Quetzalcōātl
Feathered serpent deity of wind, wisdom, and Venus.
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Quetzalcōātl is a deity in Aztec culture whose name means "Feathered Serpent" in Nahuatl.[1] The earliest known worship of a Feathered Serpent occurred in Teotihuacan in the first century BC or AD.[2] Among the Aztecs, Quetzalcōātl was associated with wind, the planet Venus, learning, and he was the patron god of the Aztec priesthood.[3]
Life and work
In the 17th century, historian Ixtlilxóchitl wrote that Quetzalcoatl allegorically means "wisest of men".[4] This talisman was a conch shell cut at cross-section, likely worn as a necklace by religious rulers.[5] The Nahuatl name "Quetzalcoatl" is formed from quetzalli, meaning "plumage" or referring to the resplendent bird, and coatl, meaning "serpent," and translates as "Precious serpent" or "Quetzal-feathered Serpent."[4] The title Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli, meaning "lord of the star of the dawn," was used for Quetzalcoatl in his aspect as the morning star.[6]
Quetzalcoatl is credited with inventing books and the calendar, and with giving maize to humankind.[6] According to some legends, Quetzalcoatl opposed human sacrifice, whereas other accounts describe him as practicing it.[6] The Codex Chimalpopoca relates that Tezcatlipoca forced Quetzalcoatl to get drunk on pulque, causing him to neglect his duties.[7] After Quetzalcoatl's self-immolation, his ashes ascended to the sky and his heart transformed into the morning star.[7]
What the cited sources add
The EBSCO Research Starters account notes that Quetzalcoatl brought maize to the people, allowing them to transition from a nomadic lifestyle.[8] According to that same source, Quetzalcoatl was driven into exile by Tezcatlipoca's deceit, marking the end of an idealized era in Tollán.[8] The EBSCO account states that Quetzalcoatl taught all crafts except war, making Tollán a peaceful place where offerings were made with bread and perfumes.[8] De Borhegyi's 1966 article describes Quetzalcoatl as the god of wind, life, and the morning, and the constant benefactor of mankind.[9]
The Library of Congress blog states that Quetzalcoatl recreated mankind after the 4th destruction of the world.[10] That same blog adds that Quetzalcoatl rescued the light of wisdom from the underworld and educated man.[10]
References
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Quetzalcoatl", Oxford University Press (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Teotihuacan: Introduction", Project Temple of Quetzalcoatl, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia, Mexico/ ASU, 20 August 2001; Ringle et al. 1998 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Smith 2003 p. 213; Harbster, "Quetzalcoatl Inside Adams", The Library of Congress, 2011-09-23; "Quetzalcóatl (mythology) EBSCO Research Starters", www.ebsco.com; "Quetzalcoatl: The Feathered Serpent Deity of Ancient Mesoamerica History Cooperative", 2023-02-13 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: The Nahuatl nouns compounded into the proper name "Quetzalcoatl" are: quetzalli, signifying principally "plumage", but also used to refer to the bird—resplenden; Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl, "History of the Chichimeca Nation: Don Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl's Seventeenth-Century Chronicle of Ancient Mexico", 2019 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: De Borhegyi, "The Wind God's Breastplate", 1966; "Expedition Magazine The Wind God's Breastplate" (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: LaFaye, "Quetzalcoatl and Guadalupe: The Formation of Mexican National Consciousness, 1531–1813", University of Chicago Press, 1987, p. 140; Carrasco 1982 p. 145; Read, "Mesoamerican Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs of Mexico and Central America", Oxford University Press, 2002, p. 225 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Quetzalcōātl" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Readings in Classical Nahuatl: The Death of Quetzalcoatl", pages.ucsd.edu (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Quetzalcóatl (mythology) EBSCO Research Starters", www.ebsco.com. facts only, no text reused. ebsco.com
- De Borhegyi, "The Wind God's Breastplate", 1966. facts only, no text reused. penn.museum
- Harbster, "Quetzalcoatl Inside Adams", The Library of Congress, 2011-09-23. facts only, no text reused. blogs.loc.gov
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Quetzalcōātl (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
More in Supernatural beings identified with Christian saints
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Quetzalcōātl (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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