Mexica

Mexica

Mexica (plural) Mexicatl (singular)
Music and dance during a One Flower ceremony, from the Florentine Codex
Total population
1 million + (Mexico) 370,000+ (United States)[1][2]
Regions with significant populations
Languages
Nahuatl, Spanish
Religion
Catholicism blended with traditional Mexica religion
Related ethnic groups
Other Nahua peoples

The Mexica (Nahuatl: Mēxihcah, Nahuatl pronunciation: [meːˈʃiʔkaḁ] ^ⓘ;^[3] singular Mēxihcātl) are a Nahuatl-speaking people of the Valley of Mexico who were the rulers of the Triple Alliance, more commonly referred to as the Aztec Empire. The Mexica established Tenochtitlan, a settlement on an island in Lake Texcoco, in 1325. A dissident group in Tenochtitlan separated and founded the settlement of Tlatelolco with its own dynastic lineage. In 1521, their empire was overthrown by an alliance of Spanish conquistadors and rival indigenous nations, most prominently the Tlaxcaltecs. The Mexica were subjugated under the Spanish Empire for 300 years, until the Mexican War of Independence overthrew Spanish dominion in 1821. In the 21st century, the government of Mexico broadly classifies all Nahuatl-speaking peoples as Nahuas, making the number of Mexica people living in Mexico difficult to estimate.^[4]

Since 1810, the name "Aztec” has been more common when referring to the Mexica and the two names have become largely interchangeable.^[5] When a distinction is made, Mexica are one (dominant) group within the Aztecs.