Aztec influence in Spain can be seen in both the cuisine of
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and in its architecture.
Food
Guacamole
Guacamole (; (informally shortened to ''guac'' in the United States since the 1980s) is an avocado-based dip, spread, or salad first developed in Mexico. In addition to its use in modern Mexican cuisine, it has become part of international cuisi ...
, an
avocado
The avocado (''Persea americana'') is a medium-sized, evergreen tree in the laurel family (Lauraceae). It is native to the Americas and was first domesticated by Mesoamerican tribes more than 5,000 years ago. Then as now it was prized for i ...
-based
dip that was popular in
Aztec cuisine
Aztec cuisine is the cuisine of the former Aztec Empire and the Nahua peoples of the Valley of Mexico prior to European contact in 1519.
The most important staple was corn (maize), a crop that was so important to Aztec society that it played a ...
as early as the 16th century, was brought back to Spain by the
Conquistadors
Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (, ; meaning 'conquerors') were the explorer-soldiers of the Spanish and Portuguese Empires of the 15th and 16th centuries. During the Age of Discovery, conquistadors sailed beyond Europe to the Americas, O ...
.
Its reputation as an aphrodisiac derives from the words that combine to form the word ''ahuaca-molli'' ("guacamole" in the
Aztec language): ''molli'' meant "something mashed or pureed into a sauce" and as well as meaning "avocado" ''ahuacatl'' meant "testicle".
Architecture
The stone work of sun pattern, snakes, panther and birds above the main entrance to the church of Nuestra Señora de Regla,
Pájara
Pájara is a municipality in the southwestern portion of the island of Fuerteventura in the Province of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands as well as the name of its largest town. Its population is 20,931 (2013),[Fuerteventura
Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the North Africa region, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the northwestern coast of Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNES ...]
in the
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
, is thought by some specialists to show Aztec influence.
[Noel Rochford, ''Fuerteventura'', Sunflower Books, 2007, p. 19]
See also
*
Columbian exchange
The Columbian exchange, also known as the Columbian interchange, was the widespread transfer of plants, animals, precious metals, commodities, culture, human populations, technology, diseases, and ideas between the New World (the Americas) in ...
*
Nahuatl–Spanish contact
Nahuatl has been in intense contact with Spanish since the Spanish invasion of 1521. Since that time, there have been a large number of Spanish loanwords introduced to the language, loans which span from nouns and verbs to adjectives and particles ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aztec Influence In Spain
Aztec
Cultural history of Spain
Legacies
Spanish colonization of the Americas
Cultural exchange