ihiyotl—The soul of emotions and passions; source of most magical power.
Ilancueh—A handmaiden of Princess Anamacani.
Iztac Teopixcacalli—The main monastery of the Order of the Deep.
Iztalli—The Queen of Tapachco.
Iyauhquemeh—A water elemental, one of Tlaloc’s four generals.
Jabalí—The name given to the tlacamichin Rikar Tzaaq by a group of human children.
Jabalí Lagoon—A body of water in the Mexican state of Colima.
Jade Grimoire, the—A book of merfolk magic.
kamasotz—“Snatch-bat,” a creature from the bowels of Mictlan.
Kihtyei—An ancient name for Guatemala.
Kisin—High Lord of Xibalba, capital city of Mictlan.
Little People, the—Tzapame, a race of elf-like beings.
Lord of Chaos, the—See “Tezcatlipoca”.
man-fish—Literal translation of tlacamichin.
Matlalcueyeh—Goddess of water; also known as Chalchiuhtlicue; wife of Tlaloc.
matlallotl—See “Green Magic”.
Maxaltic—The prince of Tapachco.
Mayahuel—Goddess of the maguey plant; the only tzitzimitl to renounce destruction and join with Quetzalcoatl.
Mictlan—See “Underworld, the.”
Middle Apantic—An ancient language used by the tlacamichimeh.
Mihuah—A diplomat; daughter of Tapachco’s Minister of State; the Queen’s niece.
minamicqui—The deadliest jellyfish of the Deep.
Mintoc—A marshal in the Royal Guard of Tapachco.
Mrisu—A siren princess; wife of Epan Napotza.
nagual(es)—Shapeshifter(s); also nahualli.
nahualcuahuitl—A sorcerer’s staff, used to channel and amplify magic.
nahualli—(pl. nahualtin) See “nagual”.
Nalquiza—Tapachco’s castellan (commander of the Royal Guard).
Nenotzalli in Tlayocoltzin, in—See “Compact of Blessed Creatures, the”.
Nextic—King of Tapachco.
notapachicah—A specially bred sort of coral used in growing buildings in Tapachco.
Omelia—A former Royal Historian of Tapachco.
Order of the Deep, the—A group of monks and nuns from Tapachco who serve the goddess Huixtocihuatl.
Pacqui—Abbot of the monastery of the Order of the Deep.
>Palace of Ministers>—The building where the executive council of Tapachco lives and works
patolli—An ancient board game.
Pingo—One of the Little People; liaison with the Garza family.
Qucha Llaqta—An undersea kingdom off the coast of Peru.
Quelel Huetzo—Twin sister of Epan Napotza; found the Shadow Stone and caused Atlan to sink beneath the waves.
Quetzalcoatl—Lord of Creation and Order; brother of Tezcatlipoca.
Rikar Tzaaq—A tlacamichin, also known as Jabalí.
Robe of Mayahuel, the—A magical garment once belonging to the goddess Mayahuel that Carol can morph into multiple sets of clothing.
Roqha—An ancient name for the Atoyatl.
Royal Guard of Tapachco—A quasi-military force that guards the city of Tapachco.
Royal Historian—The atlacatl responsible for preserving, adding to, and retelling the history of the merfolk of Tapachco.
Savage Mages—The greatest of nagual twins, whose abilities were almost god-like.
sacred singer—Someone able to wield sacred song magic.
sacred song magic—Sorcery that uses singing to work spells.
shadow magic—The dark power of chaos wielded by Tezcatlipoca and his minions.
Shadow Stone, the—An ancient magical device capable of great destruction.
Sulamala—“Child of the Heart,” one of the seven cities of Atlan.
Surface, the—See "Atlixco".
susto—The state of a person when the tonalli has left the body.
Tapachco—“Place of Coral,” an undersea kingdom in the Pacific Ocean, built within large caverns in the mountain that forms the base of Isla Benedicto in the Revillagigedo Archipelago of the coast of Mexico.
Tapachcan—A native of Tapachco.
Tenamic—The Archmage of Tapachco; head of the court sorcerers.
teocuicani—See “sacred singer”.
teocuicayotl—See “sacred song magic”.
teotl—Divine energy found in all living things.
Tepeyollotl—“Mountain Heart,” the nahualli of Tezcatlipoca; a massive jaguar.
Texoxqueh—See “Savage Mages”.
teyolia—The spirit that lives on after a person’s death.
Tezcatlipoca—Lord of destruction and chaos; brother of Quetzalcoatl.
tlacamichin—(pl. tlacamichimeh) A scaly, humanoid creature; man-fish.
Tlaloc—God of thunder, lightning, and water (especially rain).
Tlalocan—The realm of the god Tlaloc; a paradisiacal abode for certain human souls.
tlaloqueh—Water elementals created by the god Tlaloc; also known as ahuahqueh.
