Brinton.] " t)lb [j^oy^ 4^ 



from the community of interests thus typified, the word came to mean any- 

 thing in common.* 



Vuh or uuh is in Kiclie and Cakchiquel tlie word for j)nper and book. It 

 is an original term in tliese and connected dialects, the Ma,ya having wooh, 

 a letter, writing ; uoch, to write. 



The opening words of the Popol Vuh introduce us at once to the 

 mighty and mysterious divinity who is the source and cause of all things, 

 and to the original couple, male and female, who in their persons and 

 their powers typify the sexual and reproductive pilnciple of organic life. 

 These words are as follows : 



'• We are to bring forward tlie manifestation, the revelation, 

 " the declaration of that which was hidden, the enlightenment 

 " cauFed bj Him who Creates, Him who fashions creatures, 

 " Her who bears sons. Him who begets sons, whose names are 

 " Hun-Ahpu-Vuch, Hun- Ahpu-Utiu, Zald-Nima-Tzyiz, Tepeu, 

 "Gucumatz, Qux-cho, Qux-palo, Ah-raxa-lak, Ah-raxa-sel. 



" And along with Plim are sung and celebrated in the Kiche 

 " histories, those who are called the ancestress and the ances- 

 "tor, by name Xpiyacoc, Xmucane, the preserver, the protec- 

 '•' tor ; twice over grandmother, twice over grandfather." 



It will be here observed that the declaration of the attributes of the 

 liighest divinity embraces distinctly sexual ideas, and in consequence either 

 of a confusion of thought or else of a deliberate purpose to which we find 

 numerous parallels in Grecian, Egyptian and Oriental mythology, this 

 divinity is represented as embracing the power.s and functions of botli 

 sexes in his own person ; and it is curious tliat both here and in the second 

 paragraph, \he female attributes are named /rsi. 



The word Alom, her who bears sons, or has sons {la muger que tiene 

 hijos, Goto) is from the verbal form alali, to bring forth children, itself 

 froiii the primitive al, the word in all this group of languages applied by 

 the woman only to her son. The father used an entirely diflterent word, to 



wit, gahol. The active form of this, OaJiolom I a holom ) is that 



translated. He who begets sons. 



First in the specific names of divinity given is Ran-ahpu-vucTi. To de- 

 rive any appropriate signification for this has completely bafiied all previous 

 students of this mythology. Hun is the numeral one, but which also, as 

 in most tongues, has the other meanings of first, foremost, self, unique, 

 most prominent, "the one," etc. ^A ^m is derived both by Ximenez and 

 Brasseur fi"om the prefix ah, which is used to signify knowledge or posses - 



*Tlie meaning "a gathering of leaves" assigned to the words popo^ vm^j, by Mr. 

 A- F. Bandelier in 11 recent paper {Transactions of the American Assoc. Ad. 

 Sciencrs, Vol. xxvii, p. 328', I should, perhaps, mention, in order to say that it is 

 quite imaginary and groundless. 



