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X. Hymn to the God of Fishing.

X. Amimitl icuic.


1. Cotiuana, cotiuana, cali totoch maca huiya yyalimanico, oquixanimanico, tlacochcalico, oua, yya yya, matonicaya, matonicalico, oua yya yo, çana, çana, ayoueca niuia, çana canoya, ueca niuia, yya, yya, yyeuaya, çana, çana, yeueua niuia.

2. Ye necuiliyaya, niuaya, niuaya, niuaya, ay ca nauh niuahuaya, niuaya, niuaya, ay ca nauh.

3. Tlaixtotoca ye ca nauhtzini, tlaixtotoca ye ca nauhtzini, ayoaya, yoaya, ye ca nauhtzini.

4. Aueya itzipana nomauilia, aueya itzipana nomauilia, aueya itzipana nomauilia.

Var. i. Manca. Matinicaya.


In amimitl icuic yuh mitoa in ueli chichimeca cuic amo uel caquizti in quein quitoa in tonauatlatol ypa.

Hymn to Amimitl.

1. Join together your hands in the house, take hands in the sequent course, let them spread forth, spread forth in the hall of arrows. join hands, join hands in the house, for this, for this have I come, have I come.

2. Yes, I have come, bringing four with me, yes I have come, four being with me.

3. Four noble ones, carefully selected, four noble ones, carefully selected, yes, four noble ones.

4. They personally appear before his face, they personally appear before his face, they personally appear before his face.

{p. 44}


The brief Gloss to this Hymn states that it is of ancient Chichimec origin and that it cannot well be rendered in Nahuatl. Its language is exceedingly obscure, but it is evidently a dancing song.

Amimitl, "the water-arrow," or "fish-spear," was, according to Torquemada, especially worshipped at Cuitlahuac. He was god of fishing, and visited the subjects of his displeasure with diseases of a dropsical or watery character (Monarquia Indiana, Lib. VI., cap. 29). On slender and questionable grounds Clavigero identifies him with Opochtli, the god of net makers and fishers with nets (Storia Antica del Messico, Tom. II., p. 20).

The four noble ones referred to in vv. 3 and 4 probably refer to those characters in the Mexican sacred dances called "the four auroras," four actors clothed respectively in white, green, yellow and red robes. See Diego Duran, Historia, cap. 87.

Next: XI. Hymn of the Otomi Leader.