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Encyclopedia > Camazotz

In Maya mythology, Camazotz (alternate spellings Cama-Zotz, Sotz, Zotz) was a bat god. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... “Chiroptera” redirects here. ...

Contents

Origins

The cult of Camazotz began around 100 B.C. among the Zapotec Indians of Oaxaca, Mexico. The cult of Camazotz worshiped an anthropomorphic monster with the body of a human, head of a bat (though the exact proportioning varies with account). The bat was associated with night, death, and sacrifice. This god soon found its way into the pantheon of the Quiché, a tribe of Maya who made their home in the jungles of what is now Guatemala. The Quiché identified the bat-deity with their god Zotzilaha Chamalcan, the god of fire.


There is some evidence to support that the Camazotz myth may have sprung from actual large, blood-drinking bats of the Mexico, Guatemala, and Brazil areas.


Evidence is in the form of fossils of Desmodus draculae, the giant vampire bat. There have also been skeletons of D. draculae found which were sub-fossil, of very recent age. These sub-fossils suggest that the species were still common when the Mayans civilisation existed, and may still be in existence today, though it is doubtful.


Mythology

In the Popol Vuh the common noun refers to bat-like monsters encountered by the Maya Hero Twins Hunahpu and Xbalanque during their trials in the underworld of Xibalba. Forced to spend the night in Bat House, the boys are able to keep the creatures at bay until Hunahpu loses his head while trying to watch for the coming of dawn. The grieving Xbalanque calls all the animals, instructing each to bring back its favorite food. When the coati returns with a squash, Xbalanque carves it into a new head for his brother, and they continue their adventures, bringing about the eventual defeat of the Xibalbans. The Popol Vuh (Quiché for Council Book or Book of the Community; Popol Wuj in modern spelling) is the book of scripture of the Quiché, a kingdom of the post classic Maya civilization in highland Guatemala. ... The Hero Twins feature prominently in Maya mythology. ... In Maya mythology Xibalba (IPA: ), roughly translated as Place of fear,[1] is the name of the underworld, ruled by Mayan spirits of disease and death. ... Binomial name Nasua nasua (linnaeus, 1766) The Coatimundi (pronounced [1]), or hog-nosed coon, is a member of the raccoon family (procyonidae); a diurnal mammal native to South, Central and south-western North America. ... Species - hubbard squash, buttercup squash - cushaw squash - butternut squash - most pumpkins, acorn squash, summer squash References: ITIS 22365 2002-11-06 Hortus Third Squashes are four species of the genus Cucurbita, also called pumpkins and marrows depending on variety or the nationality of the speaker. ...


Camazotz in popular culture

The animated film Hellboy: Sword of Storms opens with main characters Hellboy, Abe and Liz combating Camazotz and his legions of zombie priests in South America.


The bat god is an antagonist in Kenneth Oppel's Silverwing trilogy--especially Firewing, which tells the story of a young bat in the underworld. (The name there is spelled Cama Zotz.) Kenneth Oppel (born 31 August 1967) is a Canadian author. ... Silverwing is a novel, part of a trilogy, written by Kenneth Oppel, published in 1997 by Simon & Schuster It tells the story of a colony of silverwing bats. ... Firewing is a childrens book written by the Canadian author, Kenneth Oppel. ...


In Madeleine L'Engle's novel A Wrinkle in Time, winner of the 1963 Newbery Medal for children's literature, Camazotz is the name of a planet enslaved by the evil power of IT, from whom the protagonists Meg and Charles Wallace must rescue their physicist father. Madeleine LEngle (November 29, 1918 – September 6, 2007)[1] was an American writer best known for her childrens books, particularly the Newbery Medal-winning A Wrinkle in Time and its sequels A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet and Many Waters. ... For the movie adaptation, see A Wrinkle in Time (film) . A Wrinkle in Time is a childrens fantasy novel by Madeleine LEngle, written between 1959 and 1960[1] and published in 1962 after at least 26 rejections by publishers[2] because it was, in LEngles words... Year 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The John Newbery Medal is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children of the American Library Association (ALA) to the author of the outstanding American book for children. ... Information Nickname(s) Meg Aliases Margaret Murry OKeefe Occupation Student, later mathematician Spouse(s) Dr. Calvin OKeefe Children Polly, Charles, Xan, Den, Peggy, Johnny, Rosy Relatives Drs. ... David Dorfman as Charles Wallace Murry in the 2003 television adaptation of A Wrinkle in Time Charles Wallace Murry is a major character in Madeline LEngles young adult science fiction novels A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, and A Swiftly Tilting Planet, sometimes referred to...


