Red City on the Ocean

Keywords

Altepetl (pl. altepeme) – an ethno–territorial unit in a state ruled by its own dynasty. As a rule, altepetl was a city-state or a land plot as part of a larger state entity. Altepetl had to pay tax to the state of which he was a member and obey its laws. He could also deliver goods to the single market without paying a duty, and trade in all cities that were part of the common state.

Amatl – paper.

Atlatl (pl atlatls) – a spear-thrower.

Amotlaxtlauas – the name of the Caribbean islands in the book.

Aztlan – in the book, the name of a region corresponds to today's understanding of the Aztec Empire.

Calmecac (pl calmecacs) – a school for the upper class. The sciences that were studied in it differed from the telpochcallin, since calmecac provided knowledge on the management of certain branches of the state.

Chinampa (pl chinampas) – man-made floating gardens.

Cihuacoatl – the weyitlatoani's chief assistant. In the book is the assistant of any tlatoani.

Cihuatlatoani – a female official weyitlatoani, tlatoani or cihuacoatl.

Cuauhocelotl – the title of a warrior who captured four captives in battle.

Estli ahkopechtli – the name of the altar in the book which translates as "blood table."

Festival – in the book is a religious celebration of the Mexihkah tribes, accompanied by human sacrifices.

The Fire Festival (Fire Ceremony) – a festival in honor of Xuihpohualli.

Huey Teocalli – a huge religious complex that included pyramids, statues, and other structures in the center of Tenochtitlan; It is no longer in existence.

Huitzilopochtli – one of the main divine mythical creatures of the peoples of Mesoamerica.

Ichkahuipilli – armor made of fabric and impregnated with a special solution. They were able to withstand the impact of the macuahuitl and atlatl. Depending on the rank of the warrior, they had a different cut and color. Some armor covered the torso and legs to the knees. Ichkahuipilli resembled European quilting, and in strength was not inferior to chain mail.

Itza – in the book, representatives of the Maya civilization, which by the time of the events described had ceased to exist as a centralized state.

Ixiptlatli (pl ixiptlatli) – a person chosen for the ritual ceremony of the festival in honor of Tezcatlipoca.

Iztli Koyotl – in the book, the tribes who lived north of Aztlan in the territory of today's USA. Perhaps they had a single leadership.

Macehualli (pl Macehualtin) – a commoner.

Macuahuitl (pl Maccuahuimeh) – a weapon resembling a club or sword with several rows of blades or spikes made of obsidian.

Metstli (pl Metstin) – the moon.

Metstli tlapalli – the color of the moon. In the book, Aztecs use this nickname to refer to Europeans.

Mexihkah (Mexica) – 1) the tribes that formed the Aztec Empire; what the peoples called themselves at that time. 2) In the book, the language of the Mexihkah tribes, which today is known as Nahuatl.

Nahuatl – the language of the Mesoamerican people (Aztecs) and many other peoples who inhabited Mesoamerica. It is not known for certain what the representatives of the Mexihkah (Mexica) peoples called themselves and their language at that time, so in the book they call it Mexihkah, and not Nahuatl. Today, no more than two million people speak this language.