K'inich Family
In the Mayan language Kinich (K’inich) is translated as “sun-eyed” or “sun-faced” and was a word used both in Maya mythology and king’s names. The best example of this is the Maya god K’inich Ahau, “the sun-faced one” or “the sun-faced lord” – the sun god in the Maya pantheon. K’inich Ahau was the husband of the moon goddess, Ix Chel, and was closely associated with the Maya supreme deity, Itzamna – in some cases, he is even regarded as a manifestation of Itzamna. K’inich Ahau represented the day aspect of Itzamna and as such, symbolized the life of the sun in its daily journey across the sky – a metaphor for life itself. At sunset, once his journey across the sky was complete, it was believed he then traveled through the underworld overnight as a B’alam, or jaguar (see the Balam family page for more information).

K’inich Ahau was usually portrayed in Maya art with a square eye and an aquiline nose and his head glyph was a personification of the number four. This god was of particular importance to the city of Palenque, where he was the patron deity of the city and where the Temple of the Cross is partly dedicated to him. Several kings of Palenque used K’inich within their name – specifically K’inich Janaab’ Pakal I (also known as Pacal the Great), K’inich Kan B’alam II and K’inich K’an Joy Chitam II. By adding K’inich to their name, these kings not only wanted to evoke the protection of K’inich Ahau, but some may have also believed that by doing so they then became the terrestrial manifestation of the god himself. The veneration of K’inich Ahau was not solely contained to Palenque, however – as the sun god, he was considered to be the supernatural patron of warriors and rulers and several other kings, from kingdoms outside of Palenque, used K’inich within their name.