Five centuries after the fall of Tenochtitlan, Aztec culture is entering the digital age
In short: The Aztec Empire collapsed in 1521, but its culture never vanished. Today, descendants in rural Mexico continue ancient rituals, while scholars use 16th-century codices to preserve the Nahuatl language. By feeding these historical records into artificial intelligence, researchers are ensuring that a civilization once thought lost remains vibrant and accessible.
The Aztec, who referred to themselves as the Mexica, rose to power in the early 14th century after migrating south from their ancestral home, Aztlán. From their capital, Tenochtitlan—now Mexico City—they established a dominant empire by intimidating neighboring city-states into paying tribute. Historian Andrés Reséndez notes that this expansion functioned much like a mafia, with the Mexica demanding resources from hundreds of subordinate regions.
In 1519, Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés arrived in Mexico, leading an expedition that would eventually dismantle the empire. By August 1521, Tenochtitlan had fallen to Spanish forces allied with local rivals. Despite the subsequent colonization and the pressures of the Spanish Inquisition, Aztec culture persisted through the preservation of language and practice. Central to this survival are the 16th-century codices, which act as linguistic Rosetta Stones, documenting the deeds and traditions of the people.
Modern ethnographic research, such as that conducted by Alan Sandstrom, reveals that these traditions remain alive in rural Mexican villages. Rituals involving Nahuatl chanting, copal incense, and intricate paper figures continue to be performed, blending indigenous heritage with elements of Catholicism. Scholars are now bridging the gap between these ancient practices and modern technology, using the surviving codices to train artificial intelligence models. This digital integration allows for the continued study and preservation of the Nahuatl language, ensuring that the legacy of the Mexica endures well beyond the five-hundredth anniversary of their empire's collapse.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: The Aztecs: From Empire to A.I. | Podcast | Overheard at National Geographic
- Also: Episode 2: The Aztecs: From empire to A.I.
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