Showing posts with label Aztec. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aztec. Show all posts

Mar 6, 2015

Interesting Time Facts

In 1903 the Wright brothers successfully flew a plane for 59 seconds. 66 years later Apollo 11 landed on the moon in 1969.

Teaching started in Oxford in 1096 and by 1249, the University was officially founded. The Aztec civilization, as we know it began with the founding of Tenochtitlán in 1325.

Ten percent of photos ever taken were taken during the past 12 months.

The Chicago Cubs baseball team last won a world series in 1908, before women were allowed to vote, which came during 1920.

If you were born in 1968, the world population was 3,557,000,000. Today, the world population has more than doubled from then and is 7,217,000,000.

Sep 26, 2014

What's in a Name, Avocado

The original name for avocado is Ahuacatl, an Aztec word which means testicle. The avocado tree is originated from Central America and Mexico. The plant is cultivated in countries with very warm or hot climates. The fruit, when ripened, is very tasty and is used in many savory dishes. It can also be used as an aphrodisiac to stimulate the sex drive.

The fruit consists 67% fat and mostly made up of oleic acid and monounsaturated fat. An oil is extracted from the fat found in this fruit, and can be used in cosmetics, lubricants, and cooking oil. Avocado oil is also used in the manufacturing of numerous skin-care products.

Feb 26, 2013

Fascinating Aztec Facts

The Westerners who came up with the name Aztecs likely took it from one of the original places that the Aztecs lived around the twelve century, called Aztlan, which was in the Northern part of Mexico. However, the Aztecs themselves actually referred to themselves as Mexica, which is actually where the name for the country of Mexico originally came from.

The Aztecs had their own language called N’ahuatl. The alphabet for this language was a form of picture writing. Knowledge about how to write things down was very specialized and was mostly performed by learned scribes and priests who had the needed training.

Records were kept on paper made of bark, or deer skin. The writing was usually performed using charcoal and then colored with vegetables and other substances. They kept tax records, historical records, records of religious sacrifices and other ceremonies and even poetry. Sometimes they put their writings together in a makeshift book that they called a codice.

Aztec men were allowed to have more than one wife, however, there were certain strict rules governing these relationships. The first wife the man took was considered his “principal” wife, and was the only one he went through marriage ceremonies with. The other wives were secondary, but still recognized in the official records. While the first wife was considered the most important, the man was still expected to treat all of his wives with equal respect. The man was the head of the household, but women still had power in the relationship and were well treated in Aztec society. Extra wives contributed to the wealth of the family and were considered a mark of great status and afforded them a high position in the culture. The Aztecs allowed divorce in some situations, but adultery by either party was punishable by death.

While the Aztecs put strong emphasis on parents teaching their children properly, they also had mandatory public schooling for all children. Those of a noble class had different schools to attend and schools were also separated by gender. Boys of nobility would be sent to the Calmecac School where they learned from the priests about history, astronomy, art, and how to govern and lead. Boys of lower caste were sent to the Cuicacalli School, which was much more focused on preparing them for possible service in the military as warriors. Girls were sent to separate schools and much more of their education was focused at home where they were taught domestic duties such as cooking and weaving.