Abstract

KRUELL, Gabriel Kenrick. A historical review of the “Náhuatl leap year”: in memory of Michel Graulich. Trace (Méx. DF) [online]. 2019, n.75, pp.155-187. ISSN 2007-2392.

Summary: The purpose of this article is to make a historical review of the different testimonies and hypotheses formulated from the sixteenth century about the existence of a “Nahuatl leap year”; i.e.; an adjustment to the solar calendar by the ancient Nahuas to make it match the duration of the tropical year. On discussing this issue, I wish to commemorate the figure of Michel Graulich (1944-2015), for whom this question was one of constant concern in his academic work and the guiding principle of his broad research into the twenty-day festivals. This specialist in Mesoamerican cultures had a firm convic-tion about the absence of a “leap year” in Mesoamerica. He always expressed this conviction very firmly from the beginning to the end of his career.

Keywords : Leap year; Nahuatl; calendar; Mesoamerica; Graulich.

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