Aztec mythology Aztec mythology is the body or collection of myths of the Aztec civilization of Central Mexico. The Aztecs were Nahuatl-speaking groups living in central Mexico and much of their mythology is similar to that of other Mesoamerican cultures. Accordi ...

, Huehuecóyotl (from ''huēhueh'' "very old" (literally, "old old") and ''coyōtl'' "coyote" in

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller ...

) is the

auspicious Auspicious is a Latin-derived word originally pertaining to the taking of 'auspices' by the augurs of ancient Rome. It may refer to: * Luck * Auspicious number in numerology * Eight auspicious symbols; see Ashtamangala * Auspicious wedding date * ...

Pre-Columbian In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...

god of music, dance, mischief, and song. He is the patron of uninhibited sexuality and rules over the day sign in the Aztec calendar named cuetzpallin (lizard) and the fourth

trecena A trecena is a 13-day period used in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican calendars. The 260-day calendar (the '' tonalpohualli'') was divided into 20 trecenas. Trecena is derived from the Spanish chroniclers and translates to "a group of thirteen" in the ...

Xochitl ("flower" in Nahuatl).

History

Stories derived from the

Codex Telleriano-Remensis The Codex Telleriano-Remensis, produced in sixteenth century Mexico on European paper, is one of the finest surviving examples of Aztec manuscript painting. Its Latinized name comes from Charles-Maurice Le ''Tellier'', archbishop of ''Reims'', ...

characterized Huehuecóyotl as a benign prankster, whose tricks were often played on other gods or even humans, but tended to backfire and cause more trouble for himself than for the intended victims. A great party-giver, he also was alleged to create wars among humans to relieve his boredom. He was a part of the

Tezcatlipoca Tezcatlipoca (; nci, Tēzcatl ihpōca ) was a central deity in Aztec religion, and his main festival was the Toxcatl ceremony celebrated in the month of May. One of the four sons of Ōmeteōtl, Ometecuhtli and Omecihuatl, the God of providenc ...

(Smoky Mirror) family of the

Mexica The Mexica (Nahuatl: , ;''Nahuatl Dictionary.'' (1990). Wired Humanities Project. University of Oregon. Retrieved August 29, 2012, frolink/ref> singular ) were a Nahuatl-speaking indigenous people of the Valley of Mexico who were the rulers of ...

gods and inherited their

shapeshifting In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, Magic (paranormal), sorcery, Incantation, ...

powers. Those who had indications of evil fates from other gods would sometimes appeal to Huehuecóyotl to mitigate or reverse their fates. Huehuecóyotl shares many characteristics with the

trickster In mythology and the study of folklore and religion, a trickster is a character in a story (god, goddess, spirit, human or anthropomorphisation) who exhibits a great degree of intellect or secret knowledge and uses it to play tricks or otherwi ...

Coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

of the North American tribes, including storytelling and choral singing. Like all Aztec deities, Huehuecóyotl was dualistic in his exercise of good and evil and was perceived as a

balanced In telecommunications and professional audio, a balanced line or balanced signal pair is a circuit consisting of two conductors of the same type, both of which have equal impedances along their lengths and equal impedances to ground and to other ...

god. Depictions of his dark side include a coyote appearance (non-human) with black or yellow

feathers Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premier e ...

, as opposed to the customary green feathers. He was the only friend of

Xolotl In Aztec mythology, Xolotl () was a god of fire and lightning. He was commonly depicted as a dog-headed man and was a soul-guide for the dead. He was also god of twins, monsters, misfortune, sickness, and deformities. Xolotl is the canine brothe ...

(god of twins, sickness, and deformity) and accompanied the dead to Mictlan, the underworld of

. Their association was born from the canine nature of both gods. He is also the god of deception.

About

Huehuecóyotl (or Ueuecoyotl) is a Mexican mythology deity. He is depicted in the

Codex Borbonicus The Codex Borbonicus is an Aztec codex written by Aztec priests shortly before or after the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. It is named after the Palais Bourbon in France and kept at the Bibliothèque de l'Assemblée Nationale in Paris. The ...

as a dancing

coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

with human hands and feet, accompanied by a human drummer. The name "very old coyote" conveyed positive meanings to the

Aztec The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those g ...

s; coyotes were a symbol of astuteness, worldly wisdom, pragmatism, male beauty, and youthfulness. The prefix "huehue", which in

means "very old", was attached to gods in

that were revered for their old age, wisdom, philosophical insights, and connections to the

divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

. Although Huehuecóyotl often appears in stories as male, he can change gender much like many of the offspring of

can. He also can be associated with indulgence,

male sexuality Human male sexuality encompasses a wide variety of feelings and behaviors. Men's feelings of attraction may be caused by various physical and social traits of their potential partner. Men's sexual behavior can be affected by many factors, incl ...

, good luck and story-telling. One of his prominent female lovers was

Temazcalteci In the Aztec mythology, Temazcalteci (, Nahuatl ''temāzcalli'' 'sweat bath' + ''tecitl'' 'grandmother') was the goddess of steam baths. According to Sahagún, this goddess was the goddess of medicine, Toci, venerated by doctors. She was also worsh ...

(also Temaxcaltechi), the goddess of bathing and sweat baths (

temazcal A temazcal is a type of sweat lodge, which originated with pre-Hispanic indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica. The term ''temazcal'' comes from the Nahuatl language, either from the words (to bathe) and (house), or from the word (house of heat) ...

li), also known as Mexican sauna. Another was Xochiquetzal, the goddess of love, beauty, female sexuality, prostitutes, flowers, and young mothers. In most depictions of Huehuecóyotl, he is followed by a human drummer or groups of humans that appear to be friendly to him (as opposed to worshiping), which is exceptional in

Mesoamerica Mesoamerica is a historical region and cultural area in southern North America and most of Central America. It extends from approximately central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and northern Costa Rica. W ...

n culture. The fourth day of the twenty-day calendar cycle belonged to Huehuecóyotl.

References

External links

*
Karl Young, The Continuum of Life in Codex Borbonicus
{{Aztec mythology Arts gods Aztec gods Animal gods Love and lust gods Mythological canines Shapeshifting Trickster gods LGBT themes in mythology Coyotes in religion Music and singing gods Dance gods