[←260]
K’o chug ‘ab Kabraqan is Maya for ‘Strong Earthquake’.
[←261]
Nito was a trading post of the Maya civilization in Mesoamerica. The site was located at the mouth of the Dulce River, where the river empties into the Gulf of Honduras. The modern Guatemalan city of San Gil de Buena Vista in Izabal Department now occupies the area.
The Maya created a network of trading posts. Some posts were connected by water. The Maya built long canoes to navigate the Campeche Bank, the Yucatan Straits, and the Gulf of Honduras. By means of the various rivers along those shores, they traveled up the rivers toward the Maya cities in the highlands of southern Mexico and Guatemala. Connections were also made to the Aztec traders at Xicalango in Mexico and to the island of Cozumel.
Some posts were connected by land. Goods were carried, usually by slaves, along paths to a port like Nito, then transferred to canoes to take advantage of the quicker water route. This network therefore provided commerce between the Maya in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras.
Hernán Cortés arrived in 1525 at Nito after his expedition by land through the Yucatan and left by ship on his way back to Mexico. (Manche Ch’ol. Wiki – Everipedia.)
[←262]
Zipactonal is a Nahuatl male name meaning ‘harmonic light’.
[←263]
K’uxu’ is Maya for ‘annato’.
[←264]
Che-sibik is Mopan for ‘vanilla’.
[←265]
Atz’am is Maya for ‘salt’.
[←266]
Co’oc is the Ke’kchi word for coconut; the coconut palm is toni’co’oc.
[←267]
Mix-ba’al is Maya for ‘Nothing’.
[←268]
Jankro (var: jranko) is Kriol for the carrion vulture, Coragyps atratus, also known as John Crow, carronero comun, and ch’om.
[←269]
Toni’co’oc is Ke’kchi for ‘coconut tree’.
[←270]
Ah Tabai is the Maya God of the Hunt.
[←271]
Bahlam is any of a group of Juagar Gods who protected people and communities.
[←272]
Chukwa’ is Maya for ‘chocolate’. Here it is used to refer to an alcoholic drink made using the sweet cacao beans pulp mixed with peppers, special herbs, honey, and flowers. It is both inhaled and drank, is used by kings, and for special ceremonies.
[←273]
Balché is a fermented intoxicating beverage used by the Maya for ceremonial occasions. It is made from the Lonchocarpus longistylus bark
[←274]
Kiaqiq’-jab is Maya for ‘hurricane’ or ‘severe storm’.
[←275]
Gyal is Kriol for ‘girl’.
[←276]
Achalal is the Maya noun for ‘older brother’ of male parent. It may also just refer to ‘brother’ or ‘family member’.
[←277]
Chaq’ is the Maya noun for younger brother or sister of the same sex.
[←278]
The creek referred to here is a tributary to the Temash River. The Maya name for the Temash is Temax. This tributary is fed by Freshwater Creek, Go To Hell Creek, and Saltwater Creek.
[←279]
Yaxal is the Maya name for the Moho River.
[←280]
The first fork is formed by Freshwater Creek and the tributary leading from the confluence of Go To Hell Creek and Saltwater Creek, the second fork.
[←281]
Pulch’ich’ is Maya for the sound of a waterfall or cataract.
[←282]
Pujila’ is Maya for ‘waterfall’. The waterfall referred to here is called ‘Monkey Falls’, Tuucha’ Pujila‘, and is located about two miles from Machaca, a village in the Toledo District of Belize. It is at an elevation of 1,014 feet above sea level. It is actually further east from Pusilhá than is stated in Sisimito III - Topoxte.
[←283]
Tuucha’ Pujila’ is Maya for Monkey Falls.
[←284]
Ka xi’ik teech utzil is Maya for ‘good luck’.
[←285]
Saq-ki is Ke’kchi for the ‘fiber of the maguey plant (agave)’. Ke’kchi for the maguey plant is ‘ki-che’.
[←286]
Ajaw is Maya for ‘king’. It can also be used for, ‘owner, lord, boss’. Pusilhá, an important Maya city in Southern Belize and north of the Motagua region, shows signs of contact with Copan. Kings at Pusilhá took the names of both Butz’ Chan and K’ahk’ Uti’ Witz’ K’awill shortly after these Copan kings respective reigns.
[←287]
Chúumuk Sacbeob: In the Sisimito Series, Chúumuk Sacbeob refers to a ‘central road’ or a ‘main road’.
[←288]
Ilhuitl is a Nahuatl unisexual name meaning ‘day’
[←289]
The Haab’ is part of the Maya calendric system, the 365 day calendar, approximating the solar year. It comprises eighteen “months” of twenty days each, plus an additional period of five days at the end of the year known as Wayeb’ and regarded as five nameless and unlucky days. In the Sisimito Series, the first “month” of the year is Pop, the first twenty days of January. Yaxk ‘in’ is the first twenty days of May. Mol the latter ten days of May and the first ten of June. K’ayab is the last ten days of November and the first ten of December.
