full view

Full view of the Mapa de Sigüenza. This map intends to provide a visual of sequential journey more than an accurate cartographic representation of relative locations and distances. It tells a story of a long, lingering migration with stops along the way, from a legendary origin site (Aztlan) and a prophesied destination (Mexico Tenochtitlan, the eventual Aztec capital and now Mexico City). The term Aztlan is where we get the term Aztec, from the Nahuatl term Azteca, the people of Aztlan. The term is problematic in its contemporary application, as the people who built the empire that was based in Mexico Tenochtitlan were more likely to call themselves Mexica or Tenochca (depending upon which part of the city they occupied). They spoke Nahuatl, so many scholars today prefer to use the generic term Nahuas to describe the people of this culture group, for it can include their enemies, such as the people of Tlaxcala, who were never incorporated into the empire but had the same language and culture.