The history of the Mexica before they entered the Valley of Mexico in the thirteenth century is shrouded in legend, oral tradition, and the limited written records left by the Mexica themselves and by the Spanish chroniclers who came after them. What we know, or think we know, comes from a small corpus of pre-conquest codices and from the accounts of indigenous writers in the sixteenth century, supplemented by archaeological evidence and by the linguistic and cultural affinities that connect the Mexica to other Nahua peoples of central Mexico. The story that emerges is one of long wandering, of servitude to more powerful peoples, of divine guidance, and of a final, triumphant settlement in the Valley of Mexico, where the Mexica would found Tenochtitlan and begin their rise to imperial power.
The Mexica Before the Migration
The Mexica were one of many Nahua-speaking peoples who inhabited central Mexico on the eve of the Spanish conquest. The Nahua, who spoke a common language and shared many cultural and religious traditions, were a relatively recent arrival in central Mexico, having migrated south from the deserts of the north in the centuries after the collapse of the Toltec Empire around 1150. The Mexica were the last of the major Nahua groups to enter the Valley of Mexico, and they did so at a time when the valley was already densely populated and politically complex. By the time the Mexica arrived, the valley was dominated by the Tepanecs of Azcapotzalco, the Acolhua of Texcoco, and the Xochimilcans, all of whom had established large cities and complex political systems.
The Mexica were a poor and politically marginal people, and they were initially forced to serve as mercenaries and laborers for the more powerful groups in the valley. According to Mexica tradition, the migration from the north had been a long and painful process, marked by hardship, conflict, and divine guidance. The Mexica believed that they had been led by the god Huitzilopochtli, who had promised them a destiny of greatness and who had given them instructions for the conduct of the journey. The god’s instructions were often cryptic and difficult, and the Mexica were required to interpret them through a council of priests and elders.
Aztlan, the Legendary Homeland
The Mexica tradition places the origin of the migration in a place called Aztlan, an island homeland of unclear location, possibly in northwestern Mexico or even further north. The word Aztlan means “place of the herons” in Nahuatl, and it is described in the sources as a fertile and prosperous place, with houses of reeds and waterfowl, with abundant fish and game, and with a complex social and political organization. The location of Aztlan has been the subject of much speculation, with various scholars placing it in modern Nayarit, Jalisco, Michoacán, or even as far north as the southwestern United States. None of these identifications can be confirmed, and it is possible that Aztlan was a purely mythical place, a memory of an earlier homeland transformed by oral tradition into a paradise from which the Mexica had been expelled.
The Mexica accounts of Aztlan are often critical of the place, and they emphasize the conflicts and disputes that drove the Mexica to leave. According to some versions of the tradition, the Mexica had been a privileged group in Aztlan, but they had been expelled by a coalition of their enemies. According to others, the Mexica had been enslaved by a more powerful group and had been forced to leave. The common thread is that the Mexica had been driven from a homeland that was no longer safe, and that they had been forced to seek a new home in the south.
The Migration
The migration from Aztlan to the Valley of Mexico is traditionally dated to the early twelfth century, although the chronology is uncertain. The most important sources for the migration are the Codex Boturini (also known as the Tira de la Peregrinación), a pictorial account of the migration, and the Crónica Mexicáyotl of Hernando de Alvarado Tezozomoc, an indigenous chronicle of the late sixteenth century. These sources describe a long and difficult journey, marked by a series of stops at which the Mexica built temporary settlements, worshipped their gods, and waited for divine instructions about the next step.
The Mexica migration was not a single, coherent movement but a complex process involving many groups, alliances, and conflicts. The Mexica traveled in a series of stages, often moving in response to political pressure or environmental stress. They were at various times enslaved by more powerful peoples, including the Toltecs of Tollan and the Chichimec peoples of the north. At one point, the Mexica were forced to live as servants of the Colhua people of the Valley of Mexico, and they were required to perform menial labor for their hosts.
