Aztecs of Mexico Essay

Aztecs of Mexico Essay Aztecs of Mexico Essay The Aztec Indians created a great civilization in Central Mexico, reaching its peak in the 1500’s. Being late arrivals to the area, and because of their strong neighboring nations, they were forced to live in the swampy western areas of the Lake Texcoco. Because of the swampy surroundings, the Aztecs used mud to create miniature islands in the swamps. These islands are called chinampas, or â€Å"floating gardens,† and were used as farming lands. On these fertile islands they grew corn, squash, vegetables, and flowers. Being an agriculturally dependent empire, the Aztec’s religion was based highly on the forces of nature and worshipped them as gods. The god of war, Huitzilopochtli, was the most important deity. They had many other important gods, such as Tlaloc, the god of rain, Quetzalcoatl, the god of wind and of learning, and Tenochtitlan, the sun god. The Aztecs believed in order to appease these and many other gods that they needed to perform human sacrifices. The main purpose of the great Aztec pyramids was, in fact, human sacrifices. They also believed that there were â€Å"lucky† and â€Å"unlucky† days for baptism and to declare war on, which were decided by a priest. Most art and architecture in the Aztec civilization was based on their religion. There are many brightly colored murals and paintings on walls and on bark which depict religious ceremonies, along with large idols of gods. One of the most amazing and famous of the Aztec’s art works is a huge calendar stone that

PEREZ - Surname Meaning, Origin and Genealogy

PEREZ - Surname Meaning, Origin and Genealogy A patronymic name derived from Pero, Pedro, Petrus, Petros, etc. - meaning son of Pero. The suffix ez means descendant of in Spanish. It is also believed that PEREZ comes from the apostle Simon, whom Jesus called rock (Pedro in Spanish means rock) in tribute to his designation as the rock or foundation of the church. 2) The surname Perez may possibly be derived from the name of the pear tree, peral. 3) Perez may be a variation of the Sephardic Jewish surname, Peretz. Perez is the  29th most popular surname in the United States based on data from the 2000 census and the 7th most common surname in Argentina. Its also the 7th most common Hispanic last name. Surname Origin:  Spanish Alternate Surname Spellings:  PERES, PERET, PERETZ, PERETS, PHAREZ, PAREZ, PERIS Famous People with the Surname PEREZ: Rosie Perez - American actressGeorge Perez - comic book artistSelena Quintanilla-Perez - American queen of tejano music Genealogy Resources for the Surname PEREZ:   100 Most Common U.S. Surnames Their MeaningsSmith, Johnson, Williams, Jones, Brown... Are you one of the millions of Americans sporting one of these top 100 common last names from the 2000 census? Common Hispanic Surnames Their MeaningsLearn about the origins of Hispanic last names, and the meanings of many of the most common Spanish surnames. Perez Family Tree DNAThis Surname Project traces members of the Perez family through Y-DNA testing. Perez Name Meaning Family HistoryAn overview of the Perez surname meaning, plus subscription-based access to genealogical records on Perez families around the world from Ancestry.com. Perez Family Genealogy ForumSearch this popular genealogy forum for the Perez surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Perez query. FamilySearch - PEREZ GenealogyFind records, queries, and lineage-linked family trees posted for the Perez surname and its variations. PEREZ Surname Family Mailing ListsRootsWeb hosts several free mailing lists for researchers of the Perez surname. DistantCousin.com - PEREZ Genealogy Family HistoryFree databases and genealogy links for the last name Perez. Looking for the meaning of a given name? Check out First Name Meanings Cant find your last name listed? Suggest a surname to be added to the Glossary of Surname Meanings Origins. - References: Surname Meanings Origins Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore, MD: Penguin Books, 1967. Menk, Lars. A Dictionary of German Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, 2005. Beider, Alexander. A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia. Avotaynu, 2004. Hanks, Patrick, and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford University Press, 1989. Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press, 2003. Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997. Back to Glossary of Surname Meanings Origins