The Annals of the Cakchiquels

[188][I append the translation of the remainder of what I believe to be the original work (see Introduction, page 58); but as its contents are of little general interest, I omit the text.]

165. During this year frightful imposts were levied; they paid gold and silver before the face of Tunatiuh, and there were demanded as tribute five hundred men and five hundred women to go to the gold washings; all the people were busy seeking gold. Five hundred men and five hundred women were also demanded by Tunatiuh to aid in building Pangan for his princely residence. All that, yes, all that, we ourselves witnessed, O my children.

166. Forty days were lacking to complete three years from the date of the submission of the kings when Belehe Qat died. He died on the 7th Queh, when employed in washing for gold and silver. As soon as he was dead Tunatiuh set to work to appoint his successor. The prince Don Jorge was appointed by the sole command of Tunatiuh. There was no council held nor assembly to confirm him. Tunatiuh gave his orders to the princes and they obeyed him; for, truly, he made himself feared.

167. Three hundred and forty days after the death of Belehe Qat the princes were forced to place Don Jorge in possession of the throne. His father was Don Juan Xuares.

Oh the 4th Ah was completed the 37th year after the revolt.

168. In the course of this year the king Cahi Ymox Ahpozotzil withdrew and went to inhabit the capital. He intended to separate from the others, because the tribute had been imposed on all the chiefs, even on the king himself.

[189]169. During this year Tunatiuh departed for Castile, making new conquests on his road. Thus he destroyed those of Tzutzumpan and of Choloma; and many other towns were destroyed by Tunatiuh. There occurred an unheard of event at Tzutzumpan. I saw Hunahpu tremble a litle while before the prince Mantunalo arrived here. Tunatiuh went to Castile, leaving Tzutzumpan.

170. In the course of the year, on the 11th Noh, Prince Mantunalo arrived. The prince Mantunalo arrived to relieve the nation from its sufferings; the washing for gold and silver promptly ceased, and the tribute of young men and women ceased; the burnings alive and the hangings ceased, and, indeed, all the various acts of violence of the Castilians and the imposts which they had forcibly laid upon us. The roads were once more frequented by travelers when the Prince Mantunalo arrived, as they had been eight years before, when the imposts were first laid upon us, O my children.

171. Before the close of the second year of the third cycle, the prince Tunatiuh arrived, landing at Porto Cavayo. When Tunatiuh came back from Castile with the position of commander, each of us went before him to receive him, O my children. It was then that he killed with his sword the Ah-tzib Caok on account of his lineage; it was on the day 11 Ahmak that he killed the Ah-tzib.

On the day 2 Ah was completed the second year of the third cycle.

172. One hundred and twenty days after the death of Ahtzib and of the return of Tunatiuh to Panchoy, the prince Mantunalo departed, leaving Tunatiuh in command. Two hundred and sixty days after his return, Tunatiuh hanged the king Ahpozotzil Cahi Ymox, on[190] the day 13 Ganel. They hanged with him Quixavit Caok, by order of Tunatiuh.

On the day 12 Ah was completed the third year of the third cycle.

173. Two hundred and eighty days after the execution of the king Ahpozotzil he hanged Chuvy Tziquinu, prince of the city, who had angered him. They hanged him on the day 4 Can at Paxaya. They seized him on the road and executed him secretly. Seventeen other chiefs were hanged at the same time. On the day 4 Ig the chief Chicbal, who had caused the death of Chuvy Tziquinu, was hanged in his turn, and with him Nimabah and Quehchun. Meanwhile, Tunatiuh had left for Xuchipillan, appointing as his lieutenant and to see to the hangings, Don Francisco, who attended to them. One hundred days after the prince Chicbal had been hanged, came the news that Tunatiuh had met his death at Xuchipillan.

174. In the course of this year there was a great disaster which destroyed the Castilians at Panchoy. On the day 2 Tihax the waters burst from the mountain Hunahpu, rushing out from the interior of the mountain, and enveloped the Castilians in destruction. The wife of Tunatiuh was then drowned.

When Our Instruction Began.

One hundred and sixty days after this disaster there arrived at our house our fathers of St. Dominic, Brother Pedro Anculo and Brother Juan de Torres. They arrived from Mexico on the day 12 Batz, and we began to receive instruction from our fathers of St. Dominic. Then also appeared the Doctrina in our language. Our fathers, Brother Pedro and Brother Juan were the first who taught us the word of God. Until that time the word and the commandments of God were unknown to us; we had lived in darkness, for no one had[191] spoken to us of the doctrine of God. There were also the fathers of St. Francis, Father Alamicer and Father Clerico, with those of St. Dominic, who spoke to us. They translated the Doctrina into our language, and we were soon instructed by them.

