Etymological Study of Mexico

Mexico: Oficina Tipográfica de la secretaria de Fomento, 1897. 350 by 240mm (13¾ by 9½ inches). Folio. 3 parts in 1 (the 3rd part is the atlas) Early 20th century ¹⁄₄ red calf over cloth; [2], vii, [1], 224, [2]; 336, [4] pp. (table of contents at end of Part II). Plus [1], 109. Each of the 3 parts with an added lithograph title. The atlas illustrates 1,299 place glyphs with their printed names (glyphs not colored) on 109 leaves. 

Very good plus with light foxing on some pages and light bumps to corners. Small tear to final two pages (not affecting text or images). 

A phenomenal work on indigenous place names in Mexico.

The book details etymologies of place names corresponding to the indigenous languages spoken in Mexico. Divided into two parts and an Atlas: First — Indigenous Place Names of the Central States; Second — Dictionary. When the Geographical Commission of Mexico wanted to identify all important place names it was necessary to establish norms that resulted in one of the most important works of study and cataloging of Mexican geographic nomenclature. This work is the consequence of numerous anthropological and philological studies of the glyphs that appear in the Moctezuma Codex, the Tlaxcala Codex, the Tribute Registration, the Historical Canvas of Jucutacato, among others. The book is a collaboration of great linguists such as Eustaquio Buelna and Francisco Belmar. 

The author, Antonio Peñafiel (1839–1922), was a Mexican doctor and scientist and one of the founding members of Mexico’s National Institute of Statistics and Georgraphy. Peñafiel researched and published primarily on Mexico’s indigenous cultures. 

Listed in Palau as #217594.