Which language did the Aztecs speak?

Currently spoken by 1.5 million people in Mexico, Nahuatl was the main language of the Aztecs and has existed since the 7th century CE. The Aztecs were a Native American Empire who ruled in Mesoamerica (Central America) between the 14th and 16th century. Nahuatl was widely spoken in the region along with over 40 other languages before the rise of the Aztecs. Nahuatl was later adopted as the empire's primary language.

Nahuatl was originally a written pictographic script, but over time some Nahuatl words have been written in Western alphabets, such as English. Examples include coyote, avocado, chocolate, Mexico, Guatemala and Nicaragua.

​Nahuatl was also the main language of the Toltec people. The Toltec were a Mesoamerican civilization in central Mexico between 900 and 1168 CE, predating the Aztecs. The Toltec people developed basic craftsmanship and societies that many later civilisations tried to replicate. The Aztecs based their architectural designs on Toltec buildings and, of course, adopted the language of the Toltec empire (Nahuatl).

Today, Nahuatl speakers generally live in central Mexico, although a few live in other parts of Mexico and the United States. Whilst Nahuatl is one of the official languages of Mexico, the majority of the population speak Spanish. This is because Mexico became part of the Spanish Empire when Spain defeated the Aztecs in 1521.