On the day 6 Ah was completed the fifth year of the third cycle.

On the day 3 Ah was completed the sixth year of the third cycle after the revolt.

On the day 13 Ah was completed the seventh year.

175. In the course of the year our fathers of St. Dominic separated from those of St. Francis, on account of ashes; the latter went away. Ashes were not given by our Fathers of St. Dominic; therefore, those of St. Francis went away.

On the day 10 Ah was completed the 8th year of the third cycle.

On the day 7 Ah was completed the 9th year of the third cycle after the revolt.

176. In the course of the year the licentiate Don Juan Roxer arrived.

They Begin to Group the Houses.

One hundred and six days after they had really begun to teach us the word of God, then they commenced to gather together the houses in groups, by order of the ruler, Juan Roser, and the people came forth from their caves and ravines. On the day 7 Caok the capital was repeopled, and we were there with all the tribes.

On the day 4 Ah was completed the 10th year of the third cycle after the revolt.

On the day 1 Ah was completed the 11th year of the third cycle after the revolt.

177. In the course of the year the President Cerrado arrived, while the licentiate Pedro Ramirez was still here. When he arrived he condemned the Castilians; he set free the slaves and prisoners of the Castilians, diminished by one-half the imposts, put an end to forced[192] labor, and obliged the Castilians to pay all for their work, little or great. This Prince Cerrado truly solaced the afflictions of our nation; for I, myself, O my children, was a witness of the many miseries which we endured.

On the day 11 Ah was completed the 12th year of the third cycle.

On the day 8 Ah was completed the 13th year of the third cycle.

178. In the course of the year died the Ahtzib Juan Perez; he died on the day 12 Tihax. Eighty days after the death of the Ahtzib, there was an eruption of the mountain Chigag; it was on the day 9 Ah that the fire appeared in the mountain.

179. During this year arrived the iron bell; it came from the emperor of Castile; it reached us on the day 3 Hunahpu, which was on a Friday. Twenty days after the arrival of the iron bell, the licentiate Ramirez tried to kill the prince bishop at Pangan, the governor Cerrado being present. The door of the church was forced by Ramirez. This took place on a day 2 Can, on a Thursday. One hundred and sixty days after these leaders had come to blows at Pangan, all our fathers of St. Francis and St. Dominic came to blows in their turn at Xelahub, the former having tried to wrest Xelahub from the Dominicans.

On the day 2 Ah was completed the 15th year of the third cycle.

180. In the course of this year the locusts (grasshoppers) reappeared. It was on the day 12 Tziquin, the day after the Visitation, that the grasshoppers came. They passed over all parts of the country, and we saw them with you, my children.

181. During the course of this year arrived the President Doctor Quexata; it was on a day 2 Hunahpu that that ruler arrived here, coming from Mexico. They[193] were celebrating the feast of the circumcision. The governor Cerrado was here when he arrived. When the Doctor Quexata had almost arrived, the President Cerrado died. There was but little between them. Then the Doctor Quexata died. He did not condemn any one, because he had no time. But the ruler Cerrado condemned (the Castilians), for he did what was right. About the same time died the chief Don Francisco Ahpozotzil; it was on the day 1 Can, a Monday, the 14th day of the month October, that he died. It was in this year that he died that the nativity of our Saviour Jesus Christ came on the day 1 Batz.

On the day 9 Ah was completed the 17th year of the third cycle.

182. Forty days after the death of the chief Don Francisco, died our Father Fray Domingo de Vico in Acalan. Truly, with great tortures was he put to death by the tribe. Twenty days after the death of our father in Acalan, Father Fray Francisco de la Para was exiled by the bishop and the ruler Ramirez. This took place on Easter day.

On the day 6 Ah was completed the 18th year of the third cycle.

183. At this time died Alonzo de Pazon, the day 12 Ganel.

In the 13th month of the year, the day of Sanctiago at Pangan occurred on the day 1 Tziquin. On that day the Castilians at Pangan had great rejoicings, because on that day was inaugurated as supreme monarch over in Castile the Emperor Don Peliphe. There were then three rulers, the Prince Ramirez, the Doctor Mercia and Louaisa. They held court at Panchoy. In the 14th month of the year, after this day of Sanctiago, there came an order from Ramirez. He imposed a tribute on members of the nobility among the people. He also made provision for the surplusage of the tribute. There had never been a surplus under the chiefs; it was known to be stolen, but no one knew by whom. The maize tax was reduced and that of roast fowls, and none of the chiefs could steal anything from the surplus. This order of Ramirez was promulgated on the day of St. Francis,[194] a Monday, the day 7 Camey. Twenty days after the promulgation of the order of Ramirez, the Book of the Doctrina was published, on the day of Saints, a Monday; but many would not accept the Doctrina, but refused it.

