ECONOMY OF THE MEXICA: MAIN CHARACTERISTICS - HISTORY - 2024

The economy of the Mexica refers to the production and exchange activities that allowed the sustenance of this civilization. They focused their economy on agriculture, crafts and long-distance trade with other cultures.

The Mexica empire was one of the largest pre-Columbian Mesoamerican societies, extending its existence between the years 1300 to 1500.

They inhabited the Valley of Mexico (today Mexico City), and their main cities were Tenochtitlan and Tlatelolco. It was the civilization that most resisted against the Spanish, and its defeat sealed the conquest in Mexico.

The Mexica, also called the Aztecs, quickly proved to be one of the most advanced and organized civilizations among their Mesoamerican contemporaries.

Due to this and its large population, they were led to develop an economic system that would guarantee the livelihood of its members, as their resources for continuous expansion increased.

It is estimated that the Mexica were a culture of violent and dominant character, which is why it is affirmed that they subjected inferior civilizations and communities in exchange for their resources or their territories.

These behaviors worked to place the Mexica in an economically and militarily superior position.

Five main economic activities of the Mexica

1- Agriculture

Like many previous and later aboriginal civilizations, agriculture was a fundamental pillar in the development of both an economic and a social system.

The Mexica took advantage of the natural qualities that the Valley of Mexico gave them to domesticate land and crops, and thus guarantee constant production over the years.

The territory where they were found presented all kinds of accidents and elevations, from hills, lagoons and swamps.

The Mexica had to engineer and implement drainage and terracing techniques to ensure optimal crop distribution, as well as their maintenance. Through these techniques, the Mexica were also able to cope with times of drought.

The more than 80,000 square kilometers of the Valley of Mexico were used by the Mexica for cultivation; in the same way, they came to build alternative methods such as floating gardens, which yielded more than 12,000 hectares of arable land. They also took advantage of the use of vegetable and animal manure for fertilization.

As was customary in Mesoamerica, the main crop product was corn, considered the essential element of the Mexica diet, not to mention the divine and ceremonial implications attributed to it.

The Mexica also grew products such as chili, tomato, beans, chia, and squash.

2- Hunting, livestock and fishing

In the Mexica empire, the products resulting from hunting were poor, but not non-existent. The difficulties of the terrain and the absence of domesticable species made it difficult to develop hunting as a frequent activity.

The main domesticated species for their consumption were the turkey and the dog.

Fishing, on the other hand, brought better results for the economy and the livelihood of the Mexica empire. They took advantage of the presence of aquatic birds and lagoon fish that allowed them to vary the diet.

Similarly, the Mexica were able to extract other resources from aquatic bodies, such as salt and basalt, to make ornaments.

Closer to the mountainous regions, obsidian was the main resource mined for the manufacture of weapons and tools.

3- Production of handicrafts and ceramics

The design and construction of pieces of clay and ceramics served the Mexica as one of the main products for cultural and commercial exchange with other communities.

The making of ornaments was one of the main strengths of commerce for the Mexica, even on the eve of the Spanish conquest.

The Valley of Mexico offered all the possibilities for the proliferation and development of trade and exchange routes.

Archaeological studies have found a large number of ceramic remains scattered around the territory, many of them with Mexican characteristics.

Like other Mesoamerican civilizations, the production of these objects was intended to guarantee the presence of the Mexica culture in different portions of the Mexican territory.

Producing these elements also sought to take advantage of objects received from other communities for a much more nurtured cultural development.

Some studies indicate that Mexican ceramics could reach far beyond the Valley of Mexico, even to some regions of South America.

4- Exchange routes

The Mexica became very numerous during the apogee of their civilization, reaching a population of more than one million inhabitants.

This led them to expand their territories and activities before being crowded into a small portion of the Valley of Mexico.

The dominant, military and conquering character that the Mexica empire represented led them to subdue some adjacent communities, and to establish commercial relations with others.

The Mexica were able to absorb smaller communities, through the use of arms and the occupation of their territories.

However, the distance that they kept with other more distant civilizations allowed trade and exchange relations that were not affected by militaristic intentions.

From these exchanges, the Mexica were able to have access to other agricultural items such as cotton, cocoa, chili, fruits, honey, hides, vanilla, metals and precious stones.

These exchange routes were carried out by Mexican merchants who had a special condition, called pochtecas, and they undertook the roads in caravans loaded with merchandise.

The pochtecas in the cities were in charge of the control and order of the main markets. Currency could be a changing resource, from cocoa beans to beans.

The Mexica were free to trade whatever product they considered, including children and relatives, in exchange for a handful of seeds, beans, or even a product of greater value or utility.

5- Tributes

The payment of tributes was a common activity within the Mexica empire, to keep the economic flow organized within the main cities, and to generate and administer the necessary resources for the royal and ceremonial activities that used to take place.

The tributes were also obligatory for all those towns that were dominated or conquered by the Mexica, and they were paid through the objects considered most valuable.

References

1. Biskowski, M. (2000). Maize Preparation and the Aztec Subsistence Economy. Ancient Mesoamerica, 293-306.
2. Garraty, C. (2006). The Politics of Commerce: Aztec Pottery Production and Exchange in the Basin of Mexico, AD 1200-1650. Arizona State University (ASU), School of Human Evolution and Social Change.
3. Krismar Education. (sf). Mesoamerica. In K. Education, Universal History. Mexico, DF: Krismar.
4. Smith, ME (1960). The Role of the Marketing System in Aztec Society and Economy: Reply to Evans. American Antiquity, 876-883.
5. Smith, ME (1990). Long Distance Trade under the Aztec Empire. Ancient Mesoamerica, 153-169.