Detail of first page from the Boturini Codex, depicting the departure from Aztlán. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
A lot of people still picture the Aztecs as a warlike, barbaric race. But in case you didn’t know, the ancient Aztecs had an incredibly complex social structure and believed strongly in education, family, and art. True, they did practice ritual human sacrifice, but there is more to the Aztecs than first meets the eye. For example, did you know that it was Westerners who first came up with the name “Aztecs”? It’s true – the name is not one the Aztecs ever used to describe themselves, but was theoretically taken from one of the original places the Aztecs dwelt called Aztlan. They actually referred to themselves as “Mexica,” the precursor to the name of modern-day Mexico.
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