Quetzalcoatl /ˌkɛtsɑːlˈkoʊɑːtəl/; (Spanish pronunciation: [ketsalˈkoatɬ]) (Classical Nahuatl:Quetzalcohuātl[ket͡saɬˈkowaːt͡ɬ]) is a Mesoamerican deity whose name comes from the Nahuatl language and means "feathered serpent". The worship of a feathered serpent is first known documented in Teotihuacan in the first century BC or first century AD. That period lies within the Late Preclassic to Early Classic period (400 BC – 600 AD) of Mesoamerican chronology, and veneration of the figure appears to have spread throughout Mesoamerica by the Late Classic (600–900 AD).