Development of Aztec Civilization - Essay Example

Aztec Civilization Contents Introduction. 2. Who are the Aztecs? 3. The economy and way of life of the Aztecs. 4. The Aztec culture. 5. Conclusion. 1. There were some very important and highly developed civilizations in our history which influenced the general development of mankind: the Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Ancient Rome, China, and the Ancient Greece. The civilization of Aztecs has been studied not so well as the other ones, and the reason of that is the lack of material sources. But in spite of that we know the most important facts about their history and way of life. We also know that the Aztecs greatly influenced the history of Latin America and contributed much in the whole development of our civilization. It was the result of historical, geographic and other reasons – they made Aztec and some other civilizations achieve rather highly developed society: “In such environments arose two of the advanced societies of ancient America: the Aztec and Inca civilizations” (Keen, 1955, p.1). This article will give a short description of the Aztecs, their economy, way of life, and it will prove the thesis about the great importance of Aztec civilization for the development of the world history. 2. Hooker wrote that “The term, Aztec, is a startlingly imprecise term to describe the culture that dominated the Valley of Mexico in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries” (Hooker, 1996). They were native Americans and dominated the vast territory in northern Mexico by the time of the Spanish invasion under Hernan Cortes which took place in the beginning of the 16th century. The true origin of the Aztecs is still uncertain, but it is concerned that they lived on the territory of to the north of the Valley of Mexico, or in the Southwestern United States. They created vast empire and dominated a lot of peoples on its territory: “Fearless warriors and pragmatic builders, the Aztecs created an empire during the 15th century that was surpassed in size in the Americas only by that of the Incas in Peru” (The Aztecs/Mexicans). So, by the time of the Spanish conquest the Aztecs had high developed economy and traditional way of life which became the result of their progressive development. 3. The capital of the Aztecs, Tenochtitlan, was the greatest city in Mexico, but there were also other cities in the empire. The Aztecs had rather strong class structure which determined their way of life. The highest social class was nobility, or the pilli. Originally the class system was not hereditary, but later, by the time of the Spanish, it took on hereditary aspects. The lowest social class of the Aztecs was slaves, but slaves had opportunities to become free by some ways. The second class was peasants. But they were only about twenty percent of the population. The great amount of people were warriors, merchants, artists and craftsmen. Priests were also one of the most important classes in the empire. The Aztec economy was based on the slave work and trade of different goods: “The city itself consisted of a large number of priests and craftspeople; the bulk of the economy rested on extensive trade of both necessary and luxury items” (Hooker, 1996). Their usual food consisted of squash, beans, maize, cocoa and other crops as well as some kinds of insects with large protein content. Beans also were a kind of money for the Aztecs. The Aztecs had a very expansive trade and tribute system which made their state the strong empire. Agriculture and trade became the basis of their economic system. The Aztecs had also a highly developed law system which made their way of life rather strict: “Aztec laws were simple and harsh. Almost every crime, from adultery to stealing, was punished by death and other offences usually involved severe corporal punishment or mutilation (the penalty for slander, for instance, was the loss of ones lips)” (Hooker, 1996). According to their way of life, women couldn’t participate in social activity. Only boys could go to school and be involved in education. 4. The Aztec civilization is known by some features of its cultural life. First of all, it is concerned that human sacrifice was common in the empire of the Aztecs: “The overwhelming aspect of Aztec religious life in the imaginations of non-Aztecs was the predominance of human sacrifice. This had been practiced all throughout the Mesoamerican world, but the Tenochca practiced it at a scale never seen before or since” (Hooker, 1996). The priests of the Aztecs supposed that only human sacrifices would nourish their gods. The pantheon of Aztec gods was rather rich, and religion was a very important part of their life. The great amount of gods governed certain activities. Most of the gods were connected to farming, ancestor heroes and natural elements: Ehecatl (the god of the wind), Quetzalcoatl (the god of learning), Centeotl (the god of corn), Tlaloc (the god of rain) and many others. Only males could be priests. Calculation of time was tightly connected with the religious system of the Aztecs. They had several calendars, and each day was under control of two gods. So, scientific achievements of the Aztecs were also linked with their religious knowledge. In addition to that, the art of the Aztecs was developed rather high. Poetry and songs contests took place at the festivals of the Aztecs. Some of the poetry and other kinds of art survived, and we can value the scale of the development of the Aztec civilization art and culture. 5. As was shown above, the Aztec civilization was rather high developed. Its influence was spread to vast territory. Their level of economic development made the Aztec empire one of the strongest states in that time. The cultural development of the Aztecs influenced further development of Mexico. The Spanish conquest put an end to Aztec civilization existing, but in spite of that many Aztec economic, cultural, and religious traditions survived. They remained huge cultural legacy which is displayed in numerous items even today. Sources The Aztecs/ Mexicas. (Retrieved from http://www.indians.org/welker/aztec.htm ) Hirst K., Aztecs and the Aztec Civilization. (Retrieved from http://archaeology.about.com/od/aterms/g/aztec.htm) Hooker R. The Mexica/Aztecs; 1996. (Retrieved from http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/CIVAMRCA/AZTECS.HTM) Keen B., Readings in Latin-American Civilization: 1492 to the Present; Boston, 1955. Read More