On the day 3 Ah was completed the 19th year of the third cycle after the revolt.

184. The Alcaldes in the year 1557 were Don Juan Juarez and Don Francisco Fez.

In the course of the year an incursion was made to destroy the Lacantuns. It was on the day 5 Ey that the ruler Ramirez sallied forth as general, and Don Martin went also as general, twenty days before the close of the third cycle.

Don Juan Juarez and Francisco Pez Martin were chosen as Alcaldes, to issue orders. (Note by a later writer: These were the first Alcaldes, and with them began the elections.)

On the day 13 Ah was completed the third cycle since the Revolt was made. The third cycle was completed in the year 1558.

185. When we were in the eleventh month of the year, a President Royal arrived, on the day 3 Qat. When he arrived at Pangan on 1 Akbal, Don Diego Pez was inaugurated as chief by the ruler Ramirez.

[195]

NOTES.

1. The author begins by stating his purpose in a few lines.

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.

2. aavitz, Zactecauh. Both these names of the ancestral heroes of the Cakchiquels appear to be partly Nahuatl. a is “fire,” and Zak is “white,” both Cakchiquel words, but vitzli, thorn, and techatl, the stone of sacrifice, are Nahuatl.

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.

4. He a oh, etc. The writer here states that he gives the exact words of the ancient tradition. He probably wrote the text from some antique chant, which had been handed down from his ancestors. The quotation begins at the words Cahi xpe, and continues to near the close of the next paragraph, where the words xecha can ri aavitz, the above spoke Gagavitz, etc., mark its termination. This is one of the most obscure passages in the book. The original text is given by Brasseur among his pièces justificatives, in the appendix to the first volume of his Hist. du Mexique. A comparison with his translation will show that in several important constructions I differ from him.

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.

5. The particle tan, with which the paragraph opens, throws the narrative into the “historical present,” for the sake of greater vividness. The verb ak, as at present used, means to make bricks, etc., out of earth.

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.

6. The articles mentioned as paid in the tribute, have been described in the Introduction (see p. 39).

7. “So spoke the Obsidian Stone,” i. e., the sacred oracle, referred to as the final arbiter. See anté, p. 26.

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

8. This paragraph is obscure, and the numerous erasures in Brasseur’s translation indicate the difficulty he found in discovering its meaning.

9. holloh tacaxepeval rikan eche; Brasseur translates this: “Malheureux etaient les fils et les vassaux des Quiches.” I take the word tacaxepeval to be the name of the first month in the Cakchiquel calendar (see anté, p. 29); and olloh means “to divest ourselves of, to get rid of.”

13. This and the following section describes the efforts of certain inimical powers, under the guise of birds, to obstruct and deceive the Cakchiquels. The chahalçivan is a small bird which builds in the rocky sides of the ravines, and is called by the Spaniards by a literal translation, “El guarda barranca,” the gully-guard. The tucur is the owl; this name being apparently an abbreviation of the Nahuatl tecolotl. The bird called anixt[198] is the Spanish cotorra, a small species of parrot. (Guzman, Compendio de Nombres, MS.)

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

14. The owl sat on the red tree, the caka chee, whence, as we learn later, the tribe derived its name, Cakchiquel—a doubtful derivation.

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.”

16. The cak chee, red tree, is translated by Father Guzman, “arbol de carreta.” The legendary derivation of the name Cakchiquel from this is doubtful. hamey may mean something more than staff; it is applied to the staff of office, the bâton de commandement carried by the alguacils, etc.

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.

17. The word ikan, burden, here as elsewhere, is usually translated by Brasseur, “tribute.”

18. Ah chay, literally, “master of obsidian.” As this stone was largely used for arrow heads and other weapons, the expression in this connection seems to mean “master of arms.” Ah am, from am, to take, seize. Brasseur construes these words as in apposition to vach: “Whom shall we make our master of arms,” etc.

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.

19. The narration continues in the words of the ancestral heroes, who speak in the first person, plural.

[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.

20. Having defeated their enemies in the field, the Cakchiquels seized their boats and ventured an attack on the town, in which they were repulsed.

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.

22. Ru chahim; Brasseur translates this phrase, “between the fire and the ashes,” taking chahim from chāh, ashes. But I take it to be from the verb chahih, to guard, as later in the paragraph the question is asked: “Nak rumal tachahih bey?” “Why guardest thou the road?”

