chocolatl.

Headword: 
chocolatl.
Principal English Translation: 

chocolate (see Karttunen)

Orthographic Variants: 
chocolātl, chocollatl
IPAspelling: 
tʃokolɑːtɬ
Frances Karttunen: 

CHOCOLĀ-TL chocolate / alimento hecho con almendras de cacao y semillas del árbol llamado pochotl, en partes iguales (S), chocolate (R) This is not attested in M, B, or C, but it is attested in R. as well as in the modern sources. Possibly the initial element is related to M’s xocolia ‘to make something bitter or sour’ and to XOCOC ‘something sour.’ The substitution of CH for X is not uncommon. See Ā-TL.
Frances Karttunen, An Analytical Dictionary of Nahuatl (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1992), 54.

Attestations from sources in English: 

"...chocóllatl, is made with grains of póchotl and cacáhoatl in equal quantities, and they say that it puts on extraordinary amounts of weight if it is used frequently. Both grains are mixed together, put in a vessel, and stirred with a wooden whisk until the fatty part floats and is airy. That part is then skimmed off and set aside. Added to the mixture then is a handful of the aforesaid Indian grain that has been softened." (Central Mexico, 1571–1615)
The Mexican Treasury: The Writings of Dr. Francisco Hernández, ed. Simon Varey, transl. Rafael Chabrán, Cynthia L. Chamberlin, and Simon Varey (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2000), 109.

San Lucas Tepechocotlan [i.e. Tepexocotlan] is a place name mentioned in one of the maps of the Relaciones Geográficas. The glyph shows a ceramic pot sitting on top of a tepetl (hill, mountain), with a xocotl plant coming out of the pot. The colors used in the glyph are blue, tan, and brown. This has nothing to do with chocolate. https://utlibrariesbenson.omeka.net/items/show/26#lg=1&slide=0

Attestations from sources in Spanish: 

Icuacon ocachi cualli xicmiti chicolatl [sic]. = Entonces mejor es que beba vd. chocolate. (México, s. XIX)
Faustino Chimalpopoca, Epitome o modo fácil de aprender el idioma Nahuatl o lengua mexicana (México: Tip. de la V. de Murgia e Hijos, Portal del Aguila de Oro, 1869), 122.

themes: 
Beverages
Chocolate, Cocoa, Cacao
Food, Eating, Cooking