Abstract This paper examines the defeat of the Aztecs by the Spanish conquistadors. It considers the significance of military technology, religious beliefs and the Aztec lack of resistance to Old World diseases, with the last being the most crucial factor in the conquest.
From the Paper "The defeat of the Aztec Empire by a couple of hundred Spanish conquistadors under Cortez is one of the most dramatic and one-sided wars of conquest in history equaled perhaps only by the contemporary..."
Abstract This paper discusses the Aztec practice of human sacrifice and cannibalism. It explains this practice and explains how widespread the practice was. It explores the Aztec belief in the religious significance of human sacrifice.
From the Paper "The Aztecs were constantly at war with neighboring tribes and groups. One goal of this warfare was to collect prisoners for human sacrifice. It is estimated that the Aztecs sacrificed approximately people per year. The best known of these religious sacrifices involved taking captives to the top of a temple pyramid where their hearts were cut from their chests. The bodies of the victims were then tossed down the steps of the pyramids. As gruesome as this is, many people believe that human sacrifice in the Aztec ..."
Abstract This paper examines how early in the fourteenth century, the Aztec people arrived in the Valley of Mexico and how they rose from squatters to mercenaries to become the dominant state in pre-Columbian Mexico. It also looks at how Tenochtitlan, their capital city, flourished until 1519, with the arrival of the Spaniards and how eventually, the entirety of Aztec civilization was brought to its knees by the Spanish invaders.
From the Paper "As the Aztec people rose to become a more successful state through military conquests, they also improved upon farming methods. They converted the highly fertile marsh lands into the largely successful chinampa system. They piled rows of mud and other materials, dug canals in between the raised piles, then planted willow trees around the perimeter to fortify their gardens. The results were long, rectangular patches of land, known as chinampas surrounded by marshy water which resembled floating gardens. The farmers would regularly apply soil from the bottom of the canals to the surface of the chinampas to rejuvenate the nutrients of the gardens. "
Abstract This paper traces the origins and developments of the Aztec Empire from their humble roots in southern Mexico. The author traces their developments over some 1000 years.
From the Paper "The Aztecs were Central American Indian people who invaded central and southern Mexico and took control. As they grew in political status, they became sophisticated and civilized, learning from established peoples who had been town dwellers for more than 1,000 years. There are many myths and legends concerning these people called the Aztecs (Mayo 49). Some people describe the pyramids they built, the wars they waged and the human sacrifices they made. It has been said that their Emperor Montezuma was terrible and savage in his deeds (49). The Aztecs had a great civilization with a wealthy and diverse history. Fortunately, much of this history was preserved and recorded for us by early priest, conquistadors, Spanish chroniclers, and the Aztec themselves (49). "
Abstract This paper traces the fascinating history of the third largest Native American tribe in America, the Sioux. It shows the way the Sioux have fared socially, culturally and economically as a tribe living among a white majority in the United States. he paper also examines the book, "Land of the Spotted Eagle", by Luther Standing Bear in which he offers an analysis of his people, the Lakota Sioux, including their relations with the white government. Finally, the paper examines the means in which the Sioux, as well as other Native American tribes, are struggling to maintain their cultural identity in America today.
From the Paper "Various Native American groups have been pressing for greater respect through legal and other efforts to remove Native American symbols and names from schools, sports teams, and even geographical features. The issue was raised recently with reference to the University of North Dakota, whose mascot and team are known as the Fighting Sioux (Brownstein 46). The issue is not always clear-cut. One term that has been given much attention recently is "squaw," a word once used by white settlers to refer to Indian wives and that is found on hundreds of place names in the country, from rivers to valleys to mountain peaks to town names. An example is Squaw Peak, a familiar Phoenix landmark targeted for change by Native American groups. They claim that the word "squaw" is derogatory to tribal members and all other women, pointing out that the word is derived from an Indian word for female genitalia."
Abstract This paper examines both what the Sioux cultures were like before European contact as well as what that culture has evolved into. The paper focuses on the music of this people set within a broader artistic and cultural and even political context. The paper is broken down into four chapters: An introduction into the Sioux people, their musical instruments, the songs of the people, and finally a larger cultural context. The final section of this paper examines the Sun Dance and the Ghost Dance as the two most important single types of musical performance.
From the Paper "Traditional Sioux of the last century ? or the centuries before ? would have found the entire idea of putting on their best clothes and going to a concert hall to listen ? as relatively passive observers ? to a musical performance extremely odd. For them, as for other native peoples of the Americas (and arguably other native peoples throughout the world before the onset of industrialization) music was something that was integrated into the fabric of ritual and everyday life."
