Teocuitlatl
/te.oˈkʷit͡ɬat͡ɬ/noun
An Nahuatl word for gold, literally “divine excrement.”
Did you know?In Nahuatl, teocuitlatl reflects a worldview where gold was valued as something extraordinary yet earthly, and Spanish chroniclers were famously shocked by the phrase.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Nahuatl
Nah
teocuitlatl
“gold; literally divine excrement”
Proto-Uto-Aztecan
PUA
*tɨwa / *tewa
“divine or sacred (reconstructed root related to Nahuatl teotl)”
Classical Nahuatl
Nah
teotl
“god; sacred thing; divine power”
Classical Nahuatl
Nah
cuitlatl
“excrement; dung”
Modern English
English
teocuitlatl
“loanword used in discussions of Nahuatl language and Aztec culture”