The four sons of Jared were called "Jacom, and Gilgah, and Mahah, and Orihah" (Ether 6:14). Jerry Ainsworth notes that the last two names end in hah, which in Maya means "by, or connected to water." These two sons, in other words, may have been born while traveling on or living by the ocean. A search of Book of Mormon names from Lehi to Mosiah yields no names ending in hah. Once King Mosiah's group united with Zarahemla's people, however, the term hah came into use. The fact that the Nephites and Mulekites incorporated the term hah into their vocabulary signifies the influence of Jaredite culture. Even today, any Mayan city whose name ends in ha or hah is situated by or connected to water. Altun-Ha, for example, is the site of an ancient Mayan city by a river on the coast of Belize. Xel-Ha is an ancient site on the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula that is used as a water resort today. Misol-Ha is the site of a waterfall and ancient ruins by a river south of Palenque, in the state of Chiapas, southern Mexico. It's therefore a safe assumption that the names of the Nephites cities of Moronihah and Nephihah refer to their proximity to water. [Jerry L. Ainsworth, The Lives and Travels of Mormon and Moroni, pp. 63-64]
Geographical [Theory Map]: Ether 6:14-7:3 Kingship Begins in the Land of Moron (Chronology):
They Went Forth Upon the Face of the Land First Jaredite Settlement
Jerry Ainsworth notes that Sahagun reported that the wooden boats the Quinamis used landed at the Panuco River by the city of Tampico, which is in the state of Tamaulipas on the east coast of Mexico. In the ancient Nahuatl language, tam means "roots," while pico means "point." Tampico therefore means "Point of our Roots."
Upon landing at the Panuco River, these early settlers moved quickly to a land in the mountains of Mexico. Sahagun relates:
The old men used to tell, in a certain time which nobody can count anymore, "By water in their boats, they did come, in many groups. And they arrived at the water's edge, on the north coast, and where they left their boast is called Panutla. It means, "over where one crosses over the water." Right away they followed along the coast of the sea and they went looking for mountains, some for white mountains and the smoking mountains."
This account appears to describe a contingent of Jaredites moving to the valleys of Puebla and Tlaxcala, in south central Mexico. These valleys are surrounded by four volcanoes that are perpetually capped with snow and intermittently emit smoke. It is the only place in Mexico--or in Central America--where there exist "smoking mountains" capped with snow (see illustrations).
Ruins in the state of Puebla themselves go back to the time of the Quinamis, who were contemporary with the Olmec. The pyramid of Cholula in that area, which is the largest structure in the world, consists of many built-over pyramids. When archaeologists dug tunnels into this structure to document the number of superimpositions, they concluded that the original pyramid in the very center was built by people who lived at the time of the Olmec (Jaredites), around 2500 B.C. Archaeologists now make distinction between the Olmec, the ancient people of the Caribbean side of Mexico, and the people of the central highlands of Mexico (valleys of Puebla and Tlaxcala, and those of the west coast of Mexico. It appears that although these people shared similar cultural traits and habits, they were considered distinct and separate "countries."
Graham Hancock reports in Fingerprints of the Gods, "Though it was not known who had been the first builders here, as far as it had been possible to establish the earliest major edifice on the site consisted of a tall conical pyramid, shaped like an upturned bucket, flattened at the summit where a temple had stood." Although this pyramid is inaccessible to the public--being covered by the many others built over it--another round spiral pyramid nearby is not. One of three pyramids at the site of Xochitecatl, just seven miles from Cholula, stands clearly visible as a round, spiral type (see illustration). [Jerry L. Ainsworth, The Lives and Travels of Mormon and Moroni, pp. 48-53] [See the commentary on Alma 22:30]
Ether 6:13 They went forth upon the face of the land (Illustration): Map 2. (Ainsworth Geographical Theory). The landing site of the Jaredites and first landing site of Mulekites. Final landing site of Mulekites. Landing site of Lehi. [Jerry L. Ainsworth, The Lives and Travels of Mormon and Moroni, p. 49]
Ether 6:13 They went forth upon the face of the land ([Illustration]): (22) the "land of the white caps"--snow covered volcanoes in Puebla, Mexico (Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl). (23) The "land of the smoking mountains"--smoking volcano in Puebla, Mexico (Popocatepetl). [Jerry L. Ainsworth, The Lives and Travels of Mormon and Moroni, p. 50]
Ether 6:13 They went forth upon the face of the land ([Illustration]): (26) A round, spiral pyramid at Xochitecatl, seven miles from Cholula. [Jerry L. Ainsworth, The Lives and Travels of Mormon and Moroni, p. 52]