Cuaxochtli

[Yukitaka Inoue Okubo]

Thank you for many suggestions.
I'd like to have just one question for John.
"Axochtli" (for ditch) in Northern Veracruz is related to flower planting? 
For example, there are many flower field, or sometimes they plant flowers 
around their houses?
It seems interesting to think if "xochtli" (of "axochtli") just refer to the 
boundary without relating to flowers, or if it has something to do with 
"flower".

Yukitaka
takaio at po.aianet.ne.jp





----- Original Message ----- 
From: <idiez at MAC.COM>
To: <NAHUAT-L at LISTS.UMN.EDU>
Sent: Saturday, February 18, 2006 7:12 AM
Subject: Re: Cuaxochtli


I asked my students today if they have heard of
cua/cuauh-xochitl/xochtli/xochihtli. First they said "cuauhxochitl",
"flor de árbol", but then someone came up with the word "axochtli". It
contains the -xochtli portion given at the beginning of this
discussion, which allows us to depart from "flower".  Anyway in
Northern Veracruz "axochtli" is a canal where water flows: it can
either be an irrigation ditch in a field, or the drainage ditch (only
about 4 or 5 inches wide and maybe 2 inches deep) which runs along the
side of a house. Now for speculation: both presumably run along the
side of something (a field or a house) and thus might refer to a
boundary. Now, how does "cuahuitl" fit into this?
John

John Sullivan, Ph.D.
Profesor de lengua y cultura nahua
Unidad Académica de Idiomas
Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas
Director
Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas, A.C.
Tacuba 152, int. 47
Centro Histórico
Zacatecas, Zac. 98000
México
Oficina: +52 (492) 925-3415
Fax: +52 (492) 925-3416
Domicilio: +52 (492) 768-6048
Celular: +52 (492) 544-5985
idiez at mac.com
www.idiez.org.mx

On Feb 17, 2006, at 2:58 PM, John F. Schwaller wrote:

> Date: Fri, 17 Feb 2006 12:06:48 -0800
> Subject: Cuaxochtli
> From: Karen Dakin <dakin at SERVIDOR.UNAM.MX>
> To: <NAHUAT-L-request at LISTS.UMN.EDU>
>
>
>
> I remember hearing a discussion of cuaxochtli among ethnohistorians in
> Mexico, and another possibility noted was that it is from cua-(witl) 
> 'tree'
> plus xoch- 'flower', because flowering trees were (and possibly still are)
> boundary markers at times, since they are easily distinguished, at least
> during the time they bloom.
>
> Karen Dakin
>
John Sullivan, Ph.D.
Profesor de lengua y cultura nahua
Unidad Académica de Idiomas
Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas
Director
Instituto de Docencia e Investigación Etnológica de Zacatecas, A.C.
Tacuba 152, int. 47
Centro Histórico
Zacatecas, Zac. 98000
México
Oficina: +52 (492) 925-3415
Fax: +52 (492) 925-3416
Domicilio: +52 (492) 768-6048
Celular: +52 (492) 544-5985
idiez at mac.com
www.idiez.org.mx