Tecolotl
/teˈko.lo.tɬ/noun
A Nahuatl word for an owl.
Did you know?In Nahuatl tradition, owls were often linked with the night, death, and the supernatural, which is why the word still carries a haunting aura in Mesoamerican cultural memory.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Nahuatl
Nah
tecolotl
“owl”
16th Century
Spanish
tecolote
“borrowed form meaning owl”
Modern English
English
tecolote
“a borrowed regional term for an owl, especially in Mexican Spanish contexts”
Modern English
English
tecolotl
“Nahuatl loanword used in linguistic, cultural, or historical contexts”