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.

23. Yukuba, to string out; hence, to name seriatim. The last four names given are clearly Nahuatl, as is also Zuchitan. This indicates that the Cakchiquels, in their wanderings, had now entered the territory of the Pipils, of the Pacific slope.

[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.

24. Mem, dumb, silent, incapable of speech. Tin memuh vi, I am dumb, I keep silence; given in the text as the origin of the nomen gentile, Mam. The Mams speak a dialect of the Maya, probably scarcely intelligible to the Cakchiquels. They at present dwell in the northwestern districts of the Republic of Guatemala. See Stoll, Ethnographie der Rep. Guatemala, pp. 164-5.

25. Nacxit. On this passage Brasseur builds his theory of the formation of a great Toltec empire in Central America, about the close of the eleventh century (Hist. des Nations Civilisèes du Mexique, Tom. II, pp. 101-5). He explains Nacxit as the last two syllables of Topiltzin Acxitl, a title of Quetzalcoatl. Cinpual Taxuch is undoubtedly from the same tongue. Orbal tzam, Bored Nose, the pendent from the nose being apparently a sign of dignity, as the pierced ears of the Incas.

26. The description of the dance of the Pokomams, leads us to suppose that the author means it was a war dance. The Pokomams dwell at present in the southeastern part of the Republic of Guatemala.

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

27. Tzaktzuy. Brasseur translates “Château des Citrouilles,” mistaking tzak for ak, as he does throughout the passage; tzuy means also cup or gourd, and the name may be rendered either “the ensnaring cup,” or “vine.” Possibly it refers to a scene of drunkenness.

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.

28. Oronic Cakhay, “the Red House of the Nobles,” said by[202] Brasseur to be a hill, one league west of the modern village of Rabinal.

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.

29. Ah queh hay, “those of the deer (skin) houses.”

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.

30. Xhachatah qui vach. Brasseur gives this literally, “leurs faces ensuite se divisèrent;” but vach means also “fruit, results, possessions,” and so I render it.

31. a xanul, “the uncoverer of fire.” This is supposed by Brasseur to be the name of a volcano, and the whole episode to refer to a pretended miracle. See his Hist. Mexique, Vol. II, pp. 166-7. He calls the passage “fort difficile,” which it certainly is.

32. Çakcho. “Brulé à blanc,” is Brasseur’s translation, but I cannot verify it. No such stone is mentioned in Guzman’s list of Cakchiquel names of stones. It would seem that there were fourteen chief performers in the dance of a xanul, and that they took the name of certain stones.

34. Chi alibal, “at the seat;” but the author chooses to derive it from a, hand, which is a doubtful etymology.

35. The episode of Tolgom, his capture and death, is explained by Brasseur, suo more, as the destruction of the ruler of an independent tribe on the shores of Lake Atitlan.

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.)

37. His song, i. e., his death song.

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

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

38. Ri tzam tzakbal Tolom, “throwing the extremities of Tolgom.” The reference to this festival is too slight to enable us to understand it.

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.”

39. Çakeribal, civilization, their becoming civilized. On the meaning of this word see note to Sec. 20.

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.”

40. The sun had risen, etc. All these expressions are to be understood metaphorically, with reference to the growing civilization of the tribes.

41. The description of the installation of Baahol as head chief, is an interesting passage. Unfortunately, several of the terms used are not found in the dictionaries, at least with any appropriate meaning. Thus, paz is now applied to the swathing bands of infants; cuçul is the cradle or bundle in which infants[204] are fastened; while tah I have not found at all. Guzman gives the expression, titil ana abah, caka uleuh xak, with the explanation, “Colores con que ungian los señores,” and Ah titil, etc., “Señores ungidos de estos colores quando eran puestos en señorios.” (Compendio de Nombres en Lengua Cakchiquel, MS., 170-4.)

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.

42. The difficulties experienced in their first endeavors to adopt a sedentary and agricultural life are described.

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

43. In this paragraph the writer expresses himself with great directness.

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.”

44. This section offers an important description of the ancient methods of worship.

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.

46. Whitewashing the interior of hollow trees with lime from the excrements of birds and tigers, sounds so extraordinary that we may suspect a mythical sense in the paragraph.

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.

47. The same who came from Tulan. Therefore, from the beginning of the narrative to the present passage, merely the adult life of one man has elapsed.

[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.

