Do You Know The History of The Aztec Civilization?
Written by Regina Munch History Expert
Last updated · 6 min play time
The Aztec Empire, with its impressive architecture, agricultural innovation, and intriguing mythology, has an enormous influence on modern Mexico today. Find out what you know about the Aztecs!
The Aztec Empire, with its impressive architecture, agricultural innovation, and intriguing mythology, has an enormous influence on modern Mexico today. Mexico has about 1.7 million native speakers of the language of the Aztecs, and English has borrowed many words, traditions, and concepts from the Aztecs. Find out what you know about the Aztecs!
This quiz was expert written by Regina Munch. Regina has a master's degree in European history and the history of American foreign policy from Boston College. She loves learning and writing about history because it's never dead โ things from the past always have relevance to today, and we're discovering things about the past all the time.
Quiz written by
Regina MunchAztec Civilization Quiz Questions
20 Questions · 4.4K Plays · 1 Comment
Question 1
The Aztecs lived in what is today which country?
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ABrazil
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BCanada
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CPeru
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DMexico
Mexico
The Aztecs lived in what is today Mexico. Their culture is still massively influential on Mexican society.
Question 2
What was the language of the Aztec empire?
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AHindi
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BNahuatl
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CMongolian
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DChinese
Nahuatl
Nahuatl was the spoken lanaguage of the Aztec empire. Today it is spoken by about 1.5 million people.
Question 3
What we call the Aztec Empire was really an alliance among three major city-states with major cultural and ethnic differences. Which of these was NOT a major Aztec city?
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ATenochtitlan
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BBabylon
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CTexcoco
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DTlacopan
Babylon
The great cities of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan united to form what we call the Aztec empire. The term "Aztec" refers to a group of people who were often of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, but who traced their origin to a mythical land called Atzlan.
Question 4
What was the major sustaining crop of the Aztecs?
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AWheat
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BCattle
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CMaize
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DRice
Maize
Aztec society relied on the production of maize for its survival.
Question 5
The Mexica people were the founders of the great Aztec city of Tenochtitlan. According to legend, they had a vision of an eagle sitting on a cactus eating a snake, which revealed to them where to build their city. What year was Tenochtitlan founded?
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A1325 AD
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B1902 AD
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C1 AD
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D490 BC
1325 AD
The founding of the Aztec empire is traced to 1325 AD, when according to legend, they founded Tenochtitlan.
Question 6
What was the term for Aztec royalty?
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APatriarch
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BTlatoani
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CPharaoh
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DCzar
Tlatoani
The Aztec emperor was given the title tlatoani.
Question 7
When the cities of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan formed their unified alliance to create the Aztec Empire, what major enemy did they defeat to seal their power?
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AEgypt
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BUnited States
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CAzcapotzalco
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DGhana
Azcapotzalco
The Aztecs defeated the Azcapotzalco people, defeating one of their major obstacles to the unity of the empire.
Question 8
What shape is the Great Temple in Tenochtitlan?
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APyramid
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BSemicircle
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CObelisk
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DArena
Pyramid
Much like the temples and monuments of other civilizations, the Templo Mayor was built in the shape of a pyramid. It has two sections, dedicated to two god: the rain god and the war god.
Question 9
What did the Aztecs constructed islands to produce more food. What was NOT something the Aztecs consumed?
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ASquash
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BChilis
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CBeans
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DBeef
Beef
Beans, squash, and chilis were vital agricultural products, along with maize.
Question 10
The Aztec Empire was made up of many various conquered peoples, and so required a strong administrative state to keep going. What did the Aztec Empire demand as tribute?
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AGold
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BCeramics
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CCoca
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DLaborers
Laborers
The Aztecs would demand laborers from the people they conquered.
Question 11
Like other Mesoamerican cultures, the Aztecs practiced human sacrifice to placate deities. What did they do with a body after removing the heart?
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AMummify it
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BHang it on a wall
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CThrow it down the stairs of the temple
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DBury it under their crops
Throw it down the stairs of the temple
Although rites varied, often the body was thrown down the stairs of the temple after disembowelment.
Question 12
Aztec society was divided into two social classes: the pipiltin, or nobility, and the macehualtin, who were what?
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AArtists
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BSlaves
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CCommoners
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DPriests
Commoners
Those who weren't nobles, who made up only a small percentage of the population, were commoners engaged in agriculture and skilled crafts.
Question 13
An Aztec commoner could work his way up to nobility through what?
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AHaving many children
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BWorshipping the tlatoani
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CBecoming a good warrior
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DBeing seen praying at temple
Becoming a good warrior
Because the military was so important for keeping the empire going, if a commoner displayed skill as a warrior, he could be promoted into the nobility.
Question 14
Because the Aztecs had so much extra land for agriculture, they spent most of their time doing other things. What was NOT something that was produced by the Aztecs?
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ASwords
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BMusical instruments
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CCeramics
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DTextiles
Swords
They did have sword-like weapons, but they were made of wood.
Question 15
When the Spanish arrived in Aztec territory in 1519, who was the tlatoani?
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AMontezuma
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BRamses
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CJulius Caesar
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DAthena
Montezuma
Montezuma II was the tlatoani when the Spanish arrived in 1519.
Question 16
Who was the Aztec god of the sky?
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AZeus
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BOsiris
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CQuetzalcoatl
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DApollo
Quetzalcoatl
Quetzalcoatl, the god of the sky, was depicted as a snake-like creature with feathers.
Question 17
What Spanish conquistador led the attack on the Aztecs?
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AMarco Polo
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BHercules
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CHernan Cortes
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DIbn Battuta
Hernan Cortes
Hernan Cortes, a Spanish conquistador, conquered the Aztecs on behalf of the Spanish crown.
Question 18
What disease eradicated major portions of the Aztec population after contact with Europeans?
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AMono
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BSmallpox
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CMeasles
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DCancer
Smallpox
The Spanish took advantage of a weakened empire, which had suffered from smallpox. The Aztecs had no immunity to it because they had never encountered it until the Spanish brought it with them.
Question 19
What modern city is now built where Tenochtitlan existed?
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AMexico City
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BVeracruz
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CNew Orleans
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DSan Francisco
Mexico City
Today, what was once known as Tenochtitlan is now Mexico City, the capital of Mexico.
Question 20
Which of these English words is NOT a word that comes to us through Nahautl?
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AFlower
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BAvocado
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CChipotle
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DShack
Flower
Words like avocado, chipotle, and shack come to us through Nahuatl, usually by way of Spanish.
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