Topography
The Pico overlooks the valley and city of Orizaba, from which it gets its name. The name Citlaltépetl is not used by Nahuatl speakers of the Orizaba area, who instead call it Istaktepetl (Iztactépetl in the traditional orthography for Classical Nahuatl) 'White Mountain'. The earliest mention of the volcano was referred to by the natives during the Pre-Columbian Era as Poyautécatl which means, "The ground that reaches the clouds".
Citlaltépetl was the common name in the Náhuatl language when the Spanish arrived in Mexico. Citlaltépetl comes from the Náhuatl citialli (star) and tepētl (mountain) meaning "star mountain". Star mountain is thought to refer to the snow covered peak that can be seen year round for hundreds of kilometers around the region. A legend arises from the city of Coscomatepec which tells the story of how the planet Venus can be seen settling into the crater of Citlaltépetl. During the colonial era, the volcano was also known as Cerro de San Andrés due to the close settlement of San Andrés Chalchicomula located at the base.
Read more about this topic: Pico De Orizaba
Famous quotes containing the word topography:
“That the mere matter of a poem, for instance—its subject, its given incidents or situation; that the mere matter of a picture—the actual circumstances of an event, the actual topography of a landscape—should be nothing without the form, the spirit of the handling, that this form, this mode of handling, should become an end in itself, should penetrate every part of the matter;Mthis is what all art constantly strives after, and achieves in different degrees.”
—Walter Pater (1839–1894)