Song LV — The Lady's Appearing
Song LV is the Cihuaixnexcuicatl — the Song of the Lady's Appearing (literally, "woman-face-appearing-song") — MS LVII. Its rubric reads: "Song of the appearance of the Lady, in order, divine word, when the feast of the Holy Spirit rises. Cristóbal del Rosario Xiuhtlamin, singer, composed it in August of 1550." It is the second of the colonial syncretic songs in this sequence, composed three years before Don Francisco Plácido's Jewel Song.
In seven sections, the song moves from Bethlehem to the Annunciation. The singer is reborn as a jade song, rushes before the Only God, and announces that Christ has arrived on earth. Then the imagery deepens into the classic Nahua flower-and-bird register: the singer becomes a painted-jewel quetzal-bird, a tzinitzcan bird scattering wing-leaves in the song's cool shade, fluttering and sipping nectar from jade flowers. The precious quechol-colored mist spreads — there is the house of Santa Maria. The xiuhquechol bird and many birds sing in praise. And then San Gabriel descends: Ave Maria, noble lady, ruling lady — in every direction we lovingly praise you.
Song LV occupies folio 38v, sections 731 through 737 (seven sections), followed by a drum close. Nahuatl source text accessed from the UNAM TEMOA digital platform. Translated directly from Classical Nahuatl by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
Cihuaixnexcuicatl ypan tlatecpantli teotlatolli yquac mehua yn ilhuitzin Spiritu Santo quitecpan Christoual de Rosario Xiuhtlami cuicani ypan Agosto de 1550 años.
Totiqui titiquito totiquititiqui toti toti totoco totoco totocoto.
[section 731]
Anew, like jade,
my song is born — I release it.
I, a cempoaltécatl,
have arranged my great ones
like round reeds, perfectly set.
Before the Only God I rush forth.
Now he has arrived on earth —
he has come to Bethlehem.
Ylilili!
Truly, let the dance be here!
[section 732]
Full of love,
on the jewel-mat
I adorn my song.
I, a cempoaltécatl,
have arranged my great ones
like round reeds, perfectly set.
Before the Only God I rush forth.
Now he has arrived on earth —
he has come to Bethlehem.
Ylilili!
Truly, let the dance be here!
[section 733]
Where the jade ixquixochitl stands,
I sip nectar —
I, the painted-jewel quetzal-bird.
I, the tzinitzcan,
scatter wing-leaves
in the song's cool shade.
I go fluttering about.
[section 734]
The varied jewels intertwined —
I separate them,
I go there, I choose among the songs.
I, the painted-jewel quetzal-bird.
I, the tzinitzcan,
scatter wing-leaves
in the song's cool shade.
I go fluttering about.
[section 735]
The precious quechol-colored mist
spreads —
there is your home,
Santa Maria.
[section 736]
There — the xiuhquechol,
the many birds —
they sing and call.
With this you are beseeched,
Santa Maria.
[section 737]
Toward her descended San Gabriel.
He made him descend.
Thus she is beseeched —
Santa Maria.
Ave Maria.
You, noble lady,
ruling lady —
in every direction
we lovingly praise you.
Coto coti quitiquiti yc tlantiuh quitiquiti quiti quiti quiti quiti quiti quiti coto coti coto coti.
Colophon
Song LV of the Cantares Mexicanos, folio 38v, sections 731–737 (seven sections). The Cihuaixnexcuicatl — Song of the Lady's Appearing — MS LVII. Composed by Cristóbal del Rosario Xiuhtlamin, singer, in August 1550.
The drum close at §737 — yc tlantiuh, "thus it ends" — formally closes the song before §738 begins the Pentecost continuation on folio 39r. The Cihuaixnexcuicatl is the shorter companion to the Cozcacuicatl (Song LIV), both composed by Nahua noblemen in the 1550s and both blending Christian liturgical content with the xochicuicatl (flower-song) tradition.