A central feature of the migration was the Mexica relationship with Huitzilopochtli, the tribal god who was conceived in the form of a hummingbird. The god was believed to be carried by the Mexica in a sacred bundle, and he was consulted at every major stop of the migration. The god’s instructions were recorded in pictographs and interpreted by the priests, and the Mexica were required to follow them exactly. The instructions often involved difficult moral choices, including the requirement to sacrifice captured enemies and to abandon those who could not keep up with the migration.
The Mexica in the Valley of Mexico
By the mid-thirteenth century, the Mexica had reached the Valley of Mexico, a high-altitude basin dominated by a series of large lakes. They settled first in the vicinity of what is now Mexico City, where they were required to pay tribute to the Tepanecs of Azcapotzalco. The Mexica were, in some respects, peripheral to the political life of the valley, and they were forced to accept subordinate status in the existing political order.
The Mexica were, however, building a distinctive religious and political identity that would eventually allow them to challenge their patrons. The cult of Huitzilopochtli became increasingly central to Mexica identity, and the Mexica developed a sense of themselves as a chosen people with a divine mission. The Mexica were also developing the military and political skills that would eventually allow them to overthrow the Tepanec Empire and to found their own state in Tenochtitlan.
The Founding of Tenochtitlan
The culmination of the Mexica migration was the founding of Tenochtitlan in 1325, when the Mexica saw, on a small island in Lake Texcoco, the sign that Huitzilopochtli had promised: an eagle perched on a prickly pear cactus, devouring a serpent. The image, recorded in the Aztec codices and echoed in the modern Mexican flag, marked the moment when the Mexica believed they had fulfilled the divine command and become a chosen people. The site they chose was not ideal for settlement, but the Mexica began to build, and the city they founded would become one of the largest and most impressive in the world.
The founding of Tenochtitlan marked the end of the Mexica migration and the beginning of a new phase in Mexica history. The Mexica were no longer a wandering people, and they began to develop the institutions, the economy, and the military power that would allow them to dominate the Valley of Mexico. The next phase of Mexica history, the founding of the Triple Alliance and the rise of the Mexica empire, is discussed in the linked articles throughout this encyclopedia.
The Significance of the Mexica Migration
The Mexica migration is one of the great foundational myths of Mesoamerican history. The traditional view, based on the Mexica sources, treats the migration as a historical event of major proportions, a long and difficult journey that brought the Mexica from the deserts of the north to the Valley of Mexico. Modern scholars, working with the archaeological and linguistic evidence, have questioned some of the details of the traditional account, and they have proposed alternative models for the origins of the Mexica.
One of the most important questions is the relationship between the Mexica and the other Nahua peoples. The Mexica tradition emphasizes the Mexica as a distinct group with a unique divine mission, but linguistic and cultural evidence suggests that the Mexica were closely related to the other Nahua peoples of central Mexico, and that the migration may have been a more gradual process of settlement and assimilation. Another important question is the relationship between the Mexica and the older cultures of central Mexico, particularly the Toltecs. The Mexica tradition claims a direct descent from the Toltecs, but the historical relationship between the two groups is uncertain.
Despite these uncertainties, the Mexica migration remains a central feature of the Mexica historical tradition, and it continues to shape the identity of the modern Mexican state. The image of the eagle on the cactus, which was originally a Mexica symbol, has become the central symbol of the Mexican nation, and the Mexica migration is widely remembered in Mexican popular culture and in the national mythology.
Related Articles
See also:
- Where did the Aztecs come from before settling in the Valley of Mexico? — the broader context of Mexica origins
- What is Aztlan, the legendary homeland of the Aztecs? — the mythical origin of the Mexica
- How long did the Aztec migration to the Valley of Mexico take? — the chronology of the migration
- Founding of Tenochtitlan — the culmination of the Mexica migration
- Major Gods of the Aztec Pantheon — Huitzilopochtli and the divine guidance of the migration
- History of the Aztec Civilization — the full history of the Mexica