The project,—called "Olinia," meaning "movement" in the indigenous Nahuatl language—was announced last October, but President Claudia Sheinbaum provided the first details earlier this month.

Popocatepetl, which means 'Smoking Mountain' in the Aztec Nahuatl language, is the second-highest peak in Mexico and one of the country's most famous volcanoes, known for its frequent eruptions.

But then, two years ago, pages of the manuscript were projected onto the big screen at a Nahuatl conference at Harvard University where experts of the Aztec language had gathered, their first ...