Brinton.] *^^* lOct. 6, 



12. Junuary 10. Topia. — " The dampness increases." 



13. January 30. Tiimuhu. — " Nothing is done." 



14. February 19. 



15. March 11. Cupame. — " The coj'ol ripens." 



16. March 31. Pari. — " The jocote ripens." 



17. April 20. Puhuari. 



18. May 10. Turi.—'' Time of ripening." 



§ 13. The Symbolism of the Day Names. 



Whatever other uses of an astronomical and time-measuring 

 character the Calendar had, the best known and most general 

 service which it rendered was for divinatory purposes. Indeed, 

 early writers, such as Sahagun and Coi'dova, assert that the rit- 

 ual Calendar of 260 days was confined to this object. 



Unfortunately, thej' have not left us precise details. For in 

 spite of a large amount of desultory information in their works 

 and those of other early writers, the basic theor^"^ of the art of 

 divination, according to this Calendar, is nowhere stated. I 

 propose to otfer a suggestion as to what this was, as appears to 

 be indicated by the Calendar itself, and to be supported b^^ a 

 number of collateral facts mentioned by early authorities. 



The period of 20 days, each bearing its own name, was cer- 

 tainly derived from the vigesimal system of counting. This was 

 in use in precisely the same manner in all those of the linguistic 

 stocks under discussion. In all, the unit of the higher integers 

 was 20.* This multiplied again by 20 gave 400, and this again 

 by 20 gave 8000, which in each was the highest number for which 

 they had a single expression. 



This number 20 was based on finger-and-toe counting, and so 

 clearl}' was this reflected in the languages that in Nahuatl it 

 bore the name cempoualli, " one (whole) count ;" in Tzental Jivn 

 vinic, " one man ;" and in Quiche and Cakchiquel, vinok^ " a 

 man " (homo). The Maya kal, and the Zapotec ccil-Je, appear to 

 have the signification " completed," " filled up," referring to the 

 completed count of fingers and toes. 



In this manner the number 20 came to represent symbolically 



* The vigesimal (quinary- vigesimal) system obtained in most of the stocks of Mexico, 

 Central America and Northern South America. North of Mexico it is rarely found, as 

 among the Tlinkit and Pawnees. Elsewhere tlie decadal plan is in vogue (see Mviller, 

 Orundriss der Sprachwissemhaft, Bd. li, Ab. i, s. 183). 



