37. It will be seen from what I have said, that the rites of Nagualism extended as widely as did the term over Mexico and Central America. It becomes, therefore, of importance to discover from what linguistic stock this term and its associated words are derived. From that source it is reasonable to suppose the rites of this superstition also had their origin.
The opinions on this subject have been diverse and positive. Most writers have assumed that it is a Nahuatl, or pure Mexican, word; while an eminent authority, Dr. Stoll, is not less certain that it is from a radical belonging to the neighboring great stock of the Mayan dialects, and especially the Quiche, of Guatemala.[55-‡] Perhaps both these positions are erroneous, and we must look elsewhere for the true etymology of these expressions. Unquestionably they had become domesticated in both Maya and Nahuatl; but there is some reason to think they were loan-words, belonging to another, and perhaps more venerable, civilization than either of these nations could claim.
To illustrate this I shall subjoin several series of words derived from the same radical which is at the basis of the word nagual, the series, three in number, being taken from the three radically diverse, though geographically contiguous, linguistic stocks, the Maya, the Zapotec and the Nahuatl.
From the Maya, of Yucatan.
- Naual, or nautal, a native dance, forbidden by the missionaries.
- Naatil, talent, skill, ability.
- Naat, intelligence, wisdom.
- Naatah, to understand, to divine.
- Nanaol, to consider, to contemplate, to meditate, to commune with oneself, to enter into oneself.
- Noh, great, skillful; as noh ahceh, a skillful hunter.
From Maya Dialects.
Quiche-Cakchiquel.
- Naual, a witch or sorcerer.
- Naualin, to tell fortunes, to predict the future.
- Qui naualin, to sacrifice, to offer sacrifices.
- Na, to feel, to suspect, to divine, to think in one’s heart.
- Nao, to know, to be alert or expert in something.
- Naol, a skillful person, a rhetorician.
- Naotizan, to make another intelligent or astute.
- Natal, the memory.
- Natub, the soul or shadow of a man.
- Noh, the god of reason (“Genius der Vernunft,” Scherzer).
- Noh, to fecundate, to impregnate (Popol Vuh).
Tzental.
- X-qna, to know.
- X-qnaulai, to know often or thoroughly (frequentative).
- Naom, wise, astute (naom vinic, hombre sabio).
- Naoghi, art, science.
- Naoghibal, memory.
- Ghnaoghel, a wise man.
- Alaghom naom, the Goddess of Wisdom.