literally, "big house," usually a subunit of an altepetl, and earlier an egalitarian kin group with migration associations (see attestations)
LARGE ROOM / HOUSE
Auh ynnovian calpan, in techachan: yoan in tetelpuchcalco, in cacalpulco, noujian qujquetzaia, matlaquauhpitzaoac, tzonioquauhtl, itech qujtlatlaliaia amateteujtl, vltica tlaulchipinilli, tlavlchachapatztli. = And everywhere, in the houses, in each home, in each of the quarters where the young warriors were trained, and in each tribal temple, everywhere they erected the slender green poles; on them, they placed white paper flags dotted with large and small drops of liquid rubber. (sixteenth century, central Mexico)
calpulli = house or large room; or, a neighborhood [perhaps a settlement around a lord's house]
calpulli = "big house;" community or subdivision within larger Nahua political entities
For a possible translation of "sala," see our Zapata y Mendoza attestations in the examples of translations to Spanish.
NEIGHBORHOOD
calpolli = a territorial or social unit (under study)
calpollalli = calpolli land -- a standard category of land found in the testaments of Culhuacan
"Until the 1960's, descriptions of Aztec society tended to focus on a narrow question: whether social organization was kin-based, with the calpulli as a clan or clan-like unit, or complex and urban -- that is, not kin-based, with the calpulli seen simply as a territorial division. (See Morgan 1877; Bandelier 1877; 1878; 1879; Radin 1926; Moreno 1931; White 1940; Monzón 1949; Vaillant 1944; Kirchhoff 1959; and Soustelle 1961). Since the 1960s, anthropologists have moved beyond this unproductive dichotomy. Eric R. Wolf (1959), Robert McC. Adams (1966) and Carrasco (1971b) view Tenochtitlan as an urban, class society characterized by ranked, ambilateral kin-based groups, calpulli, though their analysis of such units is primarily based upon a source (Zorita 1963) which refers to areas outside of Tenochtitlan itself. (See also Rounds 1979 and Bray 1978.) Carrasco (1976a) refines these ideas.... He argues that the calpulli is best thought of as a political and administrative subdivision and that the members of noble houses (teccalli) formed lineages...." Luis Reyes García (1975) used linguistic analysis of Nahuatl documents from Tenochtitlan to conclude, "'Tlaxilacalli must be understood as a place of residence in which a calpulli or temple existed with its calpolleque in charge of the cult and with its calpullalli or lands assigned to the gods.' [translation by Kellogg]."
Ian Mursell writes: "Michael Smith found one calpulli at Molotlan consisting of ‘128 households, divided into 9 wards ranging from 1–32 households in each’."
Terms starting with "calpul..." can be found at the top of some of the pages of the Matrícula de Huejotzinco. It would be worth investigating these designations for their local meaning.
MIGRATION ASSOCIATIONS?
More commonly the word is written in English and Spanish as calpulli, but James Lockhart felt that there was no reason not to use what he called the normal Nahuatl form, with the "o" (calpolli). The plural form, calpoltin, he noted, refers to members of a calpolli or members of various calpolli, not the various calpolli themselves, and it was not a plural for calpolli. Compared to tlaxilacalli, calpolli takes on a reference to a migratory group, rather than a sedentary group.
"The constituent parts or districts of an altepetl were called primarily tlaxilacalli, and we have retained the Nahuatl word in the English as with the broader term and for the same reason, to allow readers of English only to follow the terminology of Nahuatl sociopolitical organization. It was the once thought that entities at this level were uniformly called calpolli, but such turns out not to be the case, at least for the post-contact period. In other annals with a larger pre-contact content, Chimalpahin tends to call the entities calpolli as long as they are migrating and tlaxilacalli after they have settled permanently and taken on a landed dimension. The word itself [tlaxilacalli] has not yet been securely analyzed, though it seems to have calli, 'house,' as the last element; there is a glottal stop before the x."
"In his annals Chimalpahin uses 'calpulli' to describe migrating groups of the Mexica as they departed from their legendary home at Aztlan, or the Tenanca who were in the process of establishing their first permanent settlement. Otherwise, the word seldom appears except occasionally as a parallel to 'chinamitl' or 'tlaxilacalli.'" (central Mexico, early seventeenth century)
oztotl. oncan ca Motenehua chicomoztoc yn oncan quizque chiconcalpoltin Mexitin. = A cave is there, called Chicomoztoc, whence the seven Mexitin calpulli issued. (central Mexico, early seventeenth century)
Eduardo Matos Moctezuma refers to a procession to the Calpulco in Mexico City, where slaves carried mantles and huipiles, possibly as "a reminder of the Mexica's wandering before arriving at Coatepec."
