The Sun and War God of Tenochtitlan
Huitzilopochtli is the patron deity of the Mexica (Aztec) people and god of the sun and war. It was he who, in legend, led the wandering Mexica to the swampy island where an eagle perched on a cactus — the sign to found Tenochtitlan. Each day he fights across the sky, and the Aztecs believed his strength had to be renewed with sacrificial blood so the sun would rise again.
His name joins Nahuatl huitzilin, "hummingbird," and opochtli, "left" — "Hummingbird of the Left" (the south), or "Left-handed Hummingbird." Aztecs believed slain warriors returned as hummingbirds to accompany the sun.
At his birth on Coatepec, the "Serpent Mountain," Huitzilopochtli sprang fully armed from his mother Coatlicue to slay his sister Coyolxauhqui and his four hundred brothers — a myth read as the daily triumph of the sun over the moon and stars. Among the brothers of creation he stands beside Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca as a son of the dual creator.
Common Questions
What does Huitzilopochtli's name mean?
It means "Hummingbird of the Left" or "Left-handed Hummingbird," from huitzilin ("hummingbird") and opochtli ("left," meaning the south).
Why was Huitzilopochtli so important to the Aztecs?
He was the national patron of the Mexica, guided them to found Tenochtitlan, and as the sun god required sacrifice to keep rising each day.
