Strictly speaking
macuahuitlan are spiked clubs, even though they're shaped more like a sword.

(I'm still a little piqued about
dāo being translated "machete" in
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, though I admit that I can't offer a better one that would clearly contrast it with a
jiàn such as the Green Destiny. For people familiar with Chinese weaponry, simply calling it a "dao" would have been sufficient, but in English any of
broadsword,
saber, or
machete carry the wrong connotation--but of the three I think
machete was the worst choice.
Seax would have been the most technically correct but probably no more familiar to general audiences than
dao.)
Well, there is allegedly the legend of Quetzalcoatl coming to earth as a bearded white man, though most experts in the field think that's a little flourish Cortes made up himself.