tenochtitlan is represented in the Aztec writing system in the form of the glyph shown here, which perhaps suggests Andrews' etymology (see below), unless one or both of the syllables te and noch are here used only phonetically in the glyph, with little indication of the actual meaning (vowel length seldom if ever had any indication in hieroglyphic writing). In addition, while the short vowel in te- is undisputed, the vowel length of -noch-/-nōch- is disputed, as noted by Karttunen.
- Andrews (2003) gives tetl "rock" + nōchtli "prickly-pear fruit" + -ti- + -tlan "near", i.e. "At the Place Near Rock-cactus-Fruit".
- Lockhart (2001) says "the meaning and nature of tenoch- is not entirely clear despite general consensus that it refers to a type of cactus."
- Karttunen (1983) says "NŌCH-TLI 'fruit of the prickly pear cactus' is often cited as a constituent of this name, but it contrasts in vowel length."
Pronunciation
Andrews (2003) writes Tenōchtitlan; Karttunen (1983) and Lockhart (2001) write Tenochtitlan.
Proper noun
Tenochtitlan
- The capital of the Aztec empire (now Mexico City).
References
- Andrews, J. Richard. (2003) Introduction to Classical Nahuatl, Revised Edition, Univeristy of Oklahoma Press, p. 502.
- Karttunen, Frances. (1983) An Analytical Dictionary of Nahuatl, University of Texas Press, p. 225.
- Lockhart, James. (2001) Nahuatl as Written, Stanford University Press, p. 233.
Portuguese
Proper noun
Tenochtitlan f
- Alternative spelling of Tenochtitlán
Spanish
Proper noun
Tenochtitlan m
- Alternative form of Tenochtitlán