actun

Actun is a Mayan toponym meaning "cave" that occurs in many cave names across the Maya-speaking regions, especially in Belize and the Yucatán Peninsula. The form actun appears in several Mayan languages and is used to label cavernous features within karst landscapes.

In modern toponymy, actun appears in numerous cave names, reflecting the central role of caves in Maya geography, ritual life, and water management. The best-known example is Actun Tunichil Muknal, a cave in western Belize near San Ignacio. The site contains archaeological deposits, pottery, and calcite formations, and has been the subject of extensive research on Maya ritual practices.

Actun should not be confused with aktun, a term in the Maya calendar referring to a specific period; the two terms are linguistically unrelated despite the similarity in spelling in English transliteration. Beyond Belize, actun is widely used in cave names across the Yucatán region, reflecting its place in Maya toponymy.