30 May 2025 / 10 House
Article suitable for Top Juniors and above
Find out moreWhat does this Nahuatl saying mean?
Pic 1: The mural at Kingsburg
ORIGINAL QUESTION received from - and thanks to - Dee Boose: I want to know what this means, it is located on the side of the library building on Draper Street in Kingsburg, California. The mural is dedicated to reading. I’m of Yaqui heritage, so I was drawn to the art and language -
o anca yuhqui in chalchihuitl ohuaya zan ca yuhqui in cozcatl in quetzalli patlahuac
Thank you. (Answered by Ian Mursell/Mexicolore)
O anca yuhqui in chalchihuitl-Ohuaya!-zan ca yuhqui in cozcatl in quetzalli patlahuac ipan ye nicmatia yectli ye mocuic-Aya!-ipalnemoani ica nonahuia ica nonnitotiya huehuetitlan oo xopan cala itic in ye ni Yohyontzin. Huiya! Ha noyol quimati. Ohuaya ohuaya
’As jade, as jewels, as a wide plumage of quetzal [the quote above stops here], I value your song, Giver of Life, with these I take enjoyment, with them I dance between the drums in the flowery house of spring. I, Yoyontzin, my heart enjoys it. Ohuaya ohuaya.’
The paragraph is an excerpt from a poem (titled ‘I Have Arrived Here’) from the manuscript Cantares Mexicanos.
Thanks to Scott Hadley of San Miguel Canoa for his help in answering this. Follow the link below for more...
Photos kindly supplied by Dee Boose
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Pic 1: The mural at Kingsburg
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