49. Tepeuh is identified by Brasseur with the king Itztayul, of the Quiches (Hist. Mexique, II, p. 485). He considers it a Nahuatl word, but I have elsewhere maintained that it is from the Maya-Cakchiquel root tep, filled up, abundantly supplied. See The Names of the Gods in the Kiche Myths, pp. 11, 12. It is a term often applied to their Supreme Being.

52. Cakbrakan, the god of the earthquake. The myths concerning him are given in the Popol Vuh.

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.”

56. Ahpop Xahil, etc.; on the meaning of these titles, see the Introduction, p. 36-7.

63. Ya otox ul; ot, to chisel, engrave, originally to cut into; hence, applied to the deep valleys or cañons which the rivers cut into the soil.

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.

64. Meenalah huyu, a town in the warm district, the tierra caliente, near the southern or Pacific coast.

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

66. The names of the four rulers here inserted seem to be of those who held the power after Citan Qatu. Why the author does not relate any incidents of their lives is uncertain. Perhaps they did not belong to his family, and as he was writing rather a family than a national history, he omitted them for this reason. Compare Sec. 75.

67. The Quiche king, Qikab, is frequently mentioned in the Popol Vuh. His full name was a-i-ab, The Many Hands of Fire.

79. They wished that the roads should be free; rambey akan, “la franchise des chemins.” I do not find the expression in the dictionaries.

83. Mixutzin malo, “the augury is finished.” The malol ixim[206] was the augur who divined the future by throwing up grains of corn, and forecasting from the relative positions they assumed on falling. See Introd., p. 47.

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

The Ratzamut. See Introd., p. 21.

84. Burning many roads; destroying the houses and crops behind them.

90. hu chuvy, ca chuvy; in the numeral system of the Cakchiquels a chuvy is 8000, but the expression is frequently, as here, to be taken figuratively, like our “myriads.”

93. ah-xit, etc. On these titles see the Introduction, pp. 18, 19.

94. Vica nu mam, “the leaves or branches of my ancestor,” referring to the fact that the Cakchiquels were of the same blood as the Akahals.

96. Çakliahol, etc. This rendering, which is Brasseur’s, I am unable to verify.

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

102. There were four women, etc. This curious passage is so differently translated by Brasseur, that I add his rendering:—

“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.

106. Stopped the messengers of the ruler. The translation is doubtful.

109. The people of Mixco or Mixcu were Pokomams. (See Sec. 85.)

110. The Yaquis of Xivico; the Yaquis were Aztecs. It is the Nahuatl yaqui, merchants, as it was in this capacity that they first became known to the tribes of Guatemala.

117. This year, 1511 of our era, appears to have been the first of official relations between the Aztecs and the tribes of Guatemala.

118. The author speaks of himself for the first time. It may be presumed that it was one of his earliest recollections.

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

124. Hu may; on the reckoning of time see the Introduction, p. 31.

127. hac, the pestilence. Brasseur translates this “la maladie syphilitique.” The vowel is long, haac. It is a word applied to any eruptive disease, to the whole class of exanthemata. From the symptoms, I am inclined to believe that it was an epidemic of malignant measles, a disease very fatal to the natives of Central America.

128. Diego Juan. Why this Spanish name is given, I cannot explain. Brasseur gets over the difficulty by translating “le pére de Diego Juan,” but this is not the sense of the original. Of course, tata and mama are here used in their vague sense, as expressions of courtesy. See Introduction, p. 35.

144. Pedro de Alvarado, called the Adelantado, a Spanish title formerly given to a governor of a province, and by his Mexican allies, Tonatiuh, the Sun or Sun-God, reached the city of Gumarcaah, or Utlatlan in the early spring of 1524.

147. Were burned alive. “As I knew their evil intentions, and to keep the people quiet, I burned them, and ordered their city razed to its foundation,” writes Alvarado to Cortes. Relacion, etc.

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

148. The palace of Tzupam. Perhaps the palace described by Fuentes. See Introduction, p. 24. Alvarado speaks of the friendly reception he met with: “I could not have been more warmly welcomed to the house of my father.” Otra Relacion, etc. His first visit was for eight days, April 11-19, 1524.

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.

171. The order assigning the Oidor Alonso de Maldonado to take charge of Guatemala, is dated Oct. 27, 1535, and he arrived there in the following May.

[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.

173. “Prince of the city,” Ahauh pa tinamit; see Sec. 168. Cahi Imox and others had returned to settle in Iximche, and their actions had become suspicious.

173. Francisco de Alvarado was either the uncle or cousin of Don Pedro.

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

174. This disaster occurred on the night of Sept. 10-11th, 1541.

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

175. “On account of ashes,” Ruma chah; Brasseur translates this expression, “á cause de billevesées.”