The Aztec Civilization and Its Attributes

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Pipiltin and Macehuaultin
Mayeques, Tlacotins and Tlatoques
The Triple Alliance, Calmecac, and Telpochcalli
Death: The Three Afterlife Places
The Fifth World of Creation and Four Previous Worlds
Human Sacrifice and Huitzilopochtli
Conclusion
Work Cited

Introduction

The Aztecs were a civilization that dwelled in Central Mexico. They constituted various ethnic groups who spoke Nahuatl language. They were structured in cities that joined to form Empires. Their cultures included economic activities such as maize cultivation and divisions among social classes. The major attributes of the Aztec civilization are as follows.

Pipiltin and Macehuaultin

The Pipiltin were referred to as the nobles in the Aztec society. They received tribute from commoners on their land. Macehualtin were the vast majority of the commoners in the Mexica Empire. They worked in the lands of calpulli called chinampas (Vigil 31). Both families maintained their rights over the land within the duration of its productivity, with the grace period of unproductivity set up to two years.

Mayeques, Tlacotins and Tlatoques

The macaques were commoners who worked on the private land that belonged to the nobles. The supreme master was not entitled to a tribute from them except if the land that they lived in belonged to him. Tlacotins were slaves who provided urban labor to the nobles. They achieved status through criminal acts and gambling. The Tlatoques were the leaders since they were the most familiar with people (Vigil 33). They, the natural leaders, are selected to make decisions with people’s consent.

The Triple Alliance, Calmecac, and Telpochcalli

The city-states involved in founding the Triple Alliance were Tlacopan, Tenochtitlan, and Texcoco. The armies expanded past the land and gathered vast resources and neighboring territories under their authority. The Telpochalli were places where young men were prepared for war and community service(Vigil 38). The Calmecac were schools attended to enhance intellect and spirit. The Calmecac brought together the sacred and political elites.

Death: The Three Afterlife Places

According to the Aztec society, the souls of the dead went to heaven, a neutral purgatory, and the Sun. The Souls of the fallen warriors would later dwell in heaven, where they would be awarded beautiful birds and sunshine (Vigil 41). Most souls would end up in a neutral purgatory. This is the place where people who would die of less glorious causes would end up.

The Fifth World of Creation and Four Previous Worlds

The Aztec Creation Myth states that the world has been created and destroyed four times. The current world was called El Quinto Sol or the Fifth Sun (Vigil 42). Inhabitants of the first world were giants and ended when they were devoured by jaguars. The second world was populated by humans and was brought to an end with massive floods and hurricanes. The third world was dominated by water and the people fed on seeds that grew on water and ended by raining fire. In the fourth world, people fed on maize and the world was ended by floods.

Human Sacrifice and Huitzilopochtli

Human sacrifices were part of the religious rituals performed in the Aztec culture. In a human sacrifice, the sacrificed individual would be cut by the priest in the abdomen (Vigil 42). The heart, which was still beating, would be held out to the sky in honor of Huitzilopochtli, the Sun god. The Aztecs believed that the hearts of the sacrificed would be fed to Huitzilopochtli, who kept the Sun moving to prevent darkness from winning to bring the world to an end.

Conclusion

The Aztecs practiced a rich culture in Central Mexico. The culture’s composition of social dominance hierarchies and governance methods guided the civilization through ages amidst war and calamities among other difficulties. It aided the pursuit of their economic activities and the preservation of their moral values.

Work Cited

Vigil, J. D. (2011). From Indians to Chicanos: The Dynamics of Mexican-American Culture, Third Edition. Amsterdam University Press.

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