Mexico Tenochtitlan

Mexico-Tenochtitlan
1323–1521
Glyph
Model of the temple district of Tenochtitlan at the National Museum of Anthropology
Capital		Tenochtitlan
Languages		Nahuatl
Religion		Mexica religion
Government		Monarchy
Historical era		Pre-Columbian
•	Established	1323
•	Formation of	1521
Succeeded by Aztec Empire

Mexico-Tenochtitlan (Spanish: México-Tenochtitlan, Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmexiko tenotʃˈtitlan]), commonly known as Tenochtitlan (Classical Nahuatl: Mēxihco-Tenōchtitlan [meːˈʃíʔ.ko te.noːt͡ʃ.ˈtí.t͡ɬan]) was a Mexica city-state located on an island in Lake Texcoco, in the Valley of Mexico. Founded on June 20, 1325, it became the capital of the expanding Aztec Empire in the 15th century, until it was captured by the Spanish in 1521.

At its peak it was the largest city in the Pre-Columbian Americas. It subsequently became a cabecera of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. Today the ruins of Tenochtitlan are located in Mexico City's downtown.

Tenochtitlan was one of two Nahua āltēpetl (city-states) on the island, the other being Tlatelolco.

Traditionally, the name Tenochtitlan was thought to come from Nahuatl tetl [ˈtetɬ] ("rock") and nōchtli [ˈnoːtʃtɬi] ("prickly pear") and is often thought to mean, "Among the prickly pears [growing among] rocks". However, one attestation in the late 16th-century manuscript known as "the Bancroft dialogues" suggest the second vowel was short, so that the true etymology remains uncertain.