“Aztecs” is a scholarly umbrella for ruling elites and populations of the Triple Alliance (Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, Tlacopan) in 15th–early 16th century Central Mexico; ethnolinguistically they are Nahua, speakers of Nahuatl. Religion was polytheistic—Huitzilopochtli, Tlaloc, Tezcatlipoca, Quetzalcoatl—with intertwined 260- and 365-day calendars. Personality traits cannot be generalized, but sources stress communal reciprocity, discipline, ritual duty, and everyday hospitality. Alcohol was regulated: pulque permitted for elders and rituals, public drunkenness punished; psychoactives (teonanácatl mushrooms, ololiuhqui morning glory, peyotl) were confined to strictly controlled rites. Sport included the Mesoamerican ballgame; today football and basketball are popular. Governance ran from calpolli kin-wards to city-states (altepetl); the tlatoani ruled with a noble council and the cihuacoatl (chief administrator). Stratification comprised pipiltin nobility, macehualtin commoners, pochteca merchants, artisans, dependent mayeque, and tlacotin slaves.

History
According to tradition, the Mexica migrated from Aztlan and founded Tenochtitlan in 1325 on islands of Lake Texcoco. In the 15th century under Itzcoatl, Moctezuma I, and ideologue Tlacaelel, the Triple Alliance expanded, integrating regions via tribute and warfare. The capital reached about 200–250 thousand inhabitants, linked by causeways and aqueducts; chinampa fields delivered high yields. In 1519–1521 Hernán Cortés—backed decisively by Tlaxcala and other imperial rivals, and amid epidemics (smallpox in 1520)—conquered the city on August 13, 1521. Colonial rule transformed institutions, yet Nahua communities retained language, customs, and communal lands, adapting to new religious and administrative frameworks.

Name
“Aztec” derives from “Aztlan,” the mythic point of origin. The rulers and citizens of the capital called themselves Mexica (Tenochca), while the broader language family is Nahua. “Mexico” itself comes from Mexica, giving the country and capital their names.

Occupations
Precolonial livelihoods centered on agriculture (maize, beans, amaranth, squash, chili), chinampas, crafts (obsidian, ceramics, textiles, featherwork), and long-distance pochteca trade (cacao, cotton, jade). Tribute systems redistributed goods to the capital. Today Nahua people engage in mixed economies—farming and gardening, wage labor, crafts, tourism, and education—alongside language and cultural revitalization.

Physical description
Aztecs are Indigenous Mesoamericans. Descriptions note dark hair, brown eyes, skin tones from light to deep olive, and pre-Columbian male stature around 1.60–1.65 m (modern averages higher due to nutrition and healthcare). Phenotypes vary by region and centuries of intermarriage; rigid “racial” categories are misleading.

Geographic distribution
The historic core lies on the Central Mexican Plateau: Valley of Mexico and present-day States of Mexico, Morelos, Puebla, Hidalgo, Veracruz, Guerrero. Imperial influence extended to both coasts. Today Nahua communities are concentrated in central and eastern Mexico, with related Pipil/Nawat in El Salvador and diasporas in Mexican cities and the United States.

Wars and conflicts
The empire waged regular campaigns for tribute and captives; “flower wars” with Tlaxcala and Huejotzingo served ritual and political aims. Military orders of Jaguar and Eagle warriors, weapons like the obsidian-edged macuahuitl, darts with atlatl, shields, and quilted cotton armor defined their forces. Internal tensions arose over taxation and successions. Spanish victory depended on Indigenous alliances and epidemic disease.

Population
On the eve of conquest, populations in the imperial realm numbered in the millions; estimates for Mesoamerica range widely into the tens of millions. The 16th century saw 70–90% demographic collapse from Old World diseases (smallpox, measles, typhus) and social disruption. In modern Mexico, Nahuatl speakers number roughly 1.5–1.7 million, with stabilization or growth in some regions due to revitalization efforts and natural increase.

Traditions, rites, and festivals
Calendrics combined the 260-day tonalpohualli and the 365-day xiuhpohualli (18 “months” of 20 days plus 5 “empty” days). Festivals featured dances, offerings, and pageantry. Burials included both inhumation and cremation with grave goods. Sacrifice—from animals to humans—fit a cosmology of sustaining the sun and gods; today Nahua communities celebrate syncretic Catholic–Indigenous feasts, the Day of the Dead, and local patron-saint festivals.

Myths and legends
Core myths include migration from Aztlan, the eagle on a cactus over water as the omen to found Tenochtitlan, the “Five Suns” world ages, Huitzilopochtli’s birth at Coatepec, and Quetzalcoatl as culture hero and bringer of arts and calendars.

Notability
Noted figures: Itzcoatl (reformer), Moctezuma I and Ahuitzotl (expanders), Moctezuma II (at contact), Tlacaelel (architect of ideology), Nezahualcoyotl of Texcoco (poet-king). La Malintzin (Malinche) mediated between Cortés and Indigenous polities. Foundational sources include Sahagún’s Florentine Codex; Aztecs appear in Rivera’s murals, novels, and popular media, from historical fiction to strategy games. Contemporary Nahua voices include poet-activist Natalio Hernández Xocoyotzin.

Food
Staples were maize (tortillas, tamales, atole), beans, squash, amaranth, chili, tomato; proteins from turkey, lake fisheries, and insects; beverages included cacao “chocolatl,” pulque, and pozolli. Many foods—maize, tomatoes, cacao, vanilla—went global.

Clothing
Men wore the maxtlatl (loincloth) and tilmatli cloak; women wore skirts and huipiles. Fabrics ranged from maguey fiber to cotton; elites favored fine textiles, quetzal feathers, and jewelry; sandals were cactli. Warrior regalia signaled rank and order.

Tourism
Key sites: the Templo Mayor ruins and museum in Mexico City, the National Museum of Anthropology, Tlatelolco, Cholula (conquered by the Aztecs), Malinalco. Xochimilco’s chinampas host canal tours. Nahua regions offer cultural centers, featherwork and textile workshops, and food festivals.

Visitor etiquette
Treat sacred spaces and ceremonies with respect; ask permission before photographing people or rituals. Support local artisans directly. Avoid jokes or sensationalism about sacrifice and conquest; these are sensitive histories. Do not remove artifacts or damage sites. A few words in Nahuatl and Spanish are warmly received.