Toltecs
The Toltecs (from Nahuatl tolteca , "residents of Tollán ") were a Mesoamerican culture that ruled most of central Mexico between the 10th and 12th centuries . In pre-Columbian times, the term “Toltecs” was also understood to mean people in general who were extremely skilled in their craft or artistry, as the historical Toltecs were said to have appropriate skills.
history
The reconstruction of the history of the Toltecs is based on both archaeological and historical sources. However, the statements of one source can hardly be linked with those of the other. One reason for this may be that the historical descriptions exist in texts that were not written down until after the middle of the 16th century, i.e. around 500 years after the presumable heyday of Tollan Xicocotitlan; therefore they are actually more legends than historical reports.
According to historical sources
The Toltecs immigrated to central Mexico in the 9th century. There they established themselves with their city Tollán Xicocotitlán ( Tula in the state of Hidalgo ) as the new leading power, after a power vacuum had ruled in the 200 years after the fall and fall of Teotihuacán (around 700). The immigrants lived in their city with another group called Nonoalca , whose place of origin is believed to be on the Gulf Coast . A possible reason for the ascent is to gain control over obsidian deposits already used by Teotihuacán .
Paul Kirchhoff reconstructed from a few sentences from the Historia Tolteca-Chichimeca , a document in Nahuatl from today's state of Puebla , a Toltek dominion that was divided into four provinces, but this reconstruction is very controversial. It is similar with the range of the Toltec cultural influence. According to legend, the priest-king Quetzalcoatl left the city after the fall of Tula and moved east with his followers, where they subjugated the Mayan city of Chichén Itzá . In fact, there is a clear Toltec influence in the art and architecture of Chichén Itzá. A connection between the two cultures cannot therefore be denied; How it came about in detail, however, is not clear.
Big problems arise especially when trying to extract historical facts from the often contradicting sources, especially in the case of the sinking of Tula. The key roles in the legends are played by two men named Quetzalcōātl and Huemac , for whose existence, lifetime or role in Toltec society no scientific consensus has yet been reached. It is extremely difficult to filter historical facts out of the sometimes contradicting legends.
In the ancient sources it is said that Quetzalcoatl was seduced by demons to debauchery, through which he brought bad luck to his homeland. Eventually, after repeatedly plagued by afflictions, he had to leave Tula with his followers. Thereupon Huemac took over the rule, but died soon after he was also haunted by demons. Quetzalcoatl, on the other hand, moved to the sea, where he either burned himself and became the morning star , or moved across the sea. It is still a matter of dispute whether he actually promised his return beforehand, or whether this was a deliberate invention from the time after the Spanish conquest of Mexico and to what extent such a promise played a role during the conquest.
According to archaeological findings
Archaeological finds can confirm a settlement of Tula until the 11th century. The Toltec culture seems to have encompassed a large part of central Mexico, but with regard to the question of size, structure and the existence of a Toltec empire, practically nothing is certain.
The main factors behind the decline could have been soil leaching, climate change, disputes between the Nonoalca and the descendants of the settlement group from the north, and an invasion of peoples from the north. Usually the role of the invaders is ascribed to the Chichimeks , a nomadic people from northern Mesoamerica. Whether the invasion of the Chichimecs was causal for the decline or rather one of its consequences has not been decided.
See also
literature
- Hanns J. Prem : History of ancient America . Oldenbourg, Munich 1989 (2nd revised edition 2007). ISBN 3-486-53032-1 .
- Norman Bancroft-Hunt: Atlas of the Indian civilizations. Olmec, Toltec, Maya, Aztec . Tosa, Vienna 2002, ISBN 3-85492-557-3 .
