Animals in Aztec Society

Worksheet Description

Animals figured prominently in Aztec mythology and religion. In fact, animals played a role in where the Aztecs built their capital city Tenochtitlan. The legend is that the Aztec sun god Huitzilopochtli told his people to settle and to create a city at the site where an eagle which was perched on a cactus was eating a snake. When they saw exactly this, the Aztecs settled and built their capital. The Aztecs likely encountered many animals in the jungles and mountains where they lived, and there are many animal images in Aztec writing and symbols. Look up the significance of each animal in Aztec culture.