Aztec calendar symbols and meanings: How to read the Xiuhpohualli

The Xenophanes of Colophon (c.500 BC) believed the Earth was flat and carried the belief into the 5th century BC. That was long ago, and much has happened, shaping the ideologies people believe in now. There is the Gregorian calendar, used worldwide and trusted by many. But did you know that there is another less popular one, the Aztec calendar? The Aztec calendar is based on a disc with concentric rings of symbols. So, how much do you know about the Aztec calendar symbols?

Ancient Aztec calendar coin. Photo: Amith Nag Photography (modified by author) Source: Getty Images

The Aztec calendar reigns supreme among the fascinating artefacts of the ancient world. It depicts the Aztec’s ingenious comprehension of the cosmos and their place. Historians and scientists have tried their best to decipher the calendar’s symbols. So, what are the Aztec calendar symbols and meanings?

The Aztec calendar meaning

Where did the Aztec calendar come from? The calendar’s origins can be traced to earlier Mesoamerican civilisations, mainly linked to the Maya, who had created a system of timekeeping before the rise of the Aztec empire.

The calendar, also called the Mexica calendar, has two variations, meaning there are two time measurements: the Xiuhpohualli, or “year count”, and the Tonalpohualli, or “day count”.

The Aztec calendar was recorded on the Aztec calendar stone, referred to as the Aztec sun stone, carved in the 16th century. The stone contains astrological signs, gods, and mythical figures, putting the sun god, Tonatiuh, in the middle.

The Tonalpohualli, the 260-day calendar, was used primarily for religious and divinatory purposes. On the other hand, the Xiuhpohualli, similar to the Gregorian calendar, is a 365-day solar calendar.

The Xiuhpohualli, divided into 18 months of 20 days each, was primarily utilised for agriculture and taxation. Each month was linked to a specific special event or festival.

In the modern world, people imagine time as a straight line running from a distant past to an infinite future. However, it is different for the Aztecs. According to the historian R.F. Townsend:

Time for the Aztecs was full of energy and motion, the harbinger of change, and always charged with a potent sense of miraculous happening. The cosmogenic myths reveal a preoccupation with creation, destruction and recreation, and the calendrical system reflected these notions about the character of time.

The Xiuhpohualli – counting of years

Just like the regular Gregorian calendar, the Xiuhpohualli is divided into months, but instead of twelve, they are eighteen, each with its festival. And there were:

• Atl caualo – stopping of the water
• Tlacaxipeualiztli – flaying of men
• Tozoztontli – lesser vigil
• Uey tozoztli – great vigil
• Toxcatl – drought
• Etzalqualiztli – eating maise and beans
• Tecuilhuitontli – lesser feast of the lords
• Uey tecuilhuitl – great feast of the lords
• Tlaxochimaco – offering of flowers
• Xocotl uetzi – the fruit falls
• Ochpaniztli – sweeping
• Teotleco – return of the gods
• Tepeilhuitl – feast of the mountains
• Quecholli – a bird
• Panquetzaliztli – the raising of the quetzal-feather banners
• Atemoztli – falling of water
• Tititl – unknown significance
• Izcalli – growth

Aztec calendar symbols

Aztec calendar stone carving on a sandy beach. Photo: PBNJ Productions Source: Getty Images

The Aztec calendar has numerous symbols, each with a strong meaning within the Aztec cosmological view. Most of these symbols have been encoded by pre-Columbian anthropology and linguistics.

However, it is essential to note that the interpretations will likely never be absolute because of the age of the sunstone artefact. So, what do the symbols signify?

Central face

The sunstone has a face glyph at the centre that decoders believe to be Tlaltecuhtli, the Earth. Others have interpreted the symbol as Tonatiu, a sun god. The glyph has a tongue shaped like a sacrificial dagger, which means his demand for blood or the sacrificial nature of the era.

Squares around the central figure

There are four squares surrounding the Tonatiuh. These four squares represent the four previous eras or suns. Each of these eras represents a different deity and form of destruction.

At the top right, there is the Jaguar Sun (Nahui Ocelotl), which signifies the moment or date the first world epoch ended. According to the symbol, jaguars ate all people on Earth. The Aztecs believed that people who lived on Earth during this time were not humans but giants who lived in caves.

At the top left is the Wind Sun (Nahui Ehecatl), representing the end of the second world epoch. The Aztecs believed that the world ended through hurricanes and that people transformed into monkeys.

The bottom left section of the sunstone of the Aztec calendar contains the Rain Sun (Nahui Quiyahuitl), which signifies the end of the third world epoch. The building represents the third end of pyramids, temples and observatories. However, volcanic eruptions ended civilisation then, and people transformed into turkeys.

At the bottom right, there is the Water Sun (Nahui Atl), signifying the end of the fourth world. During this time, seafaring and circumnavigation were rampant. However, the Earth flooded, and people turned into fish, except the ones who escaped and were transformed into dogs.

Concentric rings around the central four figures

Aztec calendar drawing from Codex Borgianus (1 fol. 30). from the Vatican Library. Photo: DEA PICTURE LIBRARY Source: Getty Images

There are four concentric rings around the central four figures of the Aztec calendar. The first ring out has animal symbols representing the Aztec calendar’s 20 days of the 18 months. It also signifies the five nemontemi (wasted days).

The second ring out has four small square sections, each with five points. Two fire serpents dominate the third ring out. The general interpretation is that they signify two rival deities that were part of the creation story of the fifth and current sun.

The fourth and outer ring has a series of dots and straight marks that signify stars and flint knives.

How to read the Aztec calendar

Since the Aztec calendar differs from the current-era calendar, reading it requires some sophistication and knowledge of the symbols and their meaning. Numerous glyphs on the sunstone need to be clarified to the average citizen of today.

Simply typing “Aztec calendar explained” on video platforms can quickly provide numerous recordings and guides on interpreting the calendar.

Aztec calendar facts

1. What are the 20 signs of the Aztec calendar? The 20 signs of the Aztec calendar are Crocodile, Wind, House, Lizard, Serpent, Death, Deer, Rabbit, Water, Dog, Monkey, Grass, Reed, Jaguar, Eagle, Buzzard, Movement, Flint, Rain, and Flower.
2. What happens when the Aztec calendar ends? Although the end of the Aztec calendar was a source of great worry, they prevented this by holding the New Fire ceremony after each calendar cycle.
3. Is there a second Aztec calendar? The Xiuhpohualli is not the only Aztec calendar, as it is interconnected with the Tonalpohualli.
4. Where is the Aztec sunstone today? The Aztec sunstone resides in the Museo Nacional de Antropología (National Museum of Anthropology) in Mexico City.
5. What god is on the Aztec calendar? The central image of the sunstone depicts either the sun deity Tonatiuh or the Earth god Tlaltecuhtli.
6. What is the difference between the Gregorian and Aztec calendar? The Aztec calendar has 20 days in a month with 18 months, while the Gregorian calendar has 12 months of between 30 to 31 days.

Wrapping up

The Aztec calendar symbols are quite a marvel; it would take some studying of the ancient symbols to interpret them successfully. How the Aztec people devised such an ingenious way of telling time is still a wonder.

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