{{Short description|none}} [[Image:Monte Alban Stela 12 & 13.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Stelae 12 and 13 from [[Monte Albán]], provisionally dated to 500-400 BCE, showing what is thought to be one of the earliest calendric representations in Mesoamerica.Marcus (1992)]] The [[calendar|calendrical systems]] devised and used by the [[pre-Columbian]] cultures of [[Mesoamerica]], primarily a 260-day year, were used in religious observances and social rituals, such as [[divination]]. These calendars have been dated to early as ca. 1100 BCE. By 500 BCE at the latest, the essentials were fully defined and functional. 260-day calendars are still used in the [[Guatemala]]n highlands,Tedlock, Barbara, Time and the Highland Maya Revised edition (1992 Page 1) "Scores of indigenous Guatemalan communities, principally those speaking the Mayan languages known as Ixil, Mam, Pokomchí, and Quiché, keep the 260-day cycle and (in many cases) the ancient solar cycle as well (chapter 4)." [[Veracruz]], [[Oaxaca]] and [[Chiapas]], [[Mexico]].Miles, Susanna W, "An Analysis of the Modern Middle American Calendars: A Study in Conservation." In Acculturation in the Americas. Edited by Sol Tax, p. 273. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1952. The importance of aboriginal calendars in ritual and other aspects of Mesoamerican life was noted by many missionary priests, travelers, and colonial administrators, and later by ethnographers who described and recorded the cultures of contemporary Mesoamerican ethnic groups.Harvey M. Bricker, and Victoria R. Bricker. "Correlation of Calendars." In [[David Carrasco]] (ed). ''[https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195108156.001.0001/acref-9780195108156 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures]''. Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001{{ISBN|9780195108156}} ==Types of calendars== Among the various calendar systems in use, two were particularly central and widespread across Mesoamerica. Common to all recorded Mesoamerican cultures, and the most important, was the 260-day calendar, a ritual calendar with no confirmed correlation to astronomical or agricultural cycles.Miller and Taube (1993, p.48) Apparently the earliest Mesoamerican calendar to be developed was known by a variety of local terms, and its named components and the [[glyph]]s used to depict them were culture-specific. However, it is clear that type of calendar functioned in essentially the same way across cultures, and across the [[Mesoamerican chronology|chronological periods]] when it was maintained. The second of the major calendars was one representing a 365-day period approximating the [[tropical year]], known sometimes as the "[[Year#Vague year|vague year]]".Miller and Taube (1993, p.50) Because it was an approximation, over time the seasons and the true tropical year gradually "wandered" with respect to this calendar, owing to the accumulation of the differences in length. There is little hard evidence to suggest that the ancient Mesoamericans used any [[intercalary day]]s to bring their calendar back into alignment. However, there is evidence to show Mesoamericans were aware of this gradual shifting, which they accounted for in other ways without amending the calendar itself.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}} These two 260- and 365-day calendars could also be synchronised to generate the [[Calendar Round]], a period of 18980 days or approximately 52 [[year]]s. The completion and observance of this Calendar Round sequence was of ritual significance to a number of Mesoamerican cultures. A third major calendar form known as the [[Mesoamerican Long Count calendar|Long Count]] is found in the [[Mesoamerican literature|inscriptions]] of several Mesoamerican cultures, most famously those of the [[Maya civilization]] who developed it to its fullest extent during the Classic period (ca. 200–900 CE). The Long Count provided the ability to uniquely identify days over a much longer period of time, by combining a sequence of day-counts or cycles of increasing length, calculated or set from a particular date in the mythical past. Most commonly, five such higher-order cycles in a modified [[vigesimal]] (base-20) count were used. The use of Mesoamerican calendrics is one of the cultural traits that [[Paul Kirchhoff]] used in his original formulation to define Mesoamerica as a [[culture area]].{{cite web | title = Mesoamerica: Our Region | work = Mesoamerica | url = http://www.mesoamerica.com/ing_nuestra_region.shtml | access-date = 2006-12-19 | quote = Paul Kirchhoff coined the term, ''Mesoamerica'' in 1943 from the [[Greek language|Greek]] ''[[wikt:meso-|mesos]]'' or "center" and ''[[Americas|America]]''. | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061021204507/http://www.mesoamerica.com/ing_nuestra_region.shtml | archive-date = 2006-10-21 }} Therefore, the use of Mesoamerican calendars is specific to Mesoamerica and is not found outside its boundaries.Caso (1971, p.333) Since the sixteenth century, most communities have lost both of these once universal calendars, but one—or, rarely, both—has survived in diverse linguistic groups through the twentieth century.John S. Justeson and Terrence Kaufman. "Mesoamerican Calendars". In [[David Carrasco]] (ed). ''[https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195108156.001.0001/acref-9780195108156 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures].'' Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|9780195188431|9780195108156}} ==Ritual 260-day calendar== {{See also|Tōnalpōhualli|Tzolkʼin}} In the 260-day cycle 20 day names pairs with 13 day numbers, totaling a cycle of 260 days. This cycle was used for divination purposes to foretell lucky and unlucky days. The date of birth was also used to give names to both humans and gods in many Mesoamerican cultures; some cultures used only the calendar name whereas others combined it with a given name. As a result, the word for "day" also means "name" in some Mesoamerican languages.Justeson, John S., and Terrence Kaufman. "Divinatory Cycle." In [[David Carrasco]] (ed). ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures''. : Oxford University Press, 2001. Each day sign was presided over by a god and many had associations with specific natural phenomena.{{citation needed|date=September 2015}}. The 260-day calendar was called ''piye'' among the Zapotecs,{{cite web |last1=Marcus |first1=Joyce |title=Los calendarios prehispánicos |url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |website=Arqueología Mexicana |access-date=30 August 2026 |language=es |date=28 April 2020 |archive-date=2026-02-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216174101/https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |url-status=live}} ''may'' among the Zoque,{{cite web |last1=Edmonson |first1=Munro |title=Los calendarios de la Conquista |url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-de-la-conquista |website=Arqueología Mexicana |access-date=30 August 2026 |language=es |date=9 May 2018 |archive-date=2026-05-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260519031840/https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-de-la-conquista |url-status=live}} and ''xëë tun'' ("path of the sun") or ''xëë too'' ("path of the days") among the Mixe.Rojas Martínez Gracida, Araceli. Time and Wisdom: a Sacred Calendar among the Ayöök People of Oaxaca, Mexico. pg. 226 ===History=== Earliest written evidence for the 260 calendar include the [[Olmec hieroglyphs#Potential glyphs (650–400 BCE)|San Andres glyphs]] ([[Olmecs|Olmec]], 650 BCE, giving the possible date 3 Ajaw{{cite journal|author=Pohl, Mary|author2=Kevin O. Pope|author3=Christopher von Nagy|year=2002|title=Olmec Origins of Mesoamerican Writing|journal=Science|volume=298|issue=5600|pages=1984–1985|bibcode=2002Sci...298.1984P|doi=10.1126/science.1078474|pmid=12471256|s2cid=19494498 }}) and the [[Zapotec writing#San Jose Mogote danzante|San Jose Mogote danzante]] ([[Zapotec civilization|Zapotec]], 600 - 500 BCE, giving the possible date 1 Earthquake{{cite book|last=Price|first=T. Douglas|title=Images of the Past|author2=Gary M. Feinman|publisher=McGraw-Hill|year=2005|isbn=0-07-286311-0|edition=Fourth|location=New York}} p.321), in both cases assumed to be used as names. However, the earliest evidence of the use of the 260-day cycle comes from astronomical alignments in the Olmec region and western Maya Lowlands, dating to about 1100 BCE.Šprajc et al. (2023) The exact origin of the 260-day count is not known, but there are several theories. One theory is that the calendar came from mathematical operations based on the numbers [[13 (number)|thirteen]] and [[20 (number)|twenty]], which were important numbers to the Maya. The numbers multiplied together equal 260. Another theory is that the 260-day period came from the length of human [[gestation|pregnancy]]. This is close to the average number of days between the ''first missed'' menstrual period and birth, unlike [[Naegele's rule]] which is 40 weeks (280 days) between the ''last'' menstrual period and birth. It is postulated that [[midwifery|midwives]] originally developed the calendar to predict babies' expected birth dates.{{citation needed|date=September 2015}} A third theory comes from understanding of astronomy, geography and paleontology. The Mesoamerican calendar probably originated with the [[Olmec]]s, and a settlement existed at Izapa, in southeast [[Chiapas]], Mexico, before 1200 BCE. There, at a latitude of about 15[[degree (angle)|°]] N, the Sun passes through zenith twice a year, and there are 260 days between zenithal passages, and [[gnomon]]s (used generally for observing the path of the Sun and in particular zenithal passages), were found at this and other sites. The sacred almanac may well have been set in motion on August 13, 1359, BCE, in Izapa.