What does the name Huitzilopochtli mean?
hummingbird
Huitzilopochtli’s name is a cognate of the Nahuatl words huitzilin, “hummingbird,” and opochtli, “left.” Aztecs believed that dead warriors were reincarnated as hummingbirds and considered the south to be the left side of the world; thus, his name meant the “resuscitated warrior of the south.” His other names included …
What was Huitzilopochtli significance?
Huitzilopochtli was one of the most important Aztec gods. He was the sun god as well as the god of war. His name means “Hummingbird of the Left.” The Aztecs believed that warriors who were killed in battle returned to life as hummingbirds. Therefore, Huitzilopochtli’s name also describes a warrior from the south.
What does the Aztec sun god represent?
Tlaloc, as the rain god, represented fertility and growth, while Huitzilopochtli, as the sun god, represented war and sacrifice.
What does tezcatlipoca mean?
Smoking Mirror
Tezcatlipoca, (Nahuatl: “Smoking Mirror”) god of the Great Bear constellation and of the night sky, one of the major deities of the Aztec pantheon.
What does a Hummingbird symbolize in Mexican culture?
In our Mexican cultures, hummingbirds are great communicators and bring good intentions from one person to another. So you are lucky if a hummingbird flutters around you – it means the bird is carrying good thoughts and positive messages to you from someone else in this world or in the after world.
What did the Aztec game patolli symbolize?
What did the patolli board symbolize? The board symbolized the 260-day calendar, which the Aztecs shared with the Mayas and other Mesoamerican peoples.
Why were Pochteca important to the Aztec empire?
Pochteca occupied a high status in Aztec society, below the noble class. They were responsible for providing the materials that the Aztec nobility used to display their wealth, which were often obtained from foreign sources.
What did the Aztecs believe?
The Aztecs had many gods but worshipped Huitzilopochtli, the god of the sun and war, above all others. The Aztecs believed that they lived in the era of the fifth sun and that any day the world could end violently. In order to postpone their destruction and appease the gods, men performed human sacrifices.
What were the 4 main Aztec gods?
In the Aztec creation story, Ometecuhtli was self-birthed, and as such the androgynous being’s dual genders acted as husband and wife to give birth to the other four major Aztec gods – Huitzilopochtli, Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca, and Xipe Totec, who in turn represented the four cardinal sides.
What did the Aztecs believe about Huitzilopochtli?
The Aztec Sun God and sacrifice: The Aztecs believed that Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec Sun God, was in a constant struggle with darkness and night. Because of this he required nourishment in the form of human sacrifices, otherwise the universe could be in danger.
How did the Aztecs worship Huitzilopochtli?
The focal point of worship to Huitzilopochtli was at the Aztec capital where he had a wooden statue and shrine alongside that of Tláloc atop the Temple Mayor pyramid or Hueteocalli. As Huitzilopochtli was such an important deity he was the beneficiary of human sacrifices whose blood would feed and strengthen the god.
Why was Huitzilopochtli important to the Aztecs?
The services of the followers of Huitzilopochtli were always in demand when there was fighting to be done. With the exception of the Regimiento de Huitzilopochtli, which is at present at Acauhtzin and has doubtless embraced his cause. Huitzilopochtli was the principal tribal deity of the Aztecs.
Why does Huitzilopochtli chase after his brothers?
He also chased after his brothers, who fled from him and became scattered all over the sky. Huitzilopochtli is seen as the sun in mythology, while his many male siblings are perceived as the stars and his sister as the moon. In the Aztec worldview, this is the reason why the Sun is constantly chasing the Moon and stars.
What was the name of the Aztec god?
Huitzilopochtli. Huitzilopochtli, also spelled Uitzilopochtli, also called Xiuhpilli (“Turquoise Prince”) and Totec (“Our Lord”), Aztec sun and war god, one of the two principal deities of Aztec religion, often represented in art as either a hummingbird or an eagle.
When does Huitzilopochtli turn into a hummingbird?
From sunrise to noon, Huitzilopochtli was accompanied by the spirits of warriors who died in battle, who then turned into hummingbirds around noon. From this point until sunset, he was accompanied by the spirits of mothers who died while giving birth, perhaps an homage to his own unfortunate birth.