 In 2002, through the research done by two separate Nicaraguan historians working independently of each other, it was argued that the true name of the cacique was actually Macuilmiquiztli, which meant "Five Deaths" in the Nahuatl language.It is not known how the name Nicarao came to be associated with the cacique Macuilmiquiztli.It's possible that the Spanish conquistadors may have derived the name Nicarao based on the ethnicity of his tribe, which was composed of Pipil-Nicarao people, who were a branch of Nahuas.