The ancient Aztecs made their home in the Valley of Mexico, a fertile area nearly 8,000 ft. above sea level. Unfortunately, other tribes already claimed the area and forced the Aztecs to Lake Texcoco. The Aztecs knew they would settle here when they saw an eagle perched upon a cactus with a long snake in its beak like the prophecy. The island provided fish and water birds for food. In addition, the island was easy to defend.…
The Aztec’s claim to have originated from Aztlan, an island in a lake in northwestern Mexico. They were then led to central Mexico by Huitzilopochtli, the war god and the tangible representation of the sun (Coe and Koontz, 186). Huitzilopochtli became the Mexica’s most beloved and feared god. (religion which links to the war and human sacrifice that the Aztec’s highly valued and the political system in place-Aztec emperor).…
Aztecs lived a hard yet simplistic lifestyle.They were a society well ahead of their time, and revolved around their ritualistic ideologies. Tenochtitlan was a city-state located on an island in Lake Texcoco, in the Valley of Mexico. Founded in 1325, it became the capital of the Aztec Empire in the 15th century until captured by the Spanish in 1521.…
(Tlaloc) with the new patterns of worship the Mexica introduced to Central Mexico (focused on…
The Maya, Aztec, and Inca were three civilizations that lived in Latin America during the middle ages. It is hard to overlook the fact that they had remarkable similarities, but also some differences. Their class structures were similar, and they all valued religion. However, when it came to the roles and expectations of men and women, there are differences between the three races.…
The Aztec culture dates all the way back to the 13th century. Some say that a few Aztec people still survive, although they are not exactly “pure.” Their culture was derived from South America. In this research paper the plan is to inform and explain to the teacher that the Aztec were an impressive group of people for their time period because they were so advanced in science, agriculture and were far more civilized than people from other regions had assumed during that time period. What caused the collapse of such a refined empire?…
Humans estimated that the world came to existence at least 6 billion years ago. As the ‘natural’ mutations created living beings to make use of the earth’s natural resources. Within that category of living beings, all humans that live within their suitable environments. Humans are known to be nomadic or wanderers, that results in the creation of societies of people. Some of these people who are indigenous originate in and possess characteristics of a particular region or country. In 1498, Christopher Columbus said,” I have come to believe that this is a mighty continent which is hitherto unknown… Your Highness have Other World here,” when he discovered the Americas and its native people.…
One of the principle themes in the Aztec downfall was the immense greed of the Europeans. The principle goal of every major faction in Europe was to gain power and wealth it didn't matter from what source. Everyone from popes and kings to the lowly soldier envisioned rivers of gold and fame. Ever since they had boats Europeans have been looking for lucrative trade routes and other ways to turn a profit. The ruling monarchs of these countries contributed a great deal to this. They saw vast profits from these ventures through taxes and the customary " Royal Fifth" which was a fifth of all profits would go straight to the King and/or Queen. Also royalty or other nobility within the…
Aztec Moctezuma- was the ninth tlatoani or ruler of Tenochtitlan, reigning from 1502 to 1520. The first contact between indigenous civilizations of Mesoamerica and Europeans took place during his reign, and he was killed during the initial stages of the Spanish conquest of Mexico…
During the time period 600-1450 CE, the Aztec empire grew in size and importance. Although isolated from other areas and empires, they were able to sustain their empire and create a sturdy foundation. Europe, being the center of major trade and exchanges at the time, advanced as well. The Aztecs however we able to advance without the outside help Europe had. This shows the Aztecs were superior because they did not need help from outside sources to build and create ideas and cities that were similar.…
The concept of sacrifice is a fundamental basis of almost every religion. However, its manifestation in the form of human sacrifice is both more controversial and, as a result, rarely studied by anthropologists today. As one scholar observes: "The modern social anthropologist does not best endear himself to the elite of the Third World by an obsessive interest in how great-grandfather shrunk the heads he hunted or in the quality of the wood needed to burn great-grandmother alive" (Davies, 1981, p.13).…
Central and South America is said to have been first discovered in the late fifteenth century; however, to say that the land before this time was unknown to all of humanity would be a fallacy and a great insult to the three great ancient cultures that ruled before their European conquest. The Aztecs, Incas, and Mayans were three distinct groups of people that thrived in the Americas prior to their “discovery” and all have a diversely rich background full of people, tradition, and culture.…
The Aztec religion was a complex belief system. Its many aspects were intertwined with everyday Aztec life and the lives of other cultures that surrounded the Aztec empire. Their pantheon of gods, their temples, their priests and rituals were well known throughout the empire, and are still known today. The Aztec religion led the Mexica to their homeland, impacted their relations with other cultures, and in part, caused their fall.…
Imagine Living in a city called Tenochtitlan, where your main power is blood from human sacrifices. The Aztecs lived in Mexico in the 1350-1519, their land that they owned was 80 miles from north to south and 49 miles from east to west. The Aztecs were creating a remarkable world-class society in the Americas. The Aztecs dominated the region around modern-day Mexico city. At their peak, they controlled the lives of some ten to 20 million people. Not always well loved by the other groups in the area, the Aztecs created a society that surprised and impressed the Spanish conquistadors who arrived in 1519. We begin our study of the Aztecs in 1519 because that is the year Hernan Cortes and 500 Spanish conquistadors came. However, we were interested in the…
Between the years of 1321 and 1521 c.e, the Aztec Empire of Central Mexico was the most powerful culture in the New World. The Aztecs ruled most of Mexico and some parts of Central America. The Aztecs weren’t always known as ‘Aztecs’. They used to be known as ‘Mexica’. This term was used when they were slaves for the Toltec Empire in Southern Mexico. The Toltec trained the Mexica for an army. War broke out between the Mexica and the Toltec. Using their knowledge from training, the Mexica won the war. That’s when they escaped into the swampy jungle of Central Mexico. They built their capital city a little after they escaped into the jungle. After they built their capital city, their empire grew and the Aztecs had at least 20 cities. The Aztecs were good at Math, Astronomy, Engineering, and Stone Construction Techniques. In 1519, Hernando Cotes, a Spanish explorer, arrived in Vera Cruz, Mexico. He arrived the same month and year that Quetzalcoatl, a god some Aztecs believed in, was to return. The Aztecs believed Cortes to be Quetzalcoatl. Cortes, along with his conquistadors, took over the Aztec Empire. To begin with, Cortes faked being Quetzalcoatl. He then imprisoned Moctezuma, an Aztec ruler, and seized control of Tenochtitlan. Tenochtitlan was eventually destroyed along with the entire Aztec Empire on August 13th, 1521 and Moctezuma was killed in 1524. The Aztecs were killed not only by the Spanish allies, but also from the diseases brought by the Spaniards. The Spaniards renamed the Aztec Capital, New Spain.…