the _akbal_ symbol, while that
in the _chuen_ glyph is broad or rounded and does not extend to the top.

The signification of the Maya and Cakchiquel names, and also of the
Zapotec, is "night" or "darkness." The Tzental name is that of a
celebrated hero, which, according to Dr Brinton, is derived from the
Tzental word _uotan_, "heart" or "breast." This explanation is accepted
by Seler, as Bishop Nunez de la Vega, the principal authority regarding
this mythological personage, says that "in every province he was held to
be the heart of the village." Dr Seler also adds that "'heart of the
village' is in Mexican called _tepeyollotl_, and that is the name of the
deity of the third day character, _calli_" (plate LXIV, 46).

The Mexican name _calli_ signifies house. The method by which Dr Brinton
brings this and the Tzental names into harmony with the idea of darkness
or night is as follows:

The house is that which is within, is dark, shuts out the light,
etc. Possibly the derivation was symbolic. Votan was called "the
heart of the nation," and at Tlazoaloyan, in Soconusco, he
constructed, by breathing or blowing, a "dark house," in which he
concealed the sacred objects of his cult. In this myth we find an
unequivocal connection of the idea of "darkness" and "house."

Dr Seler's explanation is substantially the same; he differs somewhat,
however, from Dr Brinton in regard to the derivation of the word _votan_
(or _uotan_), as he obtains it from the Maya _ol_, _uol_, "heart, soul,
will, etc," and _tan_, "in the midst," also "surface, level, extent,
front." He concludes, therefore, if _uo_ signifies heart, that _uotan_
denotes "the inmost heart" or "heart of the expanse." It is proper,
however, to call attention to the fact that Dr Brinton's derivation of
the name in his "American Hero Myths" is slightly different from that
given in his "Native Calendar," above mentioned. In the former he says
_uotan_ "is from the pure Maya root word _tan_, which means primarily
'the breast,' or that which is in the front or in the middle of the
body; with the possessive prefix it becomes _utan_. In Tzental this word
means both 'breast' and 'heart.'" It must be admitted that these
explanations are apparently somewhat strained, yet it is possible they
are substantially correct, as they appear to receive some support from
the figures in the Mexican codices.

Plate 75 of the Borgian Codex, which is in fact the lo