Nov 8, 2023 · Itzcuintli, meaning ‘dog’ in Nahuatl, is the day sign of the 10 th trecena in the sacred Aztec calendar. Known as ‘Oc’ in Maya, this day was regarded by the Aztecs as a good day for funerals and for remembering the dead.

The Aztec day sign Itzcuintli (dog) from the Codex Laud. Dogs have occupied a powerful place in Mesoamerican folklore and myth since at least the Classic Period right through to modern times. [1]

In the Central Mexican area, there were three breeds: the medium-sized furred dog (itzcuintli), the medium-sized hairless dog (xoloitzcuintli), and the short-legged, (tlalchichi) based in Colima and now extinct.

Itzcuintli, meaning ‘dog’, is the day in the Aztec calendar associated with the god Mictlantecuhtli. Mictlantecuhtli is the god of death and ruler over the lowest underworld, associated with funerals, wakes and remembrance. He is also associated with spiders, owls and bats.

Oct 16, 2023 · But unlike other regions of the world, only three dog breeds are known to have existed in ancient Mesoamerica. These are the Xoloitzcuintli, the similar but harrier Itzcuintli, and the Tlalchichi, a now-extinct short-legged breed also known as the Colima dogs.

As I have shown in my paper on "The Dragon cans "' the last of the thirteen constellations of the old Mexican zodiac was regarded as the image of a dog's head and therefore called itzcuintli, "dog." This constellation, as the last of the series, was naturally connected with ideas like end, death, under- world.

Day Itzcuintli (Dog, known as Oc in Maya) is governed by Mictlantecuhtli, God of Death, as its provider of tonalli (Shadow Soul) life energy. Itzcuintli is the guide for the dead, the spirit world's link with the living. Itzcuintli is a good day for funerals and wakes and remembering the dead.

The thirteen day period (trecena) that starts with day 1-Itzcuintli (Dog) is ruled by Xipe Totec, Lord of Shedding, god of seedtime. These are 13 days of devotion, companionship, self-sacrifice and love.

Itzcuintli, meaning ‘dog’, is the day in the Aztec calendar associated with the god Mictlantecuhtli. Mictlantecuhtli is the god of death and ruler over the lowest underworld, associated with funerals, wakes and remembrance. He is also associated with spiders, owls and bats.

Itzcuintli is a day sign in the tonalpohuali, the 260-day divinatory calendar, and calendrics played a significant role in Nahuas' religious views of the cosmos.