TEMPLE ASSOCIATIONS?
calpulco = temple (as seen in the Florentine Codex). Sahagún wrote that calpolco was "una de las casas de oración que tenían en los barrios que ellos llamaban calpulli, que quiere decir iglesia del barrio o parroquia."
in calpuleque, in calpulueuetque [i.e. calpulhuehuetque] = the men and elders of the tribal temple (central Mexico, sixteenth century)
auh cequintim, tepantli quitlecavique, tel huel momaquixtique : cequintin calpulco cacalacque vmpa momaquixtique = but some climbed up the wall and were able to escape. Some went into the various calpulli temples and took refuge there. (Mexico City, sixteenth century)
Auh in Españoles, nnoian nemi in tlatemoa in calpulco, novian ontlaxiltivi in tlatemoa, in açaca vmpa minaia, novia nen[fol. 34]que, quixaqualotinenque in izquican calpulco in tlatemoque. = And the Spaniards went everywhere searching in the calpulli temples, stabbing in the places where they searched in case someone was taking shelter there. They went everywhere, scratching about in all the calpulli temples in searching." (Mexico City, sixteenth century)
"And wherever they tarried long they built a temple; there they erected the house of their god Huitzilopochtli. And there were also other gods whom they brought hither, for whom were named the seven Mexica calpulli that came. And the first calpulli was [that of the] Yopica. The second calpulli was [that of the] Tlacochcalca. The third calpulli was Huitznahuac. The fourth calpulli was [that of the] Cihuatecpaneca. The fifth calpulli was [that of the] Chalmeca. The sixth calpulli was [that of the] Tlacatecpaneca. The seventh calpulli was [that of the] Izquiteca." (central Mexico, early seventeenth century)
otoncalpulco = Otomi temple (mentioned in Teocalhueyacan, in the 26th chapter of Book 12, Florentine Codex)
In the capital, we also see the calpulco as a place where the Tlaxcalan warrior-captive, Tlacuicole, was sacrificed.
In Mexico City, the calpulco was also a place where a captive's body, after being slain and bled elsewhere, would be taken to be dismembered and flayed.
auh yn tlamanj njman ic conquj yn iezço ymal, xoxoujc xicalli, tlatenpotonilli, vncan qujoaltequjlia, in tlamictique, ipan icatiuh piaztli no tlapotonilli. Auh njman ic vncã eoa in qujntlatlaqualia diablome, noujian nemj, izqujcan qujça acan qujmocauja, acan qujxcaoa in calmecac, calpulco: in teme teixiptlaoan, intenco qujmontlatlalilia yn jezço malli, piaztica qujmonpalotitiuh, tlaujcetinemj = And the captor thereupon took the blood of his captive into a green bowl with a feathered rim. The sacrificing priests came to pour it there. In it went the hollow cane, which also had feathers. And then the captor departed with it so that he might nourish the demons. He went into and came out of all [shrines]; he omitted none; he forgot not the priests dwellings in the tribal temples. On the lips of the stone images he placed the blood of his captive, giving them nourishment with the hollow cane. He went in festive attire. (16th century, Mexico City)
njman ie ic tlatlachpana yn jncalpulco. Auh yn otlachpanque njmã ie ic qujteteca in atolli, izqujatecomac = Then they swept their tribal temple. And when they had swept, then they poured the atolli into the atolli vessels. (16th century, Mexico City)
inic mitohua in chicome calpolli in Mexicain huallaque, auh inic ce calpolli Yopica, inic ome calpolli, Tlacochcalca, inic yei calpolli, Huitznahuac, inic nahui calpolli, Cihuatecpaneca; inic macuilli calpolli, tlacatecpaneca, inic chicome calpolli, Izquiteca = se llaman así los siete "calpulli" de los mexicanos que vinieron: el primer "calpulli" es el de los "yopica", el segundo "calpulli" es el de los "tlacochcalca", el tercer "calpulli" es el de "Huitznahuac", el cuarto "calpulli" es el de los "Cihuatecpaneca" el quinto "calpulli" es el de los "tlacatecpaneca", y el séptimo "calpulli" es el de los "izquiteca" [por esto se llaman los 7 "calpulli" de los mexicanos quienes vinieron, y el primer "calpulli" "yopica", el segundo "calpulli" "tlacochcalca", el tercer "calpulli" "Huitznahuac", el cuarto "calpulli" "Cihuatecpaneca", el quinto "calpulli" "tlacatecpaneca", el séptimo "calpulli" "izquiteca".] (Mexico central, s. XVII)
