Nezahualcoyotl

Dylan Brennan (University College Cork)

Ed. by Nuala Finnegan, University College Cork
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 4.1.3: Hispanic Writing and Culture of Central America and the Caribbean.
Vol. editors: Ben Bollig (University of Oxford), Ceire Broderick (University College Cork), Nuala Finnegan (University College Cork), Anna Forné (Gothenburg University), Cara Levey (University College Cork), Lori Oxford (Western Carolina University), Ailsa Peate (University of Westminster)

Dates

Born 1402
Died 1472

Places

Born in Mexico
Active in Mexico

Activities

Primary

Poet

Resources

Nezahualcoyotl's Works

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The best known of the Mexican pre-Hispanic poets, Nezahualcoyotl was born in 1402 in Texcoco. His father, Ixtlilxochitl, was the sixth King of Texcoco and his mother, Matlalcihuatzin, daughter of Huitzilihuitl, second lord of Tenochtitlan. In 1418 Tezozomoc, king of Azcapotzalco waged a war against Texcoco with the intention of dethroning Ixtlilxochitl and annexing Texcoco. Nezahualcoyotl fled alongside his father and, according to one version of events, at Tepanahuayan, the sixteen-year-old boy hid up a tree while his father was slain by Tezozomoc’s soldiers. This event marked the beginning of the young prince’s exile. In 1419 he was captured in Chalco and condemned to death by Toteotzintecuhtli, who hoped to win the favour of Tezozomoc. Nezahualcoyotl managed to escape and sought…

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2265 words

Citation: Brennan, Dylan. "Nezahualcoyotl". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 26 July 2017 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13906, accessed 23 November 2024.]