Tlatecuhtli—An earth god.
tonalli—A secondary spirit formed from teotl; the animal soul of a nagual.
tonal—A nagual’s animal soul.
tzaccayotl—The magical illusion projected by merfolk to disguise themselves from humans.
tzapame—See “Little People, the”.
tzapatzin—Singular form of tzapame.
tzitzimitl—(pl. tzitzimimeh) Star demon, a sort of destructive goddess capable of triggering an apocalypse.
Unazoko—An undersea kingdom off the coast of Japan.
Underworld, the—Mictlan, a nine-layered afterlife nestled among the roots of the World Tree presently controlled by Tezcatlipoca, though overseen by Lord and Lady Death.
wayxoc—(pl. wayxocob) Sentient sharks, serfs of the tlacamichimeh.
Water Dweller—See “Atlacatl.”
World Tree, the—The axis of the universe, joining Mictlan, the earth and the thirteen heavens.
Xicol—A captain in the Royal Guard of Tapachco.
Xochiquetzal—The first wife of Tlaloc, mother of the tlaloqueh.
Xolotl—The nahualli of Quetzalcoatl; exists separately from the god now, mostly in the form of a large dog, in Mictlan.
Xomalloh—One of the Fatherless.
xoxal—Savage magic, a little-understood force possessed by twin shapeshifters.
Yayauhco—“Place of Eternal Dusk,” the realm of Tezcatlipoca.
Guide to Spanish Words
Chapter 1
mojo—Wetback (offensive term for undocumented resident, shortened and Anglicized form of “mojado” or “wet”).
cuate—Buddy (literally “fraternal twin”).
¿Cómo te va en las clases?—How are you doing in your classes?
bien—Well.
Órale, pues—Okay, then.
curandera—Healer, shaman.
Pinche gringo—Damn white guy.
Güey, ahorita vas a ver que—Dude, right now you’re going to see that.
Chale—No way.
pues or pos—Uh, well, you know (filler).
¿verdad, amores?—Right, my loves?
Claro que no, mamá—Of course not, Mom.
Ay, amor—Ah, my love.
Chapter 2
Sí, yo también te quiero, amor—Yes, I love you, too, dear.
Pero, ya—But anyway.
viejito—Little old man.
Lo típico—Typical stuff.
Chapter 3
M’ijo, ¿no te dije que dejaras esa cosa en casa?—Son, didn’t I tell you to leave that thing at home?
Chapter 4
nagual—Shapeshifter.
Chapter 6
chiveado—Spoiled or stuck-up, but in a slightly embarrassed way.
Chapter 8
N’hombre—Literally “Nah, man,” but more accurately meaning “to heck with that!”
cuates—Buddies, pals, friends.
Chapter 9
> chaparrita—Shorty.
Chapter 10
amor—Love.
porrazo—Blow to the head with a club.
Chapter 11
Olvídalo—Forget it.
pulga—Flea market or open-air market.
Chapter 12
A la víbora, víbora—To the serpent, serpent.
de la mar, de la mar—Of the sea, of the sea.
por aquí pueden pasar—You can make your way through here.
Los de adelante corren mucho—Those in front run very fast.
y los de atrás se quedarán—Those in back will stay behind.
tras, tras, tras, tras—Hind, hind, hind, hind.
Una mexicana que fruta vendía—A Mexican woman selling fruit.
ciruela, chabacano, melón o sandía—Prunes, apricots, honeydew or watermelon.
Verbena, verbena, jardín de matatena—Vervain, vervain, a garden of jacks.
Verbena, verbena, la Virgen de la Cueva—Vervain, vervain, the Virgin of the Cave.
Campanita de oro déjame pasar—Little golden bell, let me through.
con todos mis hijos menos el de atrás—With all of my kids, except the one in back.
tras, tras, tras tras—Back, back, back, back.
Será melón, será sandía—It may be honeydew, may be watermelon.
será la vieja del otro día—May be the old fruit from the other day.
día, día, día, día—Day, day, day, day.
El puente está quebrado—The bridge is broken.
que lo manden componer—Tell someone to fix it.
con cáscaras de huevo—With lots of eggshells.
y pedazos de oropel—And bits of tin,
pel, pel, pel, pel—Tin, tin, tin, tin.
¡No manches, güey!—No freaking way, dude!
Chapter 14
O sea, estamos fritos—In other words, we’re out of luck.
Chapter 16
Por poco se nos pasa—We almost missed it.
Chapter 20
m’ija—My daughter.
Chapter 21
Ay, dios mío—Oh, my God.
¡no lo hagas!—Don’t do it!
Coda
Aprovechados—Scam artists.
el menso de tu hermano—Your brother the dork.
Ya basta, mamá—That’s enough, Mom.
Ya párale, loca—Cut it out already, crazy person.
A product of an ethnically diverse family with Latino roots, David Bowles has spent most of his life in the Río Grande Valley, where he presently lives and works. Recipient of awards from the American Library Association, the Texas Institute of Letters and the Texas Associated Press, he has written several books, among them Border Lore and the Pura Belpré Honor Book The Smoking Mirror.
A Kingdom Beneath the Waves Page 19