{{citation needed|date=September 2015}} ===''Trecenas''=== In the post-classic [[Aztec calendar]] the periods of 13 days called a ''[[trecena]]'' in Spanish (no indigenous word for this period is known) were also important. The days of a ''trecena'' were usually numbered from 1 to 13. There were some exceptions, such as in the [[Tlapanec people|Tlapanec]] area where they were counted from 2 to 14.Caso (1971, p.333), Edmonson (1988, p.5) The first day of the ''trecena'', and the god who was its patron, ruled the following thirteen days. If the first day of a trecena was auspicious then so were the next twelve days. ==365-day calendar== This 365-day calendar corresponded was divided into 18 'months' of 20 days each, plus 5 'nameless' days at the end of the year. The 365 day year had no leap year so it varied from the solar year by a quarter of a day each year. The years were given their name in much the same way as the days of the 260-day calendar, 20 names were paired with 18 numbers giving 360 different possibilities for year names.Hanns J. Prem, Antigua cronología Mexicana (p. 70) The 365-day calendar was called ''yza'' among the Zapotecs,{{cite web |last1=Marcus |first1=Joyce |title=Los calendarios prehispánicos |url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |website=Arqueología Mexicana |access-date=30 August 2026 |language=es |date=28 April 2020 |archive-date=2026-02-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216174101/https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |url-status=live}} ''cuiya'' among the Mixtecs,{{cite web |last1=Marcus |first1=Joyce |title=Los calendarios prehispánicos |url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |website=Arqueología Mexicana |access-date=30 August 2026 |language=es |date=28 April 2020 |archive-date=2026-02-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260216174101/https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-prehispanicos |url-status=live}} ''huriyata miucua'' among the Purépecha,{{cite book |last1=Pollard |first1=Helen Perlstein |title=Taríacuri's legacy: the prehispanic Tarascan state |date=1993 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |location=Norman |isbn=9780806124971 |page=148}} and ''hame'' among the Zoque.{{cite web |last1=Edmonson |first1=Munro |title=Los calendarios de la Conquista |url=https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-de-la-conquista |website=Arqueología Mexicana |access-date=30 August 2026 |language=es |date=9 May 2018 |archive-date=2026-05-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260519031840/https://arqueologiamexicana.mx/mexico-antiguo/los-calendarios-de-la-conquista |url-status=live}} ===''Veintenas''=== In the post-classic [[Aztec calendar]] the 20 days called ''veintenas'' in Spanish and ''meztli'', meaning moon, in Nahuatl, were also important.Handbook of middleamerican indians, book 10 (pp. 339-340) ===The five unlucky days=== The five unlucky days were called ''nemontemi'' in Mexico. Most believe them to have come at the end of each year, but since we do not know when the year started, we cannot know for sure. We do know though, that in the Maya area these five days (called ''wayeb'' in Maya) were always the last days of the year. The ''nemontemi'' were seen as 'the useless days' or the days that were dedicated to no gods, and they had prognostic power for the coming year. Therefore, People tried to do as little as possible on these days, and a person who was born during the ''nemontemi'' was considered unlucky.Broda de Casas, The Mexican Calendar (pp. 18-19) ==Calendar Round== Since both the 260-day and the 365-day calendar repeat, approximately every 52 years they reach a common end, and a new [[Calendar Round]] begins. This 52-year cycle was the most important for most Mesoamericans, with the apparent exception of the [[Maya civilization|Maya]] elite until the end of the [[Mesoamerican chronology|Classic Era]], who gave equal importance to the [[Mesoamerican Long Count calendar|long count calendar]].Miller and Taube (1992, pp.86–88) According to their mythology, at the end of one of these 52-year cycles the world would be destroyed by the gods, as it had been, three times in the [[Popul Vuh]] and four times for the [[Aztec calendar|Aztecs]]. While waiting for this to happen, all fire was extinguished, utensils were destroyed to symbolize new beginnings, people fasted and rituals were carried out. This was known as the [[New Fire Ceremony]]. When dawn broke on the first day of the new cycle, torches were lit in the temples and brought out to light new fires everywhere, and ceremonies of thanksgiving were performed.Broda de Casas, The Mexican Calendar (pp. 27-28) ==Calendar Wheels== The term calendar wheel generally refers to Colonial-period images that display cycles of time in a circular format. Central Mexican calendar wheels incorporate the eighteen annual festivals or the 52-year cycle. In the Maya area, calendar