[←290]
Yaluk is one of four Mopan ‘Grandfathers’ of the earth and Chief lightning God. Ah Peku is a God of Thunder. Coyopa is a God of Thunder and the brother of Cakulha who is a God of Lightning.
[←291]
Soch is Ke’kchi for ‘gourd rattles’.
[←292]
Iits’in is Maya for ‘sister’.
[←293]
Req’apunik is Ke’kchi for ‘brilliant’. Chun is Ke’kchi for “lime or limestone’. Req’apunik-chun is used here to mean ‘marble (shining limestone)’.
[←294]
K’ahk’ Uti’ Witz’ K’awill, (Fire-mouth spray K’awill) ruled Copan (Oxwitik) from 628-695 CE. He was also known as Ruler 12, Smoke Imix, Smoke-Jaguar Imix-Monster, Smoke Jaguar, and K’ahk’ Nab K’awil. He was born November 11, 604 (?) and ascended on February 5, 628. He died June 15, 695 and was buried in Temple 26. It is thought that his son was Waxaklajuun Ubaah K’awill. He ascended July 6, 695.
[←295]
Ah’-cuab is Ke’kchi for ‘musician’. The Mopan word is pash.
[←296]
Tlazohtzin is a Nahuatl female name meaning ‘one who is loved’.
[←297]
Toltecatl is a Nahuatl unisexual name meaning ‘artist’.
[←298]
Ukab K’ojol is Maya for ‘second son’. Ukabal is for ‘second child’. Xiuhcoatl is a Nahuatl unisexual name meaning ‘fire serpent’ or ‘weapon of destruction’.
[←299]
Ch’ahb is the name given to the ‘Blood-letting Ceremony’. It literarily means ‘pennance’.
[←300]
Tzitz is Maya for ‘blood-letting instrument’.
[←301]
Yoo noa how Bileez pipl frayd fu shaak!” is Kriol for ‘Do you know how afraid Belize people are for sharks?’, a statement rather than a question.
[←302]
Lady K’ab’al Xook or Lady Xoc was a Maya Queen consort of Yaxchilan and is considered to have been one of the most powerful and prominent women in Maya civilization. She was the principal wife and aunt of King Itzamnaaj B’alam II, Shield Jaguar, who ruled the prominent Kingdom of Yaxchilan from AD 681 to 742. She is believed by many to have been the sister of Lady Pacal. [Author’s note: This carving would have been done at a later date than the year Xipilli spoke about it.]
[←303]
U Hatz’il Cháak: El Tajin is located in Mexico in the highlands of the municipality of Papantla in modern day Veracruz. The name is said to mean ‘of thunder or lightning bolt’, u-hatz’il-cháak in Maya. The city might also have been called ‘Mictlan’ or ‘place of t
he dead’. Chronology studies at Tajin and nearby sites show that the area has been occupied at least since 5600 B.C. From 600 to 1200 C.E., El Tajin was a prosperous city that eventually controlled much of what is now modern Veracruz State.
[←304]
Xut’ is Maya for anus. When used as a cuss word, the meaning is ‘asshole’ or the vulgar Kriol form, ‘raas’
[←305]
Patzoj is Maya for ‘coitus, sex’. Here it is used as an exclamation, the cuss word ‘fuck’.
[←306]
Goama is Kriol for ‘hangover’.
[←307]
The lyrics are from the musical My Fair Lady.
[←308]
The Rockettes are a precision dance company. Founded in 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri, since 1932 they have performed at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York City. During the Christmas season, the Rockettes present five shows a day, seven days a week. Perhaps their best-known routine is an eye-high leg kick in perfect unison in a chorus line, which they include at the end of every performance. Their style of dance is a mixture of modern dance and classic ballet.
[←309]
Póót is Maya for ‘blouse’.
[←310]
Úúk is Maya for ‘skirt’.
[←311]
K’aas is Maya for ‘evil’. It is used when the ‘evil’ is specifically associated with Mahanamtz and the Kechelaj Jupuq.
[←312]
Sani-bay is Kriol for ‘sandy bay or sand bar’.
[←313]
Tsu-jipox or oop is the Maya name for the Wild Custard Apple tree, Annona reticulata. It is also known as anona blanca (Spanish), kostad aapl (Kriol), and bullock’s heart.
[←314]
The National Independence Party of Belize was a merger of two Belizean political parties, the Honduran Independence Party and the National Party. It effectively served as the chief opposition party in Belize for practically all of its existence. It was formed in July 1958 and dissolved as part of the formation of the new United Democratic Party on September 27, 1973.
The Peoples United Party was founded in 1950 as an anti-colonial party while the country was ruled by the United Kingdom as British Honduras. Under George Cadle Price the PUP played a major role in negotiating Belize’s self-government in 1964 and eventual independence in 1981
[←315]
Nabe Atan is Maya for ‘First Wife’. Ukab Atan is ‘Second Wife’.
[←316]
Baluk is Maya for ‘brother-in-law of a male’.
