The Aztec Myth of the Unlikeliest Sun God

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Video

Jan van der Crabben
by TED-Ed
published on 21 January 2021

Discover the myth of how the weak and pimply Aztec god Nanahuatl sacrificed himself to become Lord Sun and created a new world.



Nanahuatl, weakest of the Aztec gods, sickly and covered in pimples, had been chosen to form a new world. There had already been four worlds, each set in motion by its own “Lord Sun,” and each had been destroyed. For a new world to be created, another god had to leap into the great bonfire and become the fifth sun. Will Nanahuatl complete the sacrifice? Kay A. Read recounts the myth of the sun.

Lesson by Kay Almere Read, directed by Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat.

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View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-aztec-myth-of-the-unlikeliest-sun-god-kay-almere-read

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Cite This Work

APA Style

TED-Ed. (2021, January 21). The Aztec Myth of the Unlikeliest Sun God. World History Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/video/2244/the-aztec-myth-of-the-unlikeliest-sun-god/

Chicago Style

TED-Ed. "The Aztec Myth of the Unlikeliest Sun God." World History Encyclopedia. Last modified January 21, 2021. https://www.worldhistory.org/video/2244/the-aztec-myth-of-the-unlikeliest-sun-god/.

MLA Style

TED-Ed. "The Aztec Myth of the Unlikeliest Sun God." World History Encyclopedia. World History Encyclopedia, 21 Jan 2021. Web. 28 Dec 2024.

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