ynompa huallehuaque cachiconcalpoltin. = de allá partieron para acá los que componían los siete "calpulli." [de allá partieron hacia acá los siete "calpulli".] (Mexico central, s. XVII)
mitohua ynin huallaliz ynimecoliz in yehuantin Mixica yn nican ypan yancuic Nueva España. yhuan ynixquich tlacatl ynoquin hualhuicaque calpolleque. = se habla de la salida, de la llegada de los mexcianos aquí a la Nueva España, y de cuánta gente trajeron acá, los que componían los "calpulli" [se dice de la salida de ellos, de la llegada de ellos, los mexicanos aqui a la Nueva España y de cuánta gente trajeron acá, los que tenían "calpulli"] (Mexico central, s. XVII)
nitlalchiuaya in calpolalpan = trabajaba la tierra, en las tierras del calpulli (Ciudad de México, 1558)
nipoui Sanct Joan nocalpol Papalotlan = soy del barrio de San Juan y mi calpule Papalotlan (Cholula, 1599)
yn calpolli Calpilco = en el calpolli Calpilco (Xochimilco, 1591)
ypanpa ca tetocatlatquitl yhuan yn ixquich altepetlalli calpollalli chiconncan quiztica ypan tlacalaquia macehualtzintli = porque es patrimonio y señorío y todas las tierras del pueblo y barrios; que está dividido en siete partes, sobre que tributan los vasallos (San Juan Teotihuacan, 1563)
yn quezquican quiquayatequiyaya hocan teopa çan oc calpolli catca y quemania tiaquizco y quemania ylhuichihualoyan yn quiquayatequiyaya = Algunas veces bautizaba allá en el templo que aún era una sala, otras veces en el mercado y otras bautizaba en los lugares donde se hacía fiesta. (Tlaxcala, 1662–1692)
nicnomaquilia centetl tlapantli calpoli yoan in calacuemitl castolmatl = le doy una casa de techo [del calpoli], con quince brazas de tierra [solariega] (San Bartolomé Tenango, 1585)
nicnomaquilla nocal calpoli centetl oquichiuaz [sic] yni quitesillizque = le doy una casa [que está en el calpulli] para que le muelan [es decir, para derribarla] (Santa Bárbara)
nagui calpuli unesis ispan señor alcalde mayor = los cuatro calpulis aparecerán delante de el señor alcalde mayor (Quechula, Chiapas; 1674; pueblo zoque)
ytlaltzin calpollalli = tierra del barrio (Tlapallan, Cuernavaca, s. XVI)
Según Hildeberto Martínez: "En su análisis de los padrones de tributarios de Morelos, de finales de la década de 1530, escritos en náhuatl, [Pedro Carrasco] dice: 'La palabra calpulli se aplica a más de un nivel de segmentación. Los calpules Molotla, Tepetenchi y Panchimalco que localizo en Yautepec varían en tamaño de 120 de 168 casas. Se subdividen a su vez en unidades, también llamadas calpulli o chinamitl, que tienen de 51 casas a sólo una. En Tepoztlan hay tres niveles a los que se aplica la palabra calpul. El pueblo está dividido en nueve calpules que van de 566 a 60 casas; los padrones que existen de dos de ellos, Tlacatecpan y Calitec, muestran que ésto a su vez están divididos en unidades llamadas calpulli, en cada una de las cuales hay localidades a las que igualmente se puede aplicar el nombre calpulli.'" Pero Martínez concluye que el énfasis de Zorita en la casa señorial con sus tierras y macehuales tributarios es un modelo básico, aunque habia variaciones.
"Calpulli" expresado posiblemente como etnicidad: e.g. Quauhteca, Couaca, Tochpaneca, Izcolloca, Ixmeciuhca, Tzocuilaca, Matlatzinca, Tepetzinca, Cuitlatepeuaque, Tlaxichca, Calmecauaque, Xochicaltzinca. (Quauhtinchan, s. XVI)
santa maria tlalnepantla xalapanco huitzilhuacan calpulpan pohui = parte del calpulli de Santa María Tlalnepantla Xalapanco Huitzailhuacan. (Tetzcoco, 1583)
yhuicpa ynic monotza. metepec calpulpan teçeçepouhtzin yxochimil. catca = hacia el calpulli llamado Metepec. Todo era un jardín de flores. (Tetzcoco, 1587)
ynitoca paulla. ycnoçihuatl ynamic. catca. yn gabriel. bueno. santamaria tlayutlacā. metepec calpolpan pohuia = una viuda llamada Paula, que era esposa de Gabriel Bueno, contado como parte del calpulli de Santa María Tlailotlacan Metepec. (Tetzcoco, 1601)
ca nihuetztoc Calpoltzintli = estoy echado en la cama en una casa pequeña. (Tetzcoco, 1610)
ynipa tlaxilacali Sta catarina ximalpan y pan calpoli tiaquizteco = del tlaxilacalli de Santa Caterina Chimalpan, en el calpulli de Tianguiztenco. (San Agustín Acolman, 1731)
notlacat ya ynipan calpoli yn itocayoca tiaquiztenco = Nací en el calpulli de Tianguiztenco. (Santa Catarina Mártir, 1733)