wheels depict a cycle of 13 [[Kʼatun|K'atuns]]. The only known pre-Hispanic [[Kʼatun|K'atuns]] wheel appears on a stone turtle from Mayapán.Miller, Mary E., and Taube, Karl. ''The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya''. London, 1993 The earliest known Colonial-period calendar wheel is actually depicted in a square format, on pages 21 and 22 of the [[Codex Borbonicus]], an Aztec screenfold that divides the 52-year cycle into two parts. The [[Aubin Codex|Codex Aubin]], also known as the Codex of 1576, shows the 52-year calendar in a rectangular format on a single page. Most other calendar wheels use a circular format. The [[Boban calendar wheel]], an early sixteenth-century calendar on native paper, depicts the Central Mexican cycle of eighteen festivals in clockwise rotation, with Arabic numerals used to total the number of days; virtually all the text is in [[Nahuatl]]. Some paired festivals share the same glyph, but they are represented in different sizes, the first being the "small feast" and the second the "great feast." In the center, a 7 Rabbit date (1538) appears with text and images that refer to Tetzcocan town officers.Milbrath, Susan. "Calendar Wheels." In [[David Carrasco|Davíd Carrasco]] (ed). ''[https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195108156.001.0001/acref-9780195108156 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures]'' Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|9780195108156|9780195188431}} ==Religion and calendrics== ===Lords of the day=== In the post-classic Aztec calendar, there were 13 [[Lords of the Day]]. These were gods (and goddesses) who each represented one of the 13 days in the ''trecenas'' of the 260-day calendar. The same god always represented the same day. [[Quetzalcoatl|Quetzalcohuatl]] (The feathered serpent), for example, always accompanied the 9th day.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}} ===Lords of the Night=== {{main|Lords of the Night}} There are only nine Lords of the Night, which means that they cannot always represent the same day, but the list of gods repeats itself again and again so each lord accompanies a new number each ''trecena''. Some think that there are nine Lords of the Night because they are connected to the nine levels of the underworld.Handbook of middleamerican indians, book 10 (pp. 335-336) ==Long Count== {{main|Mesoamerican Long Count calendar}} [[Image:Estela C de Tres Zapotes.jpg|thumb|250px|left|The back of Stela C from [[Tres Zapotes]], an Olmec archaeological site.
This is the second oldest Long Count date yet discovered. The numerals 7.16.6.16.18 translate to September 1, 32 BCE (Gregorian). The glyphs surrounding the date are what is thought to be one of the few surviving examples of [[Epi-Olmec script]].]] The 365-day and the 260-day calendars identified and named the days, but not the years. The combination of a solar year date and a 260-year date was enough to identify a specific date to most people's satisfaction, as such a combination did not occur again for another 52 years, above general life expectancy. To measure dates over periods longer than 52 years, the Mesoamericans devised the Long Count calendar. This calendar system was probably developed by the [[Olmec]]s and later adopted by the [[Maya civilization|Maya]].{{citation needed|date=December 2012}} The use of the long count is best attested among the classic Maya, it is not known to have been used by the central Mexican cultures.{{citation needed|date=December 2012}} The Long Count calendar identifies a date by counting the number of days from August 11, 3114 BCE in the [[proleptic Gregorian calendar]] or September 6, 3114 BCE in the Julian Calendar (-3113 astronomical). The Long Count days were tallied in a modified base-20 scheme. Thus 0.0.0.1.5 is equal to 25, and 0.0.0.2.0 is equal to 40. ==Correlations== ===Long count=== {{main|Mesoamerican Long Count calendar#Correlations between Western calendars and the Long Count}} The correlation is based on historical, archaeological and astronomical evidence. The commonly established way of expressing the correlation between the Maya calendar and the western calendars is to provide number of days from the start of the [[Julian Period]] (Monday, January 1, 4713 BCE) to the start of creation on 13.0.0.0.0 4 Ajaw, 8 Kumk'u. The most commonly accepted correlation is the "Goodman, Martinez, [[J. Eric S. Thompson|Thompson]]" correlation (GMT correlation). The GMT correlation establishes that the creation date occurred on September 6 (Julian) or August 11 ([[Proleptic Gregorian calendar|Gregorian]]), 3114 BC (-3113 astronomical), [[Julian day number]] (JDN) 584283. ==Maya Calendar== {{main|Maya calendar}} The Maya version of the 260-day calendar is commonly known to scholars as the ''[[Tzolk'in|Tzolkin]]'', or ''Tzolk'in'' in the revised [[orthography]] of the [[Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala]].Refer ALMG (1988), as cited in