Their name, Xoloitzcuintli, comes from the Nahuatl words “Xolotl,” the Aztec god of fire and lightning, and “itzcuintli,” meaning dog. In Aztec culture, the Xoloitzcuintli was more than ...

On the edge of Mexico City's famed Zócalo plaza, next to the ruins of the Aztec sacred pyramid known as the Templo Mayor, the remains of an animal—perhaps a dog or a wolf—were discovered.