chtli

Chtli is a noun from the Nahuatl language family of central Mexico. It is commonly translated as “seed” or “kernel,” particularly of maize, though the precise sense can vary by dialect and text. The term appears in Classical Nahuatl sources and in modern dialects, and is often transliterated as chtli or ctli depending on orthography.

In everyday usage, chtli denotes a seed used for planting or a harvest’s yield; it can also function in figurative language to signify potential, renewal, or fertility. The word occurs in a range of compounds and toponyms, reflecting the cultural importance of maize seeds in agricultural and ceremonial life. Because of its associations with sustenance and growth, chtli appears in discussions of land use, exchange networks, and ritual practices related to agriculture.

Cultural and historical contexts emphasize maize as a central element of Mesoamerican life, and chtli carries symbolic weight in both ethnographic and historical writings. References to chtli often appear alongside topics such as cultivation, harvest cycles, and community provisioning, illustrating how a seemingly simple term can carry broader social and ritual meanings.

Linguistically, chtli is one example of Nahuatl’s productive noun forms, with spellings varying across colonial and modern sources. The variation chtli or ctli reflects broader transcription differences in documenting Nahuatl phonology. Researchers note that, despite orthographic differences, the term consistently relates to seeds and the ideas they symbolize in Nahuatl-speaking communities.

See also: Nahuatl language, maize in Mesoamerica, Aztec culture.