Kettunen and Helmke (2024, p.7). This latter notes the general adoption on ALMG orthography among the [[Mayanist]] research community. The Tzolk'in is combined with the 365-day calendar (known as the ''[[Haab]]'', or ''Haab''' ), to form a synchronized cycle lasting for 52 Haabs, called the ''[[Calendar Round]]''. The Maya called the 5 unlucky days at the end of the year ''Wayeb''. The Classic Maya, used the [[Mesoamerican Long Count calendar|Long Count]] to record dates within periods longer than the 52 year calendar round. The post-Classic Maya used an abbreviated [[Maya calendar#Short Count|short count]]. Many Maya Long Count inscriptions also have a [[Maya calendar#Supplementary Series|supplementary series]] which can record which one of the nine [[Lords of the Night]] rules, a [[Maya calendar#Lunar Series|Lunar series]] which has information about the lunar cycle, such as [[lunar phase]] and position of the [[Moon]] in a six [[lunation]] cycle and length of the current lunation and an [[Maya calendar#819-day count|819-day count]]. ==Central Mexican Calendar== {{main|Aztec calendar}} [[File:Descripción histórica y cronológica de las dos piedras que con ocasión del nuevo empedrado que se está formando en la plaza principal de México, se hallaron en ella el año de 1790-1b.jpg|thumb|Image of a colonial era Mexican calendar]] The Central Mexican calendar system is best known in the form that was used by the [[Aztec]]s, but similar calendars were used by the [[Nahuas]] of [[Puebla]], [[Veracruz]] and Central America (the [[Pipil people|Pipil]] and [[Nicarao people|Nicarao]]), the [[Mixtec]]s, [[Zapotec civilization|Zapotec]]s, [[Tlapanec people|Tlapanecs]], [[Otomi people|Otomi]], [[Matlatzinca people|Matlatzinca]], [[Totonac]], [[Huastec people|Huastecs]], [[Purépecha people|Purépecha]], [[Cuicatecs]], [[Mazatec]]s, [[Popoloca languages|Popoloca]] and at [[Teotihuacan]], [[Monte Alban]] and [[El Tajin]].{{cite book |last1=Wauchope |first1=Robert |last2=Ekholm |first2=Gordon F. |last3=Bernal |first3=Ignacio |title=Handbook of Middle American Indians, Volumes 10 And 11: Archaeology of Northern Mesoamerica |date=2015 |publisher=University of Texas Press |location=Austin, TX |isbn=9781477306758 |page=333}} These calendars differed from the Maya version mainly in that they didn't use the long count to fix dates into a larger chronological frame than the 52-year cycle. The Aztecs referred to the 365 and 260-day cycles as ''[[xiuhpohualli]]'' (year count) and ''[[tonalpohualli]]'' (day count) respectively. The ''veintena'' was called ''metztli'' (moon), and the five unlucky days at the end of the solar year were called ''nemontemi''. Ethnologists have documented modern 365-day agricultural calendars of the Mesoamerican form in Totonac,Stresser-Péan, Guy. 2003. «El Antiguo Calendario Totonaco Y Sus Probables vínculos Con El De Teotihuacan». Estudios De Cultura Náhuatl 34 (December):15-66. https://nahuatl.historicas.unam.mx/index.php/ecn/article/view/78654. [[Chinantec people|Chinantec]],Weitlaner, Irmgard. “A Chinantec Calendar.” American Anthropologist, vol. 38, no. 2, 1936, pp. 197–201. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/662327. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026. [[Mazatec]],Weitlaner, Robert J., and Irmgard Weitlaner. “The Mazatec Calendar.” American Antiquity, vol. 11, no. 3, 1946, pp. 194–97. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/275562. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026. [[Mixe people|Mixe]],Rojas Martínez Gracida, Araceli. Time and Wisdom: a Sacred Calendar among the Ayöök People of Oaxaca, Mexico. and [[Chiapanec]]Brinton, Daniel G. “The Native Calendar of Central America and Mexico. A Study in Linguistics and Symbolism.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, vol. 31, no. 142, 1893, pp. 302–304. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/982967. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026. communities. These calendars consist of eighteen ''veintenas'' and twenty day signs that combine with numbers, along with five intercalary days at the end of the cycle. The exact day and month names vary slightly from community to community due to dialectal differences. ===Day signs=== {| class="wikitable" |- style="font-weight:bold;" ! Nahuatl ! Mixtec{{cite book |last1=Wauchope |first1=Robert |title=Handbook of Middle American Indians, Volumes 2 and 3 |date=1965 |publisher=University of Texas Press |isbn=9781477306550 |page=956}}Caso, Alfonso. “El Calendario Mixteco.” Historia Mexicana, vol. 5, no. 4, 1956, pp. 481–97. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/25134453. Accessed 2 Sept. 2026. ! Zapotec{{cite book |last1=Lind |first1=Michael |title=Ancient Zapotec Religion |date=2015 |publisher=University Press of Colorado |isbn=9781457193668 |pages= 347-348}}{{efn|Many of the Zapotec days whose meanings diverge from the Nahuatl names were nonetheless written with glyphs resembling the Nahuatl meanings.