They are very warlike and face death with the greatest resolution. Other contemporary descriptions made by the Spanish invaders generally agree. They did not see the Aztecs as short people. However, despite this estimation that the Aztecs were tall, their remains and descendants tell a different story, at least from our perspective. The tallest males reached 5 foot 6. Meanwhile, the average measured significantly under 5 feet.
The global average height today is 5 foot 7 for men and 5 foot 2 for females. It is worth noting that Mexicans are somewhat shorter than average today. However, modern Spanish is not much taller, measuring roughly one inch more for both sexes. The Spanish may have thought the Aztecs were reasonably tall because the average European of that time was not much greater.
Before the period of industrialization, average heights in that continent were low in comparison to their descendants. Studies show that before the s, heights around the world did not vary much. Since the 19 th Century, the average European height has increased by 3. That is why today, there are far wider variations in height than there were at the height of Aztec power.
If so, the Aztecs of the 16 th Century would not have been significantly shorter than the Spanish they encountered. The more equitable inter-cultural height variation of the time can explain why the Spanish did not describe them as short. That is why today, the ten countries with the tallest populations are all located in Europe.
Learn more about the rich cultures and lives of these early civilizations. Mexico City is founded on the ruins of Tenochtitlan. If you could go back in time, what would you see? Each country had different motivations for colonization and expectations about the potential benefits.
Join our community of educators and receive the latest information on National Geographic's resources for you and your students. Skip to content. Image Pyramid of the Sun The Teotihuacan pyramids are some of the largest of their kind in the Americas. Photograph by f9photos. Twitter Facebook Pinterest Google Classroom. Encyclopedic Entry Vocabulary. Spanish explorer or conqueror of Latin America in the 16th century.
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Text Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service. Interactives Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. Related Resources. View Collection. View Article. Motivations for Colonization. View leveled Article. Only old or distinguished men who could afford to ignore fashion wore beards, and these were at best thin and wispy. Both men and women had great powers of endurance, and from childhood the ordinary people had been used to hard physical work.
Even the women were accustomed to walk great distances, following the menfolk and carrying A share of equipment as well as the newest baby. People of importance prided themselves on their behavior, and tried always to move gracefully, accompanying their conversation with dignified gestures and assuming an expression appropriate to the occasion.
Here is a sixteenth-century Spanish description: The people of this land are well made, rather tall than short.
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