·     No glyphs given in K&H, K&L, 25EMC.

·     Of the five standard “pedagogical sources”, only TOK and BMM9 give a logogram for this commonly occurring word in Classic Maya inscriptions (as do MHD and Bonn). That’s perhaps because the word itself is quite common, but it’s almost always written with a pure syllabogram spelling. As the two examples look significantly different from one another (while still conceivably being the same logogram), it can be inferred that they are based on two different inscriptions (perhaps more in the case of TOK, as he deliberately draws “canonical” examples distilled from real ones, in order to capture the distinctive features of a glyph).

·     QRG Stela F, QRG Stela J, and YAX Lintel 3 are some of the few inscriptions with this logogram.

·     Iconography: (Sergei Vepretskii) the two scroll elements are for the protection of the eye. Sim: perhaps leaves?

·     Pronunciation: this word is more frequently encountered with a medial -h- rather than -j-. The only dictionary to mention -j- is EB.p58.pdfp63.#6, which gives references to four inscriptions (two vases and two lintels) with a spelling which uses jo rather than ho. However, none of the later dictionaries (whether or not based on EB) have retained the -j- variant. A footnote to the -j- entry EB.p58.pdfp63.fn75 says: I have provided a separate entry for the spelling ch’a-jo-ma, as it employs a (former?) jo sign instead of the regular ho sign. Either the jo signs had merged with ho signs (/j/ > /h/) and all had become simply ho, or ch’ajom existed next to ch’ahom. In various entries and notes in this vocabulary this merger can be observed and is discussed in some detail. Bonn however gives the reading with -j-. See entry under syllabogram spelling for examples of both forms.

·     Meaning:

o The various sources give “young man”, “scatterer”, “incense scatterer”, “incense caster”, “smoke maker”. Notably, all of them (except TOK, BMM9, MHD and Bonn mentioned above) give only syllabogram spellings.

o The idea that the title means “incense scatterer”, “incense caster” is probably derived from the fact that ch’aaj = “(incense) droplet” + oom (“agentive suffix”) è “the person connected with incense droplets”.

o MHD gives only “incense offerer” (no “young man”).

·     Features:

o Head with a slightly open mouth.

o Two or more downward curling scrolls or bands, (if curly, then) with the left one curling to the left and the right one curling to the right – a sort of “bilobate element”.

o The starting ends of the scrolls are bound to one another and to the forehead – by either a single, short, diagonally sloping band (NE-to-SE), which optionally can have a spine, or by a washer (YAX Lintel 3 D2b).

o Quite a large bunch of longish hair is bound together towards the end and draped over the back of the head (=right side of the glyph) – upwards in the case of YAX Lintel 3 D2b.

·     Do not confuse this with the visually (very slightly) similar K’EK’EN:

o K’EK’EN has a mammal head while CH’AHOOM has a human head.

o K’EK’EN has a trilobate element under the eye while CH’AHOOM has two flame-like elements.

The only thing they (vaguely) have in common is a slightly unusual bilobate/trilobate element covering or shading the eye.

·     AT-E1168-lecture14.t0:35:15: Ch’ahoom, literally, “somebody who does ch’aj” – and it’s a term for liquid incense. So it’s a kind of priest, a fire priest who burns this liquid incense for the gods. In fact, we have a logogram of that term, not just syllabic spellings. And the logogram literally shows a priest, who is putting pom – copal – into an incense burner. So it’s very, very visual. This logogram is rare – we only have four or five examples, and only one full figure. So, [a] really calligraphic elaboration – like the artist really tried to think ‘If I want to depict ch’ahoom – what a ch’ahoom would look like?’. So here’s a Late Classic presentation of a ch’ahoom.

·     Sim: the full-figure variant in 1506fh has the two identifying characteristics of a bilobate element covering/shading the eyes and the large bunch of hair tied at the back of the head.

 

·     Predominantly ch’a-ho-ma, but occasionally ch’a-jo-ma.

·     EB.p58.pdfp63.#6.example4 (K635) is listed as ch’a.<jo:ma> but it looks more like ch’a.<ho:ma> to me.