AP World History Vocab Ch. 20
Pachacuti
"Earthshaker". A fierce warrior of the Incas who launched a series of military campaigns that vastly expanded the Incas' authority.
Aztec
"The place of the seven legendary caves". Derives from the term Aztlán. An empire in Mesoamerica and Mexico.
Cuzco
A city that served as the administrative, religious, and ceremonial center of the Inca Empire. Located near Machu Picchu.
Mexica
A migrant group drawn to central Mexico from a northwestern region. They had a reputation of making trouble.
Montecuzoma II
A priest who became the supreme ruler of the Aztec Empire who reigned from 1502-1520 before the Spanish invaders appeared.
Mesoamerica
A region between central Mexico and present-day Costa Rica. All the people shared similar cultural and religious traditions.
Chinampa
A system of agriculture used in the city of Tenochtitlan. The people were able to grow crops year-round.
Ritual Bleeding
Acts of self-sacrifice performed by Mexica priests in honor of the primeval acts of their gods.
Quipa
An array of small cords of various colors and lengths, all suspended from one large, thick cord used by Inca bureaucrats and administrators to keep track of their responsibilities.
Calpulli
Clans or groups of families claiming descent from common ancestors. They lived in hamlets cultivating chinampas and fields.
Ayllu
Communities of cultivating peasants with a common birth, similar to the Mexicas' calpulli. The basic units of rural society.
Toltec
Emerged in central Mexico near present-day Mexico City. Built the cities of Teotihuacan and Tenochtitlan. They maintained a large and powerful army.
Tenochtitlan
Located on an island in a marshy region of Lake Texcoco, it was founded in 1345 and became the capital of the Mexica.
Tribute
Payment from subject peoples. The Mexica and their allies received food crops and manufactured items.
Inca
Settled in a region around Lake Titicaca in South America around the mid-thirteenth century.
Inti
The Incas' major deity venerated by the ruling class. The sun.
