Ahuitzotl
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Allenger, H.
Ahuitzotl: A Novel of Aztec Mexico
ISBN: 978-161-339-5103
1.FICTION / Romance / General
2. FICTION / Romance / Historical
3. FICTION / War & Military
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To Barb Ohlsen
Acknowledgments
I am indebted to the following sources: Fr. Bernardino de Sahagun (Arthur J.O. Anderson and Charles E. Dibble trans.); Fr. Diego Duran (Fernando Horcasitas and Doris Heyden trans.); Bernal Diaz; William Brandon; Gordon Brotherston; Burr Cartwright Brundage; Nigel Davies; R.C. Padden; Frederick Peterson; Jacques Soustelle; Seattle Public Library; University of Washington Library. Also, I would like to express my gratitude to Judith Zier for her years of continuous support and companionship to Mexico.
Pronunciation and Identification
Ahuitzotl (Ah-wheet-sohtl); Water Dog, eighth Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1486-1502.
Anahuac (Ah-nah-wahk); Near by the water; Valley of Mexico.
Axayacatl (Ah-shah-yah-kahtl); Water Face, sixth Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1469-1481; brother of Ahuitzotl and Tizoc.
Chalchihuitlicue (Chal-chee-wheet-lee-kwah); She of the Jade Skirt; Water Goddess; consort of Tlaloc, the Rain God.
Chalchiunenetzin (Chal-chwee-nay-nay-tsin); Jadestone Doll, wife of Nezahaulpilli, daughter of Axayacatl, shortened to Nenetzin.
Chimalpopoca (Chee-mahl-poh-poh-kah); Smoking Shield, Ruler of Tlacopan, a city of the Triple Alliance.
Cihuacoatl (See-wah-koh-ahtl); Woman Snake, Chief Minister and Vice-Ruler of Tenochtitlan; also the Earth Goddess.
Cocijoeza (Koh-see-hoh-ay-sah); Ruler of the Zapotecs, a major adversary of Ahuitzotl.
Cuauhtemoc (Kwow-tay-mock); Descending Eagle, son of Ahuitzotl and the last Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1520-1524.
Huactli (Whock-tlee); Hawk, Lord of the Pochteca (merchants).
Huaxtecs (Whash-tecks); people of the Panuco River basin who spoke in a Mayan type tongue and often battled the Aztecs.
Huitzilopochtli (Wheet-see-loh-poach-tlee); Hummingbird of the South, martial patron god of the Aztecs, and specifically of Tenochtitlan.
Maquauhuitl (Mah-kwow-wheetl); war club with embedded obsidian or stone blades, standard weapon for Aztec warriors.
Mictlantecuhtli (Meek-tlahn-tay-ku-tlee); Lord of the place of the dead; God of Death
Motecuhzoma Ilhuicamina (Moh-tay-ku-soh-mah Eel-whee-kah-me-nah); Angry Lord Who Shoots At The Sky, fifth Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1440-1469; grandfather of Ahuitzotl, Axayacatl, and Tizoc.
Motecuhzoma Xocoyotzin (Shoh-koh-yoh-tsin); Angry Lord, the Younger, son of Axayacatl and ninth Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1502-1520.
Nezahualcoyotl (Ness-ah-wahl-koh-yohtl); Fasting Coyote, Ruler of Texcoco, 1402-1472; famed philosopher-king, poet, and patron of arts.
Nezahualpilli (Ness-ah-wahl-peel-lee); Fasting Prince, Ruler of Texcoco, 1472-1515, son of Nezahaulcoyotl, also famed for erudition, poetry, and building.
Pelaxilla (Pay-lah-sheel-lah); Cotton Ball, lover and mistress of Ahuitzotl.
Quetzalcoatl (Kett-sahl-koh-ahtl); Plumed Serpent, God of Knowledge; Wind God; Creator God of Mankind, often depicted as an adversary of the God Tezcatlipoca.
Tenochtitlan (Tay-noach-tee-tlahn); Place by the Hard Prickly-Pear Cactus, the island capital of the Aztecs.
Texcoco (Tesh-koh-koh); capital of Acolhuacan (Ah-kohl-wah-kahn); a city of the Triple Alliance and acknowledged cultural center of the Aztecs.
Tezcatlipoca (Tess-kah-tlee-poh-kah); Smoking Mirror, supreme god of the Aztec pantheon; eternally young god of the night sky; patron god of sorcerers and magicians.
Tizoc (Tee-sock); Bloodstained Leg, the seventh Revered Speaker of Mexico, 1481-1486, brother of Ahuitzotl and Axayacatl.
Tlalalcapatl (Tlah-lahl-kah-pahtl): Worldly Healer? Shortened to Tlalalca, empress, mother of Cuauhtemoc.
Tlaloc (Tlah-lock); He Who Makes Things Sprout, Rain God.
Tonatiuh (Toh-nah-tee-uh); He Who Lights; Sun God.
Xiuhcoac (Shee-uh-koh-ahk); capital city of the Huaxtecs.
Xiuhtecuhtli (Shee-uh-tay-kuh-tlee); Turquoise Lord, God of Fire, Lord of Time.
Xochiquetzal (Shoh-chee-kett-sahl); Flower Feather or Precious Flower, Goddess of Beauty and Love, also of Flowers and Fertility.
Xoyo (Sho-yoh); aged servant woman to Tlalalca.
Prologue
“We fear our Gods!” Our ninth Revered Speaker, Motecuhzoma—to you Lord Moctezuma—is said to
