Although the Spaniards usually employed the word Dios for God, the Aztecs offered one as fit, their Teotl, and Tloque Nahuaque, signifying invisible supreme being. The many written Aztec sermons, catechisms, and rituals also attest the copiousness of the tongue.[IX'-6] The Mexican, like the Hebrew and French, does not possess superlative nouns, and like the Hebrew and most of the living European languages, it has no comparatives, their place being supplied by certain particles. The Aztec contains more diminutives and augmentatives than the Italian, and is probably richer than any other tongue in the world in verbal nouns and abstracts, there being hardly a verb from which verbal nouns cannot be formed, or a substantive or adjective of which abstracts are not made. It is equally rich in verbs, for every verb is the root from which others of different meanings spring. Agglutination or aggregation is carried to its widest extent, and words of inordinate length are not uncommon. In agglutinating, end-syllables or letters are usually dropped, principally for the sake of euphony. A prayer to the Virgin of Guadalupe, which is to be found in the Promptuario Manual of Paredes, I insert here as a curious specimen of long words:
SPECIMEN OF LONG AZTEC WORDS.
Tlahuemmanaliztli; ic momoztlê tictocemmacazque in Tlâtocacihuapilli Santa Maria de Guadalupe. Tlâtocacihuapillê, Notlazomahuiznantzinê, Santa Mariae, nican mixpantzinco ninomayahui, ninocnotlaza, ihuan mochi Noyollotica, Nanimatica nimitzhohuêcapanilhuia, nimitznomahuiztililia, nimitznotlazotilia, ihuan nimitznotlazocamachitia ipampa in nepapan in motetlaocolilitzin; ic in Tehuâtzin otinechmomacahuililitzino. Auh ocyecenca ipampa ca Tehuâtzin, Notzopelicanantziné, otinechmopiltzintitzino, ihuan, otinechmoconetitzinô. Auh ic ipampa in axcan ihuan yê mochipa nimitznocemmacatzinoa, Notetlaocolicanantzinê, inic in Tehuâtzin nimitznotlazotiliz, ihuan inic áic nimitznoyoltequipaehilhuiz. Auh in Tehuâtzin, nimitznotlátlauhtilia: in ma in nonemian, ihuan in nomiquian xinechmopalchuili, ma xinechmochimalcaltili, ihuan ma in motetlaocolilizcuexantzinco xinechmocalaquili; inic qualli ic ninemiz, ihuan nimiquiz; inic çatepan nimitznomahuizalhuiz, in ompa in Ilhuicac; in ompa in Dios Itlâtocatecpanchantzinco in Gloria. Amen.[IX'-7]
A word of sixteen syllables, the name of a plant, occurs in Hernandez—mihuiittilmoyoiccuitlatonpicixochitl.[IX'-8] Though the Aztecs made verses, no specimens of their poetry have been preserved except in a translated form. One, composed by the great Tezcucan, King Nezahualcoyotl, translated in full in the preceding volume, gives us an exalted idea of the advanced state of the language.[IX'-9]
The Mexican language employs the following letters: a, ç, ch, e, h, i, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, t, tl, tz, u, v, x, y, z. The pronunciation is soft and musical, and free from nasal sound. The a is clear; ch before a vowel is pronounced as in Spanish; but before a consonant, or when a terminal, it differs somewhat; e is clear; h is an aspirate, in general soft, being strong only when it precedes u. No word commences with the letter l; ll is pronounced as in English. The t is sometimes silent, but not when it comes between two l's; tl in the middle of a word is soft, as in Spanish, but as a terminal it is pronounced tle, the e half mute; tz is similar to the Spanish s, but a little stronger; the v is by the women pronounced as in Spanish, but men give it a sound very similar to hu in Spanish; x is soft, like sh in English; z is like s in Spanish, but less hissing.
AGGLUTINATION IN THE AZTEC LANGUAGE.
By compounding, the Mexicans make many long words, some even of sixteen syllables; but there are also some non-compounded words that are very long. Words are compounded by uniting a number of whole words, and not alone by simple juxtaposition, since, with much attention to brevity and euphony, letters and syllables are frequently omitted. For instance;—tlazotli, loved; mahuiztik; honorable, or reverend; teopixqui, priest; tatli, father; no, mine; of which is composed notlazomahuizteopixcatzin, that is to say, my very esteemed father and reverend priest. This also presents an example of the ending tzin, which simply signifies respect. Teopixqui is composed of teotl, God, and pia, to guard. There are two particles which may be appropriately called ligatures, as they serve to unite words in certain cases; they are ca and ti. Kualani, to irritate, to anger; itta, consider, reflect; nikualanicaitta, to observe with anger, angrily.
By reason of these compounded words, the meaning of a whole sentence is often contained in a single word, as;—tlalnepantla, in the middle of the earth, or, situated in the middle; popocatepetl, smoking mountain; atzcaputzalli, ant-hill, or, place where there are many people moving—alluding to a dense population; cuauhnahuac, (Cuernavaca) near to the trees; atlixco, above the water; tepetitlan, above the mountain, etc.
There are several ways of expressing the plural. As a rule, plurals are applied only to animate objects. Inanimate objects seldom change in the plural, as;—ce tetl, one stone; yei tetl, three stones; miec tetl, many stones. In exceptional cases the plural of inanimate objects is expressed by terminals. One of these exceptions is when the object is connected with persons, as;—zoquitl, mud; tizoquime, we are earth; but there are again exceptions to this rule, as for instance;—ilhuicame, the heavens; tepeme, mountains; zitlaltin, stars. Sometimes inanimate things also form the plural by doubling the first syllable;—tetla, place full of stones; tetetla, places full of stones; calli, house; cacalli, houses. These various terminations may be reduced to the following rules. Primitive words have the plural in me, tin, or que, as;—ichcatl, a sheep; ichcame, sheep; zolin, a quail, zoltin, quail; cocoxqui, sick; cocoxque, sick (plural); topile, constable; topileque, constables. Derivatives form the plural as follows: those called reverentials, ending with tzintli, have in the plural tzitzintin. Diminutives, ending in tontli, have in the plural totontin, and diminutives ending in ton and pil, augmentatives in pol, and reverentials in tzin, double the terminal, as;—tlacatzintli, person; tlacatzitzintin, persons; ichcatontli, a lamb; ichcatatontin, lambs; ichcapil, lamb; ichcapipil, lambs; chichiton, a little dog; chichitoton, little dogs; huehuetzin, old man; huehuetzitzin, old men.