260 BUKEAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [buli.. 28 



Spanish city Segiira de la Froiitera, or Antequera, as it was later 

 called. So it chanced that the old native name of this Mexican vil- 

 lage, Avhich means '' at the hill of algarobas "/' was transferred, with 

 a somewhat changed pronunciation, as Oaxaca or Oajaca, to the Span- 

 ish city, and now not only this city is called by that name, but the 

 whole state whose territory is governed from this city. 



The existence of a Mexican colony in the midst ot Zapotec territory 

 naturally implied a certain restraint, the recognition, in fact, of the 

 superior power of the Mexicans. Therefore it does not seem remark- 

 able that in the tribute list of the INIexican kings various neighboring 

 Zapotec cities were named, besides Uaxyacac, which had to pay tribute 

 to the capital, Mexico. The tribute consisted chiefly of tine textiles, 

 besides which a certain quantity of cereals, 20 gold disks, and 20 small 

 sacks of cochineal had to be furnished." This fact, however, must 

 by no means be interpreted to mean that the Mexicans exercised 

 authority over the entire Zapotec country. It can not even be said 

 that the cities which are named in the list were subject directly to 

 Mexican rule. For there are among them those which we know cer- 

 tainly to have been under the sovereignty of the Zapotec kings, as 

 Etla, which Avas called by the Zapotecs Loo-uanna, "■ place of pro- 

 visions ", the city of Teticpac, already mentioned above, and the Zap- 

 otec frontier station Quauhxilotitlan, now San Pablo Huitzo.'' This 

 relation is probably best explained by assuming that the Zapotec cities 

 named on page 46 of the Mendoza codex agreed to the payment of 



" The hieroglyph of the city given above in fig. 54 shows the conventional drawing of a 

 mountain (tepetl), whicli is frequently simply an expression of the fact that the com- 

 posite sign represents a hieroglyphic picture of a place name. On the mountain is seen 

 an algaroba tree (uaxin), recognized by the great fruit pods (edible) with wavy edges, 

 growing out of the nose (yacati) of a human face. The "nose" signifies also in an 

 extended meaning, " point ", " projection ", " front ". The Tlacatectli is designated in 

 fig. 54 by the royal headband of the Mexicans in turquoise mosaic ; the Tlacochtectli, 

 by a similar headband with the shaft of an arrow in it. 



The name Uaxyacac is plainly Mexican. The city is called by the Zapotecs, Mixtecs, 

 Cuicatecs, Chinantecs, and Mixes, by other names, namely Luhu-laa, Nuhu-ndua, Naha- 

 nduva, Ni-cuhui, Uac-uim, but all of these have about the same meaning, namely, " at 

 the point of algarobas " or " at the place of algarobas ". Naturally, it can no longer be 

 settled whether these names are translations of the Mexican name or whether the latter, 

 on the other hand, was a translation of an original Zapotec name. 



* Mendoza codex, pi. xlvi. 



<■ The names of this place have undergone several changes in meaning. The Mexican name 

 Quauhxilotitlan means "among the quauhxilotes ", or "among trees whose (edible) fruit 

 has the form of a young ear of maize ". Tliis name appears already at an early period to 

 have been clianged into Ouaxolotitlan by defective and faulty pronunciation. Burgoa uses 

 it in this form. According to that, Gracida explains the name as " place of the guajo- 

 lotes ", that is, of the turlieys, in his otherwise very useful little book, Catfllogo Etimolo- 

 gico de los Nombres, etc., de Oaxaca. The place was called by the Zapotecs Uiya-zoo, 

 " espier of the enemy ", because it served as an outpost on the frontier and commanded 

 the great Canada, the principal road communicating with tlie Mexican highlands. This 

 old Zapotec name can be plainly recognized by the manner in which I myself heard it pro- 

 nounced on the spot, namely, T'izo. Tlie official spelling of the name, Ouitzo, refers it 

 back Incorrectly to a Mexican root, uitz-tli, " thorn ". 



