CMGG entry for paach      (This article is part of the Learner's Maya Glyph Guide.)

Translation: feather; hide; skin
Part of speech: Noun

Logogram spellings of paach: None known.

Syllabogram spellings of paach

                                                     

Safronov                                      Coll-1                                                

BPK SS5 E9                                   MQL Stela 11 B5b                          

<nu:u{?}>.<pa:chi>                     <IX:YAX>.<pa:chi>.K’UK’               

 

·      EB.p144.pdfp149.#6: pach n. skin, hide; feathers » pa-chi > pach “skin, hide; feathers”. This is Classic Maya to English only – there are no entries for English “skin”, “hide”, or “feather” to pach.

·      EB.p80.pdfp85.#10: ix yax pach k’uk’ cn. Ix Yax Pach K’uk’ (anthroponym) » YAX-’IX pa-chi-K’UK’ > ix yax pach k’uk’ (giving MQL Stela 11 B5b as reference).

·      In the context of Ix Yax Paach K’uk’, paach is translated as “feather(s)”, because it occurs in connection with a quetzal. In other contexts, “hide” or “skin” may be more appropriate, as the Classic Maya word is broader than the English equivalents. But this is probably a case of their being eticly different concepts but emicly the same concept.

·      In BPK SS5, the paach is in the context of grasping (uch’am{aw}) a nu’u{n?} paach – perhaps some ritual object consisting of feathers, but there isn’t enough information to know any more detail.