[←317]
There is no information on the rulers of Naj Tunich during this era. Ahau is a royal title and the highest ranking political office held at any given Maya City. In the Sisimito Series it is used for the king of an independent city.
[←318]
Ikox is Ke’kchi for ‘mushroom’. Psilocybe mexicana is a psychedelic mushroom. It was used by the Maya of Central America over 2000 years ago. The Nahuatl name is teonanácatl (teotl “god” + nanácatl “mushroom”).
[←319]
Xtabentún is the Maya name for the Morning Glory. Tlitliltzin is Nahuatl for the Mexican Morning Glory, Ipomoea tricolor. It was used in rituals to give the victim a “horror trip”.
[←320]
Me’t is Ke’kchi for ‘tobacco’. Please note that the tobacco known to the ancient Maya was far stronger than the tobacco of today, possibly strong enough to be hallucinogenic.
[←321]
Q’aq’-puaq is Ke’kchi for ‘gold’.
[←322]
Choq’ is Maya for ‘Quartz crystal’.
[←323]
This painting is known as Drawing 18. A sexually explicit scene such as this is most unusual in the art of Mesoamerica, especially in such a direct representation of sexual intercourse. (Andrea Stone, Department of Art history, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.) (For diagram see Notes # 323.)
[←324]
Cho is Maya for ‘lake or pond’. In Sisimito II it refers to a water reservoir. In Spanish, it is called an Aguada which is a large hole filled with water that provides the water supply for a city.
[←325]
Tz’ono’ot is Maya for ‘sinkhole’ or ‘cenote’. Ch’ajch’oj Tz’ono’ot is ‘Sacred Cenote’.
[←326]
Iboy is Ke’kchi for ‘armadillo’.
[←327]
Izel is a Maya male name meaning ‘unique’.
[←328]
Ch’ajch’oj Jul is Maya for ‘Sacred Cave’.
[←329]
Zyanya is a Maya unisex name meaning ‘forever’.
[←330]
Chichiatl is Nahuatl for ‘chicha’, a traditional drink made from corn and often used when Maya elders do a ceremony for the sun when summer begins.
[←331]
Namacuix is a Nahuatl male name meaning ‘king’. Ukabal means ‘second child’
[←332]
Anäb is Ke’kchi for ‘sister of a male’.
[←333]
Coszcatl is a Maya female name meaning ‘jewel’.
[←334]
Teyacapan is a Maya male name meaning ‘first born’.
[←335]
Chilan or Chilam is a priest that gives oracles. Mind-altering substances may have been used.
[←336]
Akhushtal is the Maya goddess of fertility and childbirth.
[←337]
Ixca junes maka ka metzev! is Maya for “We are never stronger than when we are one!’
[←338]
The Caves of Naj Tunich: Naj Tunich’s entrance faces south. It has 2.6 kilometers of corridors, is approximately 40 to 50 meters wide, and on average reaches 15 meters in height. It is widely recognized by the art embodied in its walls, painted with supernatural designs, human figures, animal pictures and hieroglyphic texts with dates indicating when they were visited. It also has architectural modifications made during Pre-Hispanic times by the ancient Maya. It is regarded as a bastion of rock art and according to the dating that has been obtained it may have been in use between 400 BC and 900 AD. Some of the images are 80 centimeters high and more than 40 centimeters wide, and all are directly painted on the limestone surfaces of the cave. Upon entering the cave, a “balcony” is found 50 meters to the east and following this “balcony” is a passage called the Principal Passage which is oriented to the north and is a total of 350 meters long. To the west is another passage, the West Passage, which is a bit shorter measuring 200 meters in length and ends in a room called the Crystal Room. The Principal Passage eventually veers off and becomes the North Passage which is also 350 meters in length. This passage then splits off into two branches, one to the east and the other to the west. To the east the branch ends in an area called “Paso Silencios” or “Quiet Way”. To the west the branch splits off into two areas, K’u Multun (Stacking Stone) and Mictlan Ch’en (Cave of the Underworld). Mictlan Ch’en is then connected back to “Paso Silencios” by a stretch called the Naj Tunnel which is 200 meters long and is orientated east to west. (UNESCO World Heritage Centre.)
[←339]
Q’uq’ is Maya for the Quetzal bird, a member of the trogon family.
[←340]
Dwarfs and hunchbacks served as trusted counselors to the king in the Maya court.
[←341]
Chalchiuitl is a female Nahuatl name meaning ‘emerald’.
[←342]
Chúumuk Pa raqanja is Maya for ‘center corridor’. Here it refers to the ‘Principal Passage’ in the Caves of Naj Tunich.
[←343]
Ochkin Pa-raqan-ja is the name given to the ‘Left Passage’.
[←344]
Choq’ Ja is Maya for ‘Crystal House’. Here it refers to the ‘Crystal Room’ in the Caves of Naj Tunich.
[←345]
Chojim wa is Maya for ‘corn cake’.
[←346]
K’u Multun is Maya name for ‘Stacking Stone’ in the Caves of Naj Tunich.
Sisimito III--Topoxte Page 78