Also quezal, quesal. [a. Sp. quetzal, older quetzale, a. Aztec quetzalli a tail-feather of the bird called quetzaltototl (f. the comb. form of quetzalli + tototl bird).] An extremely beautiful bird (Pharomacrus mocinno) of Central America (esp. Guatemala), belonging to the Trogon family; the cock is remarkable for its long tail-coverts, of a resplendent golden-green color.
1827. J. Wilson, Lett., in Mem., iv. (1859), 124. That long-tailed fellow, the quezal from Vera Paz.
1838. J. Gould, Trogonidæ, Plate 21, Trogon resplendens … Habitat Guatimala in Mexico, where it is called Quesal.
1864. G. R. Mathew, Lett., in Ld. Malmesbury, Mem. Ex-Minister (1885), 586. One of the famed ‘quezals,’ whose plumage under the Aztec Emperor was reserved for imperial wear.
1887. W. T. Brigham (title), Guatemala, the Land of the Quetzal.
