[Aztec] Iztaccihuatl was the daughter of an Aztec emperor in the Valley of Mexico. She had the misfortune of falling in love with one of her father's warriors. As soon as her father discovered their relationship, he sent her lover away to a war in Oaxaca. He told the young man that if he survived and returned he would give him Iztaccihuatl as his wife. The emperor never intended for the young warrior to return as he planned to marry Iztaccihuatl to another man. While her lover was away, Iztaccihuatl was told he was dead and she died of grief. Upon the young warrior's return, he took Iztaccihuatl's body in his arms and carried her to the mountains. He placed her down on the ground and knelt beside her, himself dying of grief. The gods took pity on them, covering them with a blanket of snow and transforming them into mountains. Iztaccihuatl today is known as the "Sleeping Woman", as the mountain appears to be a woman laying on her side. He became Popocatepetl, or "Smoking Mountain", the vo...
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