}} ! OtomiWright Carr, David Charles. “El Calendario Mesoamericano En Las Lenguas Otomí y Náhuatl.” Tlalocan, Instituto de Investigaciones Filologicas.{{cite web |title=Códice de Huichapan. Cultura Otomí |url=https://pueblosoriginarios.com/meso/valle/otomi/huichapan.html |website=pueblosoriginarios.com |access-date=16 January 2026 |archive-date=2022-08-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220811023738/https://pueblosoriginarios.com/meso/valle/otomi/huichapan.html |url-status=live}} ! TotonacStresser-Péan, Guy. 2003. «El Antiguo Calendario Totonaco Y Sus Probables vínculos Con El De Teotihuacan». Estudios De Cultura Náhuatl 34 (December):15-66. https://nahuatl.historicas.unam.mx/index.php/ecn/article/view/78654. ! MixeRojas Martínez Gracida, Araceli. Time and Wisdom: a Sacred Calendar among the Ayöök People of Oaxaca, Mexico. |- | '''Cipactli''' "Alligator" | '''Quehui''' "Day" | '''Chilla''' "Alligator" | '''Antoqhuay''' "Stone Knife" | '''Lho'cxmul''' | '''Tëjk''' "House" |- | '''Ehecatl''' "Wind" | '''Chi''' "Wind" | '''Laa''' "Lightning" | '''Amadähi''' "Wind" | '''Yūn''' "Wind" | '''Xa(a)w''' |- | '''Calli''' "House" | '''Cuau''' "Night", '''Huahi''' "House" | '''Lalaa''' "Night" | '''Anegü''' "House" | '''Chicla''' | '''Jow''' "Ripe" |- | '''Cuetzpalin''' "Lizard" | '''Quu''' "Bush" | '''Lachi''' "Ballgame" | '''Anbotäga''' "Black Lizard" | '''Tāxo''' | '''Jöö'n''' "Hard" |- | '''Coatl''' "Serpent" | '''Yo, Coo, Yucoco''' "Serpent" | '''Zee''' "Bad Omen"? | '''Ancquëyä''' "Serpent" | '''Lūhua'''' "Serpent" | '''Tsaan''' "Serpent" |- | '''Miquiztli''' "Death" | '''Moku, Mahu''' | '''Lana''' "Smell of Meat" | '''Antu''' "Death" | '''Nīnīn''' "Death" | '''Oj''' |- | '''Mazatl''' "Deer" | '''Cuaa, Cuav''' "Deer" | '''China''' "Deer" | '''Anphani''' "Deer" | '''Jūqui'''' "Deer" | '''Naj''' |- | '''Tochtli''' "Rabbit" | '''Sayu, Xay''' "Phallus" | '''Lapa''' | '''Anqhua''' "Rabbit" | '''Scauj''' "Rabbit" | '''Wiptsy''' |- | '''Atl''' "Water" | '''Cuta, Duta''' "Water" | '''Niça''' "Water" | '''Andehe''' "Water" | '''Chu'chut''' "Water" | '''Nëën''' (possibly "water" or "river") |- | '''Itzcuintli''' "Dog" | '''Ua, Huaa''' "Dog; Noisy" | '''Tella''' "Knot" | '''Anyoh''' "Dog" | '''Chichi'''' "Dog" | '''Jo'''' |- | '''Ozomatli''' "Monkey" | '''Ñuu, Ñooy, Ñao''' | '''Loo''' "Monkey" | '''Amatzupâ''' "Monkey" | '''Stajku''' | '''Jëm''' "Flammable" |- | '''Malinalli''' "Grass/Twisted" | '''Cuañe, Cuuñi''' "Twist" | '''Piya''' "Soap Plant" | '''Anchäxttey''' "Grass" | '''Tāskō'''' | '''Tëëts''' "Tooth" |- | '''Acatl''' "Reed" | '''Huiyo, Huiya''' "Reed" | '''Laa [Quiy]''' "Reed" | '''Anxithi''' "Reed" | '''Kā'tīt''' "Reed" | '''Käp''' "Reed" |- | '''Ocelotl''' "Jaguar" | '''Vidzu''' "Jaguar" | '''Lache''' "Heart"? | '''Anhmatzhäni''' "Jaguar" | '''Nisin''' "Jaguar" | '''Kaa''' "Cow/Bull"{{efn|This word has the meaning of "jaguar" and "tiger" in some Mixe communities, and in others is the root used to form the words for the same.}} |- | '''Cuauhtli''' "Eagle" | '''Xa, Sayacu''' "Hawk" | '''Naa''' "Cornfield" | '''Angaxuni''' "Eagle" | '''Pichahua'''' "Eagle" | '''Ju'uk''' "Tobacco" |- | '''Cozcacuauhtli''' "Buzzard" | '''Cuij''' "Turkey; Buzzard" | '''Loo''' "Eye" | '''Mathucha''' | '''Ta'jna'''' "Turkey" | '''Pa(ö)w''' |- | '''Olli''' "Movement" | '''Qhi''' | '''Xoo''' "Earthquake" | '''Anquitzhëy''' "Rubber Ball" | '''Qui-Dios cā'/Ka Molok''' "Our God"{{efn|''Dios'' is a Spanish word, and thus the prehispanic day sign must have been different.}} | '''Ojx''' "Earthquake" |- | '''Tecpatl''' "Flint Knife" | '''Si, Cusi, Cuxi''' "Rusty" | '''Lopa''' "Damp, dew, cold" | '''Aneyaxi''' "Flint Knife" | '''Tzi'sna'''' "Night" | '''Tap''' |- | '''Quiyahuitl''' "Rain" | '''Dzahui, Co''' "Rain" | '''Lape''' "Raindrop"? | '''Anyeb''' "Rain" | '''T'ajkuj''' | '''Më(ë)y''' "Grass" |- | '''Xochitl''' "Flower" | '''Uaco, Coo, Coy''' "Macaw" | '''Lao''' "Ruler, lord" | '''Andoni''' "Flower" | '''Nihuana''' | '''Gügën'''{{efn|In some sources, this sign refers to a feminine life deity.}} |} ===Veintenas=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Nahuatl ! Zapotec{{cite book |last1=Lind |first1=Michael |title=Ancient Zapotec Religion |date=2015 |publisher=University Press of Colorado |isbn=9781457193668 |pages= 349-350}} ! Otomi{{cite book |last1=Wauchope |first1=Robert |last2=Ekholm |first2=Gordon F. |last3=Bernal |first3=Ignacio |title=Handbook of Middle American Indians, Volumes 10 And 11: Archaeology of Northern Mesoamerica |date=2015 |publisher=University of Texas Press |location=Austin, TX |isbn=9781477306758 |pages=433-434}} ! Totonac ! Purépecha{{cite book |last1=Pollard |first1=Helen Perlstein |title=Taríacuri's Legacy: The Prehispanic Tarascan state |date=1993 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |location=Norman |isbn=9780806124971 |pages=148-151}}{{efn|Hurtado Mendoza believed that some months, namely Ecuata Conscuaro, Hanciuascuaro, Curindaro and Cuingo, occurred at different times than what is listed here, and that Sicuindiro was a festival held only once every four years.