In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, Camazotz (also known as "Zotz" or "Zotzilaha") is a deity of the Olman people. Camazotz/Zotzilaha and the Olman figure prominently in the Savage Tide Adventure Path in Dungeon magazine. The cover of the Living Greyhawk Gazetteer, published in 2000 by Wizards of the Coast. ... A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. ... This article is about the role-playing game. ... A roleplaying game (RPG) is a type of game in which players assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. ... In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, the Olman are a fictional race of humans . ... The cover of Dungeon issue #139. ... Dungeon Adventures, commonly called simply Dungeon, is a magazine targeting people who play role playing games, particularly Dungeons & Dragons. ...


In the roleplaying game Werewolf: The Apocalypse, the Camazotz are extinct werebats. A roleplaying game (RPG) is a type of game in which players assume the roles of characters and collaboratively create stories. ... This articles content is specific to the fictional setting known as the World of Darkness. ... In biology and ecology, extinction is the ceasing of existence of a species or group of species. ... In folklore, lycanthropy is the ability or power of a human being to undergo transformation into a wolf. ...


In the Lost Slayer Series, a Buffy the Vampire Slayer book features Camazotz as a Villian For other uses, see Buffy the Vampire Slayer (disambiguation). ...


In the children's series Vampire Plagues by Sebastian Rook (published by Scholastic), Camazotz is promoted into a vampire demon god who brought down the Mayan empire, through his own greed and meglomania, before finally being banished by the rain god, Chac. He is reawakened in the year 1850 by English archaeologists, and seeks to re-establish his power, but this time in Europe. Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is an American book publishing company known for publishing educational materials for schools, teachers, and parents, and selling and distributing them by mail order and via book clubs and book fairs. ...


The trilogy is named after the location of the books, London, Paris, and Mexico, however it has recently expanded into a series, the following titles Outbreak, Epidemic, and Extermination. These later books are not, however, based on the Mayan Camazotz, or Mayan vampires. This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... It has been suggested that List of visitor attractions in Paris be merged into this article or section. ...


In the video game series Digital Devil Saga, one of the recurring villains who stalks the main characters is a man named "Bat," and who can transform into the demon Camazotz, who is depicted as a human-like bat with its head attached to its groin. Digital Devil Saga is a Shin Megami Tensei game released in the US on April 5, 2005, (in the US) by Atlus. ... The groin is the crease at the junction of the torso with the legs and the adjacent region that includes the external genitals. ...


In New Orleans, there's a gothic/bohemian-type coffee shop on Oak St named Zotz. New Orleans is the largest city in the state of Louisiana, United States of America. ...


External links


  Results from FactBites:
 
Camazotz - definition of Camazotz in Encyclopedia (185 words)
In Maya mythology, Camazotz was a bat god.
When the coati returns with a squash, Xbalanque carves it into a new head for his brother, and they continue their adventures, bringing about the eventual defeat of the Xibalbans.
In Madeleine L'Engle's novel A Wrinkle in Time, winner of the 1963 Newbery Medal for children's literature, Camazotz is the name of a planet enslaved by the evil power of IT, from whom the protagonists Meg and Charles Wallace must rescue their physicist father.
The Camazotz of Mayan Legend (1051 words)
Zotzilaha was home to a type of bat called camazotz; one of these monsters decapitated the hero Hunahpú.
Camazotz has been translated as "death bat" (3) and "snatch bat" (4).
One of the most prominent and commonly mentioned features of the Camazotz is "a nose the shape of a flint knife" (12), which could be an exaggerated interpretation of the nose-leaf possessed by members of the Phyllostomidae, or leaf-nosed bats.
  More results at FactBites »


 

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