Classical Nahuatl

Alternative forms

• yc eyluitl semana (obsolete spelling)

Noun

ic ēyilhuitl semana ‎(inanimate)

1. Tuesday; the third day of the week.
   • 1555: Alonso de Molina, Aqui comienca vn vocabulario en la lengua castellana y mexicana, f. 157v.

     Lunes dia ſegundo dela ſemana.  lo meſmo. vel,yc omilhuitl ſema- / na.tlaomilhuiti.

     Monday, the second day of the week. the same. or yc omilhuitl ſemana. tlaomilhuiti.

   • 1571: Idem, Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana y mexicana y castellana, f. 79r. col. 1.

     Martes dia dela ſemana. lo meſmo. velyc eyluitl ſe / mana.

     Tuesday, the third day of the week. the same. or yc eyluitl ſemana.

Usage notes

• It should be noted that the seven-day week was adopted by the Aztecs only after the Spanish conquest. Prior to Spanish arrival the Aztecs used two calendrical systems: the tōnalpōhualli ‎(“day count”), divided into 20 trecenas, or periods of 13 days, for a total of 260 days; and the xiuhpōhualli ‎(“year count”), divided into 18 periods of 20 days each, plus another 5 unlucky days, for a total of 365 days.

Synonyms

• martes

References

• Alonso de Molina (1571) Vocabulario en lengua castellana y mexicana y mexicana y castellana, Editorial Porrúa, pages 82r