Life of the Aztecs

The Aztecs arrived in Mexico while wandering at about 1300 A.D. They spoke the Nahuatl language and dominated large parts of the Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries. A group that was once nomadic, the Mexicas, peopled them. Once settled, they began to build their city. The city of Tenochtitlan would turn out to be one of the biggest cities in the world. Years after the people of Mexica built their city Tenochtitlan, they formed an alliance with the Texcoco (Tetzcoco) and Tlacopan. This three-way coalition was to govern the Valley of Mexico until the Spanish arrived.

The Tenochtitlan, overtime, would become extremely powerful.

They also practiced a remarkable religion that governed every part of their lives and featured human sacrifice. The Aztecs built towering temples, created huge sculptures, and held impressive ceremonies all for the purpose of worshipping their gods. According to Aztec mythology the top three gods were; Huitzilopochtili (or "hummingbird wizard), Tezcatlipoca ("smoking mirror") and Quetzalcoatl ("sovereign plumed serpent"). Aztec sacrifices were an important part of their religion. At the source of these rituals was the belief that the gods needed to be sustained by human beings. This was achieved through human blood.

The Aztec peoples also had a valued culture that carried some of the basic elements we see through out most Indigenous populations. One of the most appreciated aspects of life for the Aztecs was the importance of family. The basis of their community was the family unit, therefor all families were divided into different groups so that the community was more structured in away that promoted the communities welfare rather than the individual's. The base family contained one set of parents and their unmarried children. The main functions of the base family unit were education of the children and food preparation. Many base family units banded together to form extended families. The households of extended families were usually composed of several brothers and their families. The primary functions of the extended families were to coordinate land use and food production (such as growing crops). In most cases, extended families contained just a few base family units but in large cities they had many.

Aztec food was a rich combination of many foods, which we take for granted today. Maize (also called corn) was the staple grain of the Aztec empire. Their food also included beans, coffee and squash. Music and art were a major part of the Aztec existence. They were both linked to religion. They would use dance to perform for the gods. The dances that took place were intended to represent something from the past and would be in the form of a play. They would also portray there past gods. The females wore skirts that would wrap around their waist while men wore loincloths and usually wearing a poncho over it. Men carried