a trader; an indigenous merchant (Lockhart); a vanguard merchant (see attestations, translators of Sahagún); once linked to merchants from Oztoman (Lockhart); they wore a certain type of clothing/disguise and seem to have led the way for the expansion of empire (see attestations, Hinz)
in oztomecatl, ca puchtecatl, nenemini, tlaotlatoctiani, nenenqui, tlanenemitiani = The vanguard merchant is a merchant, a traveler, a transporter of wares, a wayfarer, a man who travels with his wares (central Mexico, sixteenth century)
oztomecan atocon in itequiuh centomi oztomecan tequemecan in itequiuh ce tomi = The Atonco merchants' tax is 1 tomín. The Tequemeca merchants' tax is 1 tomín. (Coyoacan, mid-sixteenth century)
aca oztomecatl nican vallaz quinamacaquihv cacavatl tilmatli cueitl vipilli tlacallaquilli oc cequi yntla aca pochtecatl nican quicovaz niman quimilhuiz yn deputado = any trader who comes here to sell cacao, cloaks, skirts, women's shirts, or other goods he brings, if any merchant here buys it, then he is to tell the deputy (Tlaxcala, 1547)
Literally, inhabitant of Oztoman. Name probably goes back to groups then famous for trading activities. Like other ethnically derived trade designations, it dropped the ethnic connotation.
In at least one case, in 1547 in Tlaxcala, a traveling trader was called an oztomecatl, and a local merchant, a pochtecatl. But then on other occasions the two terms oztomeca and pochteca were applied as a pair to refer to the same set of people. (Tlaxcala, 1545–1637)
"The third merchant was an individual by the name of Juan Oztomecatl who lived in the barrio of Tezoquipan in the community of Santa María Atenco. His profession is indicated by his name glyph, which consists of the merchant's staff and fan."
oztomécatl = un mercader disfrazado (citando a Sahagún, Códice Florentino, s. XVI)
Oztomecatl = comerciante