The Aztecs were the dominant race in Mexico prior to their conquest by Spaniards. Although the name is usually extended to all the semi-civilized tribes of Nahuatlan (Aztlan, “heron clan”) stock, it properly belongs only to a small group of seven related clans. The principal tribe had its capital at Tenochtitlan, now the city of Mexico. They developed a form of astronomy which was mainly astrological, and could take accurate observations, not only of lunations, but also of the periods of Venus. They divided the solar year into eighteen months of twenty days each and named each day by consecutive hieroglyphics. Their writing system was mainly pictorial. The Aztec monuments, however, or pyramids surmounted by temples, were not to be compared with those of Yucatan, while the finest in Mexico itself (Teotihuacan, Colula, Papantla) were the work of their Toltec predecessors.
Possessed of a high degree of culture, the Aztecs were also notorious for their cruelty and the barbarous character of their religious rites. Some of their descendants, comparatively pure in blood and retaining the ancient language, are still to be found in the neighborhood of the city of Mexico.
Incas (ing´käz).—The reigning and aristocratic order in ancient Peru from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century. They were originally a tribe or family of the Quichés who inhabited certain valleys near Cuzco and first became dominant under Manco Capac about 1240. Their own traditions described Manco Capac as a child of the Sun. From him descended the twelve other historical sovereigns of Peru, the last reigning one being Huascar, though the lineage was preserved long after. These sovereigns (the Incas in a restricted sense) always married their own sisters, and the throne was inherited, in general, by the oldest son proceeding from this marriage. Children by their other wives could not, by custom or law, receive the crown, though this rule was broken when Atahualpa inherited a part of the empire in 1523. The rule of the Incas was absolute, but very mild. They had attained to a high state of civilization before the arrival of the Spaniards. They cultivated many of the arts, and had some knowledge of astronomy. They had domesticated the llamas and alpacas, had brought under cultivation maize, potatoes and other edible roots, understood mining and the working of metals, and excelled as masons, weavers, potters, and farmers. They brought the science of government to a high pitch of perfection. The Incas composed songs and dramas; and as soldiers their skill and prowess enabled them to conquer and consolidate a vast empire. Three centuries of oppression under Spanish rule have deteriorated the character of the Inca Indian, but he is still industrious and honest, and retains some of the virtues of his ancestors.
Israelites.—See [Hebrews].
Japanese.—The Japanese and Koreans form the easternmost group of the great Sibiric branch, which, with the Sinitic branch (Chinese, etc.,) constitutes the Mongolian race. The Japanese and Koreans stand much nearer than the Chinese to the Finns, Lapps, Magyars, and Turks of Europe, who are the westernmost descendants of the Mongolian race. The languages of all these peoples belong to the agglutinative family, while Chinese is monosyllabic.
Although many people may mistake a Japanese face for Chinese, the Mongolian traits are much less pronounced. The skin is much less yellow, the eyes less oblique. The hair, however, is true Mongolian, black and round in section, and the nose is small. These physical differences no doubt indicate that the Japanese are of mixed origin. In the south there is probably a later Malay admixture. In some respects their early culture resembles that of the Philippines of today.
Then there is an undoubted white strain in Japan. The Ainos, the earliest inhabitants of Japan, are one of the most truly Caucasian-like people in appearance in eastern Asia. They have dwindled away to less than 20,000 under the pressure of the Mongolian invasion from the mainland, but they have left their impress upon the Japanese race. The “fine” type of the aristocracy, the Japanese ideal, as distinct from the “coarse” type recognized by students of the Japanese of today, is perhaps due to the Aino.
The race, as a whole, is physically under-developed, the men being small, and harsh in feature, while the women lose their good looks after the first bloom of youth is over. The girls, with their rosy cheeks, fascinating manners, and exquisitely tasteful dress, are, however, particularly attractive, and the children are bright and comely, being allowed full liberty to enjoy themselves—indeed Japan is the paradise of children.
The Japanese have many excellent qualities, they are kindly, courteous, law-abiding, cleanly in their habits, frugal, and possessed of a high sense of personal honor which makes sordidness unknown. This is associated, moreover, with an ardent patriotic spirit, quite removed from factiousness. On the other hand the people are deficient in moral earnestness and courage, which leads to corruption in social life and institutions.