THE AJ K'UHUN TITLE

Abstract

The God C title, found in numerous hieroglyphic texts, refers to junior members of the royal court and is therefore crucial to our understanding of Classic Maya political structure. Over the past two decades, the amount of epigraphic work on the God C title has been significant. A consensus on its reading and meaning, however, has yet to be reached. In this article, we build on earlier research to suggest new ideas for reading this glyph, based on semantic and grammatical re-evaluations of the title. Our proposed readings are Ajk'uhulhun, which might be read as “he of the holy paper” (expanding on previous interpretations), or, alternatively, Ajk'uhun, “one who obeys, venerates” or “one who keeps,” based on a grammatical reassessment. In addition, we suggest a new understanding of the aj- and ix- agentive prefixes, traditionally understood as masculine and feminine markers, respectively. We examine these possible readings in archaeological and iconographic context, using subsidiary nobles of ancient Copan as a case study. Through our discussion we aim to illuminate the meaning and significance of the God C title, and in doing so to highlight the evolution of the methodologies employed in Maya hieroglyphic decipherment over the past two decades.

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