Mictlanquiztli
/mikt͡ɬaŋˈkist͡ɬi/noun
A Classical Nahuatl term associated with death or the condition of being dead.
Did you know?In Nahua thought, the dead were believed to travel through Mictlan’s perilous realms before reaching their final destination, making death a passage rather than simple disappearance.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Nahuan
Proto-Nahuan
*miqui
“To die; to perish”
Classical Nahuatl
Nahuatl
miqui
“He or she dies; to die”
Classical Nahuatl
Nahuatl
mictlan
“The place of the dead or underworld”
Classical Nahuatl
Nahuatl
miquiztli
“Death; dying; mortality”
16th Century
Classical Nahuatl
mictlanquiztli
“A term connected with death or the dead, recorded in Nahua religious and lexical contexts”
Modern English
English
Mictlanquiztli
“A Nahuatl loanword or scholarly transliteration referring to death or the dead”
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