Transcript The Atzec Empire

The Atzec Empire
• Vocabulary
– chinampas: human-made islands
– tribute: taxes paid to rulers
– Triple Alliance: Aztec joined forces with two other
cities, Texcoco and Tlacopan- powerful group and
gained control of the entire Valley of Mexico
– codex: folded sheets with colorful pictures and
symbols
Where the Aztec Lived
• Hundreds of years after the Olmec and Maya
people lost their power the Aztec began
building their empire
• Great capital city= Tenochtitlan= modern day
Mexico City
• The Aztec did their record keeping on codex
Aztec Settlement
• In the 1100’s the Aztec came to the Valley of
Mexico
• They settled on an island in the center of Lake
Texcoco after receiving a “sign”
• Legend has it that an eagle flew from the sky,
perched atop a cactus, and began eating a snake.
The Aztec believed it was a “sign” telling them to
build their city there.
• Tenochtitlan means: “place of the prickly pear
cactus”
Creating Farmland
• The Aztec developed a system of agriculture to
deal with the poor land around them
• They carved canals through the marshland
• The land in the lake was piled up to create small
islands about the size of a football field- called
chinampas
• Farmers grew squash, tomatoes, chili peppers,
and flowers
• Maize (the most important crop) was grown in
fields on the lake shore
Building a City
• 3 out of 4 Aztec worked as farmers
• Others worked to make stone buildings to
replace reed huts
• Others built 3 long bridges that were used to
connect the island to the lake shore
Housing
Rulers
• Lived in grand palaces
surrounded by luxurious
gardens
• Some even had their own
zoo!
Most People
• Lived in one-room stone or
mud houses
• Had to pay tribute (taxes) to
the rulers