Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl (pronounced: ketsalˈkoːaːtɬ in Nahuatl) is an Aztec sky and creator god. The name is a combination of quetzalli, a brightly colored Mesoamerican bird, and coatl, which means serpent. The name was also taken on by several ancient Aztec leaders. Many events and attributes attributed to Quetzalcoatl are exceedingly difficult to separate from the political leaders that took this name on themselves.[1] Quetzalcoatl is often referred to as the Feathered Serpent and was connected to the planet Venus. He was also the patron god of the Aztec priesthood, of learning and of knowledge.[2] Today Quetzalcoatl is arguably the best known Aztec deity but there were several other important Aztec gods too: Tlaloc, Tezcatlipoca and Huitzilopochtli.
Other Mesoamerican cultures have worshipped a feathered serpent god as well: At Teotihuacan the several monumental structures have images of a feathered serpent (See the so-called "Citadel and Temple of Quetzalcoatl"[1]). One can see similar images at Chichén Itza and Tula. This has led scholars to conclude that the deity called Quetzalcoatl in the Nahuatl language was among the most important deities of Mesoamerica.[3]
[change] Notes
- ↑ Wirth, Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Volume 11, Issue 1 2002 p.4
- ↑ Smith 2001 p. 213
- ↑ Smith 2001 p. 219
[change] References
- Boone, Elizabeth H. (1989). "Postscript: Huitzilopochtli and Quetzalcoatl". Incarnations of the Aztec Supernatural: The Image of Huitzilopochtli in Mexico and Europe. The American Philosophical Society. pp. 85–89. ISBN 0-87169-792-0.
- Lawrence, D.H. (1925). The Plumed Serpent.
- Martínez, Jose Luis (1980). Gerónimo de Mendieta (1980), in Estudios de Cultura Nahuatl vol 14.
- Phelan, John Ledy (1956). The Millennial Kingdom of the Franciscans in the New World.
- Restall, Matthew (2003). Seven Myths of the Spanish Conquest. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-516077-0.
[change] Relevant pages
- Quetzalcoatlus, a huge pterosaur from the Upper Cretaceous was named after Quetzalcoatl
