Ocelotl is the fourteenth of the twenty day signs of the Aztec 260-day calendar. Despite the English word "ocelot", which comes from it, ocelotl in Nahuatl means the jaguar, the largest cat of the Americas.
Jaguar, not ocelot
The confusion is common. English borrowed "ocelot" from Nahuatl through French, but applied it to a smaller spotted cat. In Nahuatl, ocelotl is the jaguar, the powerful predator of the tropical forests and a creature of immense symbolic weight.
Jaguar warriors
The jaguar stood for strength, courage and the night. The Mexica army's elite included the jaguar warriors, ocelomeh, who wore jaguar skins or jaguar-shaped costumes into battle, alongside the eagle warriors.
A day sign
In the codices Ocelotl appears as a jaguar's head with its spotted pelt, combining with the numbers one to thirteen to name days in the 260-day count.
Ocelotl in jewellery
An Ocelotl design references the jaguar, the warrior orders of the Mexica and a birth date in the 260-day calendar.
You can see the AURYN design, or read our guide to the twenty Aztec day signs.