}} ! Matlatzinca{{cite book |last1=Pollard |first1=Helen Perlstein |title=Taríacuri's Legacy: The Prehispanic Tarascan state |date=1993 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |location=Norman |isbn=9780806124971 |pages=148-151}} |- | '''Cuahuitlehua''' "Raising of Poles (Trees)" | '''Toohua''' | '''Ambuo̱ndäxi''' "Growth of Tender Maize Ears" | '''Xtayat qui'hui'''' "Standing Tree" | '''Purecatacuaro''' "Warriors" | ? |- | '''Tlacaxipehualiztli''' "Flaying of Men" | '''Huitao''' | '''Anttzâyoh''' "Flaying of Dogs" (?) | '''La'xun''' "Flaying" | '''Cuingo''' "White Heron" | ? |- | '''[[Tozoztontli]]''' "Small Vigil" | '''Tzegag''' | '''Antzhontho''' "Small Flying" | '''Tapac taxtu''' | '''Hunisperacuaro'''{{efn|The intercalary days (the equivalent of the nemontemi) occurred after this month.}} | ? |- | '''[[Hueytozoztli]]''' "Great Vigil" | '''Lohuee''' | '''Antätzhoni''' "Great Flying" | '''Tlanca' lixquin''' | ? {{efn|Unlike the order of the other systems, this was the first month of the Purépecha calendar.}} | '''In Thacari''' "Great Time" |- | '''[[Toxcatl]]''' "Drought" | '''Yag queo''' | '''Atzibiphi''' "Smoke" | '''Palh lixquin''' | ? | '''In Dehuni''' "To Roast Maize" |- | '''[[Etzalcualiztli]]''' "Eating of Fresh Maize" | '''Gabe na''' | '''Aneguo̱ o̱ni''' "Flesh of Turkey" | '''Pichi hua't''' "Half Tamal" | '''Mazcuto''' | '''In Thecamoni''' |- | '''[[Tecuilhuitontli]]''' "Small Festival of Lords" | '''Gola goo''' | '''Anttzu̱ngohmü''' "Small Feast of the Lords" | '''Maca taxtu''' | '''Ecuata Conscuaro''' "Great Gathering" | '''In Thirimehui''' "Small Change" |- | '''[[Huey Tecuilhuitl]]''' "Great Festival of Lords" | '''Cheag''' | '''Antängohmü''' "Great Feast of the Lords" | '''Maca patinit''' | '''Caheri Conscuaro''' | '''In Tamehui''' "Great Change" |- | '''[[Tlaxochimaco|Miccailhuitontli]]''' "Small Feast of the Dead" | '''Gogaa''' | '''Anttzu̱ngotü''' "Small Feast of the Dead" | '''Smulaja''' | '''Hanciuascuaro''' "Catch Rebels" | '''In Iscatholohui''' "Small Death" |- | '''Hueymiccailhuitl''' "Great Feast of the Dead" | '''Go naa''' | '''Antängotü''' "Great Feast of the Dead" | '''Sicu'lanan''' | '''Hicuandiro''' "Purification" | '''Ima Thitohui''' "Great Death" |- | '''[[Ochpaniztli]]''' "Sweeping" | '''Gaha''' | '''Ambaxi''' "Sweeping" | '''Sihuinit''' | '''Sicuindiro''' "Flaying" | '''Itzbacha''' "Broom" |- | '''[[Pachtontli]]''' "Small Hay" | '''Tina''' | '''Anttzu̱nboxu̱gui''' "Small Hay" | '''Cuhuacna''' "Hay" | '''Charapu Zapi''' "Small Moss" | '''In Toxiqui''' "Small Moss" |- | '''[[Hueypachtli]]''' "Great Hay" | '''Zaha''' | '''Antäboxu̱gi''' "Great Hay" | '''Stacnan cuhuacna''' "Tender Hay" | '''Uapanscuaro''' "Barrios Join" | '''In Thaxiqui''' "Great Moss" |- | '''[[Quecholli]]''' "Roseate Spoonbill" | '''Zahi''' | '''Antzhoni''' "Flying" | '''Kalhkosot''' "Flight" | '''Caheri Uapanscuaro''' "Great Barrios" | '''In Thechaqui''' "Night Heron" |- | '''[[Panquetzaliztli]]''' "Raising of Banners" | '''Zahuao''' | '''Anthäxhmë''' "White Tortilla" | '''Kechit''' | ? | '''In Thechotahui''' "The Twins" |- | '''[[Atemoztli]]''' "Descent of Water" | '''Yetilla''' | '''Ancändehe''' "Descent of Water" | '''Lhak puxama''' | '''Peuanscuaro''' | '''In Teyabihitzen''' "Fall from Above" |- | '''Tititl''' "Stretching" | '''Yecho''' | '''Ambuo̱''' "Growth" | '''Tlanca' lhtucutlit''' | '''Curindaro''' "Bread Offer" | '''In Thaxitohui''' "Grandfather" |- | '''[[Izcalli]]''' "Rebirth" | '''Go hui''' | '''Anthüdo̱ni''' "Planting of Flowers" | '''Palh lhtucutlit''' | '''Tzitacuarenscuaro''' | ? |- | '''[[Nemontemi]]''' "They fill up in vain" | '''Quicholla''' | '''Dupa''' "Dead days" (?) | '''Xtaca''' "Abandoned (days)" | ? | ? |} ==Other cycles== Other calendar cycles were also recorded, such as a [[Moon|lunar]] calendar, as well as the cycles of other [[astronomy|astronomical]] objects, most importantly [[Venus]].Balkansky (2002); Miller and Taube (1992, pp.52–54) == See also == * [[Maya calendar]] * [[Aztec calendar]] * [[Inca calendar]] * [[Dreamspell]] == Notes == {{notelist}} == References == {{reflist}} == Sources == {{refbegin}} * {{cite book |author=ALMG (Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala) |author-link=Academia de Lenguas Mayas de Guatemala |year=1988 |title=Lenguas mayas de Guatemala: documento de referencia para la pronunciación de los nuevos alfabetos oficiales |series=ALMG Documento 1 |location=Guatemala City |publisher=[[Instituto Indigenista Nacional]], Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes |oclc=20330408 |language=es}} * {{cite journal |author=Balkansky, Andrew |year=2002 |title=Zapotec Hieroglyphic Writing, by Javier Urcid Serrano [Book Review] |journal=[[Antiquity (journal)|Antiquity]] |volume=76 |issue=293 |url=http://antiquity.ac.uk/ant/076/Ant0760904.