Abstract This paper looks at how the Aztec people took their religion very seriously and how they were one of the first groups of people to make up their own calendar and how they worshiped hundreds of gods and goddesses. It discusses some of their beliefs and rituals and evaluates how the importance of the gods and goddesses as well as the importance and significance of calendars are incorporated into these religious beliefs.
Outline
The Religion of the Aztecs Introduction
The Aztec Calendar System
Aztec Beliefs
Primary Gods
Rites and Ceremonies
Conclusion
Works Cited
From the Paper "Aztecs worshiped in temples that were either round or shaped like pyramids (Gregoire, 2003). Many of these temples had special areas that were used for games and other forms of offerings. These included special courts for playing ball games, and an area with sacrificial stones. The Aztecs normally followed a ritual of purification, then offering, then sacrifice. They believed that sacrifice was intrinsic to the worship of the gods, and that it was a necessity because there could be no new life without death. Death was part of the great circle of life, and the Aztecs had opinions about what happened to a person when they died. According to the Aztecs, where you went in death depended on what you had done in life (Perkin, 10)."
Abstract This paper gives a brief account of the origins, culture, society, and history of the Sioux Indians. The paper follows their history up to present-day conditions and talks briefly about Sioux society and culture today.
From the Paper "Of all the North American Indians that lived and survived on the prairies and plains, the Sioux are the most popular and widely known. Their area of habitation ranged from the Mississippi valley in the east to the Rocky Mountains of the west and from the Saskatchewan River in Canada to the Rio Grande in the south. The cultural traits which came to characterize the High Plains Indians were dependent on bison, a limited use of roots and berries, limited fishing, and the skillful use of bison and deerskin for clothing and shelter. However, this culture was also dependent upon the introduction of the horse and to a lesser extent on changes in tribal locations farther east, and "together with the introduction of firearms, the fur trade and the trading of goods, the Plains Indians experienced continuous change from the 17th century and well into the later years of the 19th century in America" (Lund, 67)."
Abstract The paper notes that throughout the history of the United States not all people have not been treated equally and that the Native-American peoples were forced from the homes and lands that they had always known and that were sacred to them. The paper highlights that today the United States devalues the Native-American peoples and their cultures. The paper discusses the Sioux tribes who made a monumental, but often forgotten, contribution to world and American history and discusses the Sioux lifestyle, culture, mode of livelihood and existence, as well as their rituals and religious beliefs, and their battles with the US.
From the Paper "Regardless of the extreme extent to which the United States devalues the Native American peoples and their cultures, from Inuit to Hopi, each has a culture that is now recognized as an important contributor to world and American history. While just one of the tribes who made this monumental, but often forgotten, contribution, the Sioux resided in the Great Planes areas of Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North and South Carolina. With a population of around 30,000 during the mid-1700s, the Sioux consisted of smaller tribes such as the Wahpekute, Mdewakantowan, Wahpetonwan, Sisitonwan, Ihanktonwan, and the Tetons".
Abstract This paper tries to understand the business practices and trade cultures of the Aztecs by looking at the environment in which the Aztecs lived, worked and raised their families. The paper briefly discusses the Aztec's ability to maintain their fundamental beliefs and practices relating to internal business affairs and trade despite Spanish colonization, as well as the natural geographical environment of the Mesoamericans and how this helped in creating innovations in farming and agriculture. The paper compares traders and merchants of the Aztec empire to today's merchants and also analyzes how the various economic systems and business practices that the Aztecs practiced, though primitive, allowed the various market sectors and regions to come together to create an extraordinarily dynamic economy.
From the Paper "Like many other Mesoamerican civilizations, the Aztecs relied heavily upon a variety of markets and business merchants to transport goods and commodities from the producer to the consumer. In this instance, the word "markets" does not connote what we today refer to as global and/or national markets, such as a country like Japan producing and marketing automobiles, televisions and audio equipment. Thus, "markets" refers to a physical space, such as a marketplace or agora as found in ancient Greece where buyers and sellers came together to exchange goods and services under the auspices of the reigning king or emperor."
Abstract This paper examines how, as a direct account of the life of an Oglala Sioux medicine man, the biography "Black Elk Speaks" lends a unique perspective to modern American audiences regarding the struggles of Native Americans during the country's tumultuous frontier era. It discusses how we are shown a rare perspective on the sacredness of life and how this includes an enormous respect and sense of comradery not only between Black Elk and his fellow man, but between the Sioux and all the living things in the world, as well as the spirits in the realm beyond.
