Lesson 28: Daily life in Tenochtitlán

• Tenochtitlán was home to almost...

  200,000 people
• Aztec society was divided into five main social classes. An Aztec's status was not fixed and could change.
• tlatoani


  "he who speaks" - the ruler
• Ruler


  • chosen by advisers (not hereditary)
  • expected to acquire wealth of his own
  • semidivine
• Gov. officials


  • counseled the emperor
  • worked as judges
  • governed the 4 districts
  • (some nobles): rules cities, collected tribute, managed the construction of public buildings and roads
  • not hereditary
• Priests


  • conducted religious rites
  • served individual gods
  • ran schools for training boys in government and priesthood
  • predictions about the future
• Military leaders


  commanded groups of soldiers and took part in war councils
• Commoners


  several smaller classes, hereditary position
• Pochteca


  • highest-ranking of the commoners
  • professional traders
  • caravans to faraway places
  • spies for the emperor on what a city would have to offer for tribute
• Craftspeople & Artisans


  • trade at market
  • make items for the ruler in the royal palace
• Ward


  a political unit within a city, often a neighborhood
• Most commoners worked as farmers, fishers, laborers, and servants. They were loaned plots of land for homes and farms by their calpulli (ward) and in return, they paid tribute in the form of crops, labor, or manufactured goods.
• Peasants


  • inferior to commoners
  • served nobles
• Slaves


  • prisoners of war, lawbreakers, debtors
  • able to own property, goods, and other slaves
  • non-hereditary
  • emancipated after paying off debt, completing term of punishment for crime, or when their masters died
• Commoners could rise to roles of respect within society.


  True
• The ruler could demand respect as he was believed to be semidivine.


  True
• Women could house prestigious roles in Aztec society.


  True
• Marriage marked a...


  child's entry to adulthood
• Commoners made weddings elaborate as they could...


  afford
• Matchmaker


  usually an old lady who approaches the bride's family
• Marriages were arranged by the...


  bride's & groom's families
• Men were permitted to have multiple spouses, however...


  there was only one significant wife who's marriage to was celebrated with special rites and ceremonies
• Either spouse could ask for a divorce:


  1. Divorce wife - neglected her duties at home, had a bad temper, didn't bear any children
  2. Divorce husband - beat his wife, deserted her, failed to support her and her children
• Dowry


  money or goods a woman brought to her husband upon marriage
• Steps of arranging an Aztec marriage:


  1. The man's family chooses the bride
  2. A matchmaker is hired
  3. The bride's family refuses the arrangement
  4. The bride's family accepts the arrangement
  5. The dowry is set
• Telpochcalli / "House of Youth"


  where boys trained to be soldiers
• Calmecac


  where sons of nobles went to learn how to become priests, government officials, or military commanders
• Men


  *Master of the house

  • built the house
  • farmed
  • worked at a craft
• Women


  *Child bearer

  • own property
  • market goods (handmade cloaks
  • matchmaking & midwifery
• Boys


  • attended school
  • fetched water and wood
  • fished
  • handled canoes
• Girls


  • running and cleaning a home
  • grinding maize
  • weaving
• Aztecs believed the purpose of marriage was to...


  have children
• A woman's role in giving birth was honored equally to a man's role in fighting.
• The Aztecs of Tenochtitlán ate both homegrown foods and foods imported from distant places.
• Maize


  torillas, tamales, atole
• To provide meat for special occasions, families might raise a few turkeys or hunt wild game, such as rabbits and pigeons.
• Aztec farmers grew crops:


  red peppers, tomatoes, sage, squash, green beans, sweet potatoes, avocados
• When crops were bad, the Aztecs ate

  frogs, shrimp, insect eggs, algae
• The wealthy enjoyed delicacies.


  winged ants, axolotls, cocoa, pineapples, oysters, crabs
• The Aztecs used the barter system at markets.


  True