MAYA HIEROGLYPHS — WHORF 



493 



need not be a formal verb in Maya grammar (though it most often 

 is), but it is what corresponds to the predicate in an English trans- 

 lation. The final two words of each clause, C, D, * * * etc., 

 are the well-known name glyphs of the Maya gods. They are the 

 names of the persons shown in the pictures, as has long been known, 

 and consequently they are undoubtedly the granunatical subjects of 

 the clauses. The second cluster of each clause may be called Bi in 

 the middle section, Bg in the bottom section, to indicate that it is the 

 same throuirhout each section but differs between the two sections. 



(glyphic 

 iCT-ipt J 



open 

 ■transcription \ fr^ 



iranjl iteration h-l-e-sa u " to - kak i-§-TnTi-a ka-haw 



reconstruction haiesoh U tok-k'ci{< l^avnna ka ahcjw 



transla+ioTJ fCauses by") hiS burning--f»re Itzamna ovr lord 

 I. dri I I I -p q J 



irad.t.onal hayc^ah u tooc kak Itzamna ca ahau 

 Maya 



orthoqrophy 



Oil'.?'' 



vocabulary 

 of -the 

 text 



u 'his' ka 



stems: hal 'cJrill' 'taladraT- o 

 agujefea'r "ta I a dTCJTDcJo ' 

 hai UaVi 'e-ncender- luTnbre 

 ■fTotando un polo con otr-o' 

 "tok 'buT-n* 'cjuemar' 

 ilail 'fire* '-fuego o Ivwbre 

 ica'Vn'no. Tiame of a god 



■ Clhovv 'lor-d T"ey^ o gran senor-'' F 

 a 'our-* -eS" cavsative. 



-ah transitive, non-futore 



i lIustralloTi 



Figure 4. — Analysis of a Maya sentence taken from page 38 of the Codex Tro- 



Cortesianus. 



By elimination and by position after the predicator it should indicate 

 the grammatical object and/or result of the verb action, which agrees 

 with the fact that the drilling is pictured with different objects and 

 results in the two sections. Thus we have, as a first schematization : 



A, predicator or verb (drilling) 



Bi, B2, object and/or result (fire, stone) 



C, D, * * * etc., subject (names of gods or persons) 



Figure 4 is a detailed exposition of the sentence over the second 

 picture of the middle section, which shows the Roman-nosed god of 

 the codices, or god D, making fire with a drill. The top line is a 

 copy of the text, arranged from left to right on one line, instead of 

 on two lines as in the original. This line, like the original text, is 