The bird-transformation sequence in §§733–734 is notable: the singer identifies as a tlacuilolcozcaquetzaltototl — a "painted-jewel-quetzal-bird" — one of the most elaborate compound nouns in the Cantares. This self-identification as a sacred bird drawing nectar from divine flowers while scattering song is a distinctly pre-Columbian image layered onto colonial Christian content. The cuicayecahuiloyotica — "in the song's cool shade" — suggests that the singer's flight takes place within the song itself, the song being a tree whose shade shelters the performance.
The Annunciation scene in §737 names San Gabriel directly in Nahuatl. The phrase Ave Maria enters the Nahuatl verse in Latin, as Gloria in excelsis Deo entered the Cozcacuicatl. The closing — yxquichcapa ya timitzontotlaçoyectenehuili ("in every direction we lovingly praise you") — uses the Nahuatl reverential form for what is essentially the closing of the Hail Mary prayer, rendered in the ceremonial idiom of the flower-song tradition.
Translated directly from Classical Nahuatl via the UNAM TEMOA transcription of the Cantares Mexicanos (MS 1628 bis, Biblioteca Nacional de México). Lexical verification via Molina's Vocabulario en Lengua Castellana y Mexicana (1571) and Karttunen's Analytical Dictionary of Nahuatl (1983). The León-Portilla Spanish translation was used solely as a cross-reference after independent Nahuatl parsing. This is the first free literary English translation of this song.
Good Works Translation by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026. Scribed by Xochitl.
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Source Text
Cantares Mexicanos, folio 38v, sections 731–737. Classical Nahuatl text from the UNAM TEMOA digital transcription. Footnote markers from the León-Portilla critical edition removed.
Cihuaixnexcuicatl ypan tlatecpantli teotlatolli yquac mehua yn ilhuitzin Spiritu Santo quitecpan Christoual de Rosario Xiuhtlami cuicani ypan Agosto de 1550 años.
Totiqui titiquito totiquititiqui toti toti totoco totoco totocoto.
§731 Yancuica chalchiuhte nocuic tlacati niquelcahua ya nicempoaltecametl a nohueyohua ololihuic acatic cenquiztoc nichuipan yc yxpan nonquiztihuetzi Icelteotl o anqui ye huell axcan tlaltech acic yehcoc yn Belem yiaha yaha ylilili hoo ahua ye nela ma onnetotilo nican
§732 On tlaçotlanqui cozcapetlatipan a nocoyectlali a nocuic niccempohualtecametl a nohueyohua ololihuic acatic cenquiztoc nichuipan ye yxpan nonquiztihuetzi Icelteotl o anqui ye huell axca tlaltech acic yehcoc y' Belem yiaha yaha ylilili hoo ahua ye nela ma onnetotilo nican
§733 Chalchiuhizquixochitl ynmanca nontlachichina ya nitlacuilolcozcaquetzaltototl nictzinitzcanamatlapaltzetzeloancuicayecahuiloyotica can nonpahpatlantinemi oo ahuayia oo aylili yancaya
§734 On nepapan in cozcanenelhuatica nicxeloa ye oncan noncuicapehpena ya nitlacuuilolcozcaquetzaltototl nictzinitzcanamatlapaltzetzeloa cuicayehcahuiloyotica çan nonpapatlantinemi oo ahuayia oo aylili yancaya
§735 Çan ca tlauhquecholtlapalayauhtimani a oncaan y ye mochan i tiSanta Maria ayia yeooo ayia yeha
§736 Y çan ca xiuhquechol nepapan tototl chachalaca ya yca tontatlauhtilo yan i tiSanta Maria
§737 Y iaho yaho yiahue a ihuic temoc San Gabriel ye quitemohui oo a ynic tlatlauhtilo ya a y Santa Maria Ave Maria an o ticihuapille tlatocacihuapille yxquichcapa ya timitzontotlaçoyectenehuili ya ho
Coto coti quitiquiti yc tlantiuh quitiquiti quiti quiti quiti quiti quiti quiti coto coti coto coti.
Source Colophon
Source text from the Cantares Mexicanos (MS 1628 bis), Biblioteca Nacional de México, sixteenth century. Transcription accessed via the UNAM TEMOA digital platform (temoa.iib.unam.mx). The manuscript transcription is made available by the Instituto de Investigaciones Bibliográficas, UNAM, under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license. Reproduced for non-commercial archival use under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
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