From the Paper "Likewise, Black Elk's tribe is described in terms that are almost alien to our modern individualistic society. His people are depicted as the epitome of a united community: those living with him are not merely friends and relatives, but an extended family, his brothers and sisters in spirit. Men are hunters and soldiers, women the caregivers and domestic lynchpins, children the helpers and warriors-in-training. During religious celebration, each member plays a role in depicting the vision or bringing forth the spirits in dance and song. Everyone in the tribe has a role to play, a job to do, and they work together to succeed in doing it. "
This paper describes the unique civilization of the Aztecs, who lived in the land known today as Mexico and were conquered by the Spanish much like the Incas and the Mayas.
Abstract This paper explains that the Aztecs were known as "the people of the sun", which captures the meaning placed on the sun by the Aztecs and their way of life. The author points out that one interesting belief of the Aztecs, from their oral teachings, is their adaptation of the Nativity, as found in the Christian Bible, which the Aztecs called the "Spirit Child" and was recited accompanied by drums. The paper relates that one of the most mighty leaders of this civilization was Montezuma (1502-1521), who was an extraordinary builder; however, one week after the arrival of the Spanish, Emperor Montezuma was captured and the Spanish had gained total control of this great civilization.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Adaptation of the Nativity
Conquering Tenochtitlan
Montezuma
Everyday Life
Characteristics of the People
Religion
Human Sacrifice
Spanish Conquest
From the Paper "Everyday life in this city was also spectacular and unlike any day in present times. They awoke every morning to the sound of the giant drums. They would bathe in the canals of the city and the women would begin to make corn cakes for the day, today known as tortillas. They rarely ate breakfast, and would immediately set out to the fields to work. .... All of Aztec life depended on the peasant farmer. He had to grow all of the basic foods of the nation; corn, beans, peppers, and squash. This he did with no expensive machines, or extra workers, and he produced the same amount of crops that the southern sharecropper makes today."
Abstract This paper reviews and discusses the history of the Aztecs and the development of the Aztec society. According to the paper, the Aztecs were not the first great civilization that inhabited the region of today's Mexico, but settled after many former cultures had passed and left their influence hundreds of years before the empire was built. The paper reports that like other cultures, the Aztecs started as a small group of people that managed to achieve power and riches through hard work and a vision of the future.
From the Paper "The lowest stage of society was a kind of peasant that was not allowed to have properties, was bound to the land of the nearby nobles and had the task of working it, in exchange for a portion of the harvest. A lower stage were the slaves, less in number and that achieved such condition only if they were war prisoners, had debts or committed crimes. A slave was similar to a paid servant. The children of the poor people could be sold as slaves, but it was usually for a determined period of time. The slaves had the right to buy their freedom."
Abstract The paper outlines the history of Aztec civilization. The paper explores several aspects of Aztec civilization including basic life/family life, government, religion, warfare and the economy of the Aztec people.
Outline:
Introduction
History of Aztec Civilization
Basic Life and Family Life
Government
Religion
Warfare
Economy
Conclusion
From the Paper "For the Aztec civilization family structure was a very important part of life. Marriage was an important aspect of life in Aztec civilization. For the most part women married as teenagers, while men were a bit older when they married. The marriages were usually arranged. It was not uncommon for men to have more than one wife but the first wife and her children were the only ones that could inherit wealth or become successors if the family was of Noble status.
"Upon becoming married, a couple was given land and a home was built. Pregnancy and Childbirth were also seen as a significant and symbolic time during marriage. The Aztec people related childbirth to a war. According to the article during pregnancy the baby was viewed as one being held captive by the womb. Childbirth was seen as a struggle and the baby was viewed as victorious when finally born. Childbirth was also seen as a struggle or battle for the mother and women who died in childbirth were honored in a way that was similar to a warrior who died in battle."
Abstract The great Aztec civilization was so foreign and so utterly isolated from other world civilizations, that, when the Spanish conquistadors first saw it, their emotions were a mixture of awe and horror. They were awed by the artistic, technological and social advances they witnessed; but they were horrified by their pagan ways, the human sacrifices and the cannibalism they saw. This paper examines the origins of the Aztecs, and examines this civilization in terms of mythology, agriculture, craft and religion. It also traces the destruction of the Aztecs by the Spaniards in the 16th Century.
From the Paper "As limited as the land devoted to producing maize was, animal sources of nutrition were even harder to come by. "Dogs, turkeys, and the Muscovy duck were the only domesticated animals in ancient Mesoamerica. All were used for food, but they made only a minor contribution to the Aztec diet." (Smith 2003:63). This situation is most closely analogous to the rice crop of eastern Asia, and contrasts sharply with the ancient West, where numerous animals were domesticated on a large scale for the purposes of nutrition. By virtue of their dependence upon maize, the Aztecs developed some of the most advanced farming techniques in the world."
