cipactli

Etymology
From.

Noun

 * 1) alligator

Noun

 * 1) it is an unspecified, mythological reptilian animal, hence sometimes translated as dragon; akin to an alligator or caiman.
 * 2) it is the first of the twenty day signs of the ; the disembodied head of this mythical animal.
 * 3) * 16th c.: Codex Magliabechiano, f. 11r.
 * "nci"

- nau ci pac tl. qúe / es. Vna cosa biba / q anda en agu / como. ser pezilla.

Usage notes

 * Authors differ on the precise translation of cipactli; and thus it is variously translated as “alligator,” “caiman,” “serpent,” and even “shark,” as is the case in Siméon. Séjourné asserts that the term probably does not correspond to any real animal, but adopts the translation “alligator”.