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This paper examines Nahua words found in both the Maya codices and the monumental texts. These words, spelled with syllabic signs, occur for the most part in contexts associated with foreign influence: Nahuatl deity names and words for "helmet," "tribute," and "heart." One word-"and then"-is a conjunction used frequently in discourse. Sound correspondences between these loan words and the Nahua sources suggest an Eastern Nahua dialect as the likely source during the Classic period. Thus, Mexican influence in the Maya area, frequently attributed directly to Teotihuacan, may in fact have come by way of Nahua-speakers settled in the Gulf region. The epigraphic evidence establishes that Nahua speakers were influential in Mesoamerica far earlier than previously believed. Nahuatl, the tongue of the Mexica (Aztec) empire, is documented in a vast body of literature. Historical texts, poetry, dictionaries, and grammars provide a clear picture of this language, which is still spoken today in the Valley of Mexico but was once also widely dispersed throughout Mesoamerica as a result of political and commercial interaction and population movement. The language of the Mexica, however, was only one of a number of related languages and dialects collectively termed Nahua. We use Nahuatl to refer to the language of the Aztecs and those contemporary dialects directly related to it. Nahua includes Nahuatl and other related languages and dialects in Veracruz, Chiapas, and Guatemala, as well as Pipil, spoken today in western El Salvador, and Pochutec from Oaxaca. The diversity of this language family is suggested by sixteenthcentury native histories that differentiate between groups speaking Nahuatl and those whose languages are similar but not precisely the same: These Tolteca, as it is said, were Nahua; they did not speak a barbarous tongue. However, their language they called Nonoalca.. .. [A]ll the Nahua, those who speak clearly, not the speakers of a barbarous tongue, are the descendants of the Tolteca, for they are those who remained, those who could no longer migrate [Sahagún 1959-1982:Book 10:170]. Here are mentioned-are named-those called Nahua. They are the ones who speak the Nahuatl language. They speak a little [like] the Mexica, although not really perfectly, not really pronounced in the same way [Sahagún 1959-1982:Book 10:175]. The Tlalhuica. These are the dwellers of the hot lands. They speak Nahuatl [Sahagún 1959-1982:Book 10:186]. They [the Coixca] are not speakers of a barbarous tongue; they speak Nahuatl [Sahagún 1959-1982:Book 10:187]. These passages suggest at least as much diversity in the Nahua family in the sixteenth century as can be observed today (Lastra de Suárez 1986; Monzón 1990). Nahua-speaking towns included many of the principal population centers in central Mexico, including the two other members of the Triple Alliance, Texcoco and Tlacopan, and Epi-Toltec centers such as Chalco, Colhuacan, Tenayocan, and Tepepolco. These populations were already established in the region when the Mexica arrived in th...

openAccessArticle: Truecover date: 2015-01-01pii: S0185-2574(15)30004-6Harvest Date: 2016-01-06 13:08:10issueName:Page Range: 121-121href scidir: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0185257415300046pubType

This article summarizes the Late Classic history of the Maya city of Quirigua, Izabal, Guatemala, emphasizing its relations with other polities. Quirigua's origins as a kingdom are traced to a.d. 426, when the rulers of nearby Copan established it as a colony. For the next three centuries, the site apparently mediated an intense interaction between Copan and Tikal. In a.d. 736, a personage from Tikal's rival city, Calakmul, acted with the current king of Quirigua—Buts' Tiliw—shortly before his a.d. 738 revolt against Copan. This suggests that Quirigua's revolt may have been, in part, externally stimulated. The revolt of Quirigua against Copan initiated a series of wars by Buts' Tiliw and his successor, Sky Xul, directed against two unknown sites. At least one of these sites was probably within the Copan hegemony. In contrast to the reigns of Buts' Tiliw and Sky Xul, that of the last known king of Quirigua, Jade Sky, seems to have been free of warfare. In fact, in his final monumental text, Jade Sky indicated his reconciliation with Copan. This interpretation of the texts of Quirigua suggests that changes in alliance and wars played an important role in the development of the site during the Late Classic period.

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