Huehueteotl

Huehueteotl (/ˌweɪweɪˈteɪoʊtəl/ WAY-way-TAY-oh-təl; Nahuatl pronunciation: [weːweˈteoːt͡ɬ]) is an aged Mesoamerican deity figuring in the pantheons of pre-Columbian cultures, particularly in Aztec mythology and others of the Central Mexico region.

Huehueteotl is frequently considered to overlap with, or be another aspect of, a central Mexican/Aztec deity associated with fire, Xiuhtecuhtli.

In particular the Florentine Codex identifies Huehueteotl as an alternative epithet for Xiutecuhtli, and consequently that deity is sometimes referred to as Xiutecuhtli-Huehueteotl.

[1][2] The Florentine Codex[3] describes an Aztec religious observance during the monthly feast of Izcalli (dedicated to Xiuhtecuhtli and Tlaloc), when boys had to hunt in the swamps for small water-related animals, such as snakes, lizards, frogs and even dragonfly larvae, and present these to elders serving as the guardians of the fire deity.

As a reward for the offerings, the priest would give them steamed corn dough (tamales) stuffed with amaranth greens.