The
Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central
Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the
Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of
Mesoamerica from the 14th to 16th centuries. The Nahuatl words
aztecatl (singular) and
aztecah (
plural) mean "people from
Aztlan", a mythological place for the Nahuatl-speaking culture of the time, and later adopted as the word to define the
Mexica people. Often the term "Aztec" refers exclusively to the Mexica people of
Tenochtitlan (now the location of
Mexico City), situated on an island in
Lake Texcoco, who referred to themselves as
Mexihcah Tenochcah or
Colhuah Mexihcah .