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121223005802/http://antiquity.ac.uk/ant/076/Ant0760904.htm |archive-date=December 23, 2012 |access-date=2006-10-20 |pages=904–905 |issn=0003-598X |oclc=1481624 |doi=10.1017/S0003598X0009150X |s2cid=160716251 |url-access=subscription}} * Bricker, Harvey M. and Victoria R. Bricker. "Correlation of Calendars." In Davíd Carrasco (ed). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures. Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|9780195108156}} * {{cite book |author=Caso, Alfonso |author-link=Alfonso Caso |year=1971 |chapter=Calendrical Systems of Central Mexico |pages=333–348 |title=Handbook of Middle American Indians, Vol. 10: Archaeology of Northern Mesoamerica, part I |editor=[[Gordon F. Ekholm]] and [[Ignacio Bernal]] (Volume eds.) |others=[[Robert Wauchope (archaeologist)|R. Wauchope]] (General Editor) |publisher=[[University of Texas Press]] |location=Austin |isbn=978-0-292-70150-2 |oclc=277126 |title-link=Handbook of Middle American Indians}} * {{cite book |author=Coe, Michael D. |author-link=Michael D. Coe |year=1987 |title=The Maya |edition=4th edition (revised) |series=Ancient peoples and places series |location=London and New York |publisher=[[Thames & Hudson]] |isbn=978-0-500-27455-2 |oclc=15895415}} * {{cite book |author=Edmonson, Munro S. |author-link=Munro S. Edmonson |year=1988 |title=The Book of the Year: Middle American Calendrical Systems |location=Salt Lake City |publisher=[[University of Utah Press]] |isbn=978-0-87480-288-7 |oclc=17650412}} * {{cite book |author=Hassig, Ross |author-link=Ross Hassig |year=2001 |title=Time, History, and Belief in Aztec and Colonial Mexico |location=Austin |publisher=[[University of Texas Press]] |isbn=978-0-292-73139-4 |oclc=44167649}} * John S. Justeson and Terrence Kaufman. "Mesoamerican Calendars". In [[David Carrasco|Davíd Carrasco]] (ed). ''[https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195108156.001.0001/acref-9780195108156 The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures].'' Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|9780195188431|9780195108156}} *{{cite book |author=Kettunen, Harri |author2=Christophe Helmke |year=2024 |title=Introduction to Maya Hieroglyphs |url=https://www.wayeb.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kettunen_Helmke_2024_WH_English_19th_ed.pdf |format=[[PDF]] online publication |publisher=Wayeb |access-date=2024-10-30}} * {{cite book |author=Marcus, Joyce |author-link=Joyce Marcus |year=1992 |title=Mesoamerican Writing Systems: Propaganda, Myth, and History in Four Ancient Civilizations |publisher=[[Princeton University Press]] |location=Princeton, NJ |isbn=978-0-691-09474-8 |oclc=25549355}} * {{cite journal |author=Malmström, Vincent H. |author-link=Vincent H. Malmström |date=September 17, 1973 |title=Origin of the Mesoamerican 260-Day Calendar |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=181 |issue=4103 |pages=939–941 |url=http://www.dartmouth.edu/~izapa/M-1.pdf |format=[[PDF]] Reprinted |doi=10.1126/science.181.4103.939 |pmid=17835843 |bibcode=1973Sci...181..939M |s2cid=41562003}}{{unreliable source?|date=April 2014}} * Milbrath, Susan. "Calendar Wheels." In Davíd Carrasco (ed). The Oxford Encyclopedia of Mesoamerican Cultures Vol 1. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|9780195108156|9780195188431}} *{{cite book |author=Miller, Mary |author-link=Mary Miller (art historian) |author2=[[Karl Taube]] |year=1993 |title=The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya: An Illustrated Dictionary of Mesoamerican Religion |publisher=[[Thames & Hudson]] |location=London |isbn=978-0-500-05068-2 |oclc=27667317 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/godssymbolsofa00mill}}{{unreliable source?|date=June 2014}} * {{refend}}{{cite book |author=Nowotny, Karl Anton |author-link=Karl Anton Nowotny |year=2005 |title=Tlacuilolli: style and contents of the Mexican pictorial manuscripts with a catalog of the Borgia Group |others=George A. Everett, Jr. and Edward B. Sisson (trans. and eds.), with a foreword by Ferdinand Anders |location=Norman |publisher=[[University of Oklahoma Press]] |isbn=978-0-8061-3653-0 |oclc=56527102}} * {{cite journal |author=Šprajc |first=Ivan |last2=Inomata |first2=Takeshi |last3=Aveni |first3=Anthony F |year=2023 |title=Origin of Mesoamerican astronomy and calendar: Evidence from the Olmec and Maya regions |url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9821873/#ref-list1 |journal=Science Advances |volume=9 |issue=1 |article-number=eabq7675 |doi=10.1126/sciadv.abq7675 |pmid=36608125 |pmc=9821873}} ==External links== {{Commons category|Mesoamerican calendars}} * [http://www.jqjacobs.net/mesoamerica/meso_astro.html#calenders Mesoamerican Archaeoastronomy and calendars], James Q. Jacobs (1999) * [https://web.archive.org/web/20091023210717/http://geocities.com/a1ma_mia/calendar/mesocal.html Mesoamerican calendars] {{Calendars}} [[Category:Mesoamerican calendars| ]]