zompantli

Spanish

Alternative forms

• tzompantli

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Nahuatl tzompantli (“skull rack”), of debated composition. Perhaps from tzontli (“hair, head”) (compare tzontecomatl (“head, skull”)) + pantli (“flag, banner”), or simply (“row”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Spain) /θomˈpantli/ [θõmˈpãn̪.t̪li]
• IPA^(key): (Latin America, Philippines) /somˈpantli/ [sõmˈpãn̪.t̪li]
• Rhymes: -antli
• Syllabification: zom‧pan‧tli

Noun

zompantli m (plural zompantlis)

1. in some Mesoamerican civilizations, a wooden rack or palisade used for the public display of human skulls

See also

• Tzompantli on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Further reading

• “zompantli”, in Diccionario de la lengua española (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy, 2023 November 28