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They relied heavily on sacrifice. Had Flowery War in which they raided other villages for sacrifices.
Sacrificed children for rain.

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The Aztec Economy | Aztec Trading | Aztec Currency

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The Aztec economy was build on trade, it was an everyday part of life for an Aztec citizen. Currencies even existed in the Aztec civilization, like cocoa beans or even cotton, or the standardised cotton lengths known as Quachtli.

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Pre- Columbian Aztec society was a highly complex and stratified society that developed among the Aztecs of central Mexico in the centuries prior to the Spanish conquest of Mexico, and which was built on the cultural foundations of the larger region of Mesoamerica.

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The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec peoples included different ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica from the 14th to the 16th centuries.

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Ancient Aztec Religion

Ancient Aztec religion hymn:
Huitzilopochtli is first in rank, no one, no one is like unto him: not vainly do I sing (his praises) coming forth in the garb of our ancestors;
I shine; I glitter.
~The Hymn of Huitzilopochtli (trans. by Daniel G. Brinton)

Ancient Aztec religion was a complex interaction of gods, dates, directions and colours. It seems that most of the preoccupation in the religion had to do with fear of the nature, and a fear of the end of the world.

By the time the Mexica's Empire (Mexica is the proper name for the tribe at the heart of the Aztec empire) was at its height, the political and religions systems were in close interaction. The actions of the ruling classes and common people can be best understood if we look way back to the Mexica understanding of the creation, or rather creations, of the world. Because the religion was a mixture from various peoples, there are variations. We'll give a general overview here.

In the Beginnings

According to ancient Aztec religion, it took the gods 5 tries to create the world. These attempts were foiled because of infighting among the gods themselves. After he was knocked from his exalted position by rivals, the first creator, Tezcatlipoca, turned into a jaguar and destroyed the world. Under similar circumstances, the world was created and then destroyed with wind, and then two floods.

Each time a creator-god would take a turn being the sun. ( Read more about the various Aztec sun gods here) Finally the gods had a council, and decided one of them would have to sacrifice himself to be the new sun. Nanauatl, a lowly, humble god became the sun, but there was a problem - he wasn't moving. The gods realized that they all must sacrifice themselves so that humans could live. The god Ehecatl sacrificed the others, and a mighty wind arose to move the sun at last.

This was no free sacrifice, however. Not only would the people have to help this weak sun to keep moving, they would also be responsible to repay the sacrifice. The world remained in a precarious position!

Once the sun was dealt with, the world had to be recreated. Quetzalcoatl (meaning feathered serpent) was the one who would create humans. Of course, people had been created several times before, so Quetzalcoatl descended into the underworld to retrieve their bones. He tripped as he fled, and the bones shattered into different sized pieces, which is why people are all different sizes. By adding his own blood to the mix, people came to life.

For another variation and more detail, see the Aztec creation story here.

The calendar and the sun

The ancient Aztec religion was highly focused on keeping nature in balance. One false step could lead to natural disaster. The weak sun could stop moving. In the sky was a constant battle between light and darkness, a battle that would someday be lost.

Huitzilopochtli ( Hummingbird of the South) was the warrior sun (either the sun god or the one who fights for the sun god, Tonatiuh (the name given to Nanauatl)). Huitzilopochtli (or Tonatiuh) needed blood sacrifice in order to win the battle against darkness. Either there would be ritual blood-letting, or actual people would be sacrificed. Those sacrificed would rise to fight with him. And so human sacrifices became more and more common in Mexico. Often battles would be fought just to capture prisoners to sacrifice - the Aztec flower war (or Aztec flowery war).

Every 52 years, the people were terrified that the world would end. All religious fires were extinguished, people all over the empire would destroy their furniture and precious belongings and go into mourning. When the constellation of the Pleiades appeared, the people would be assured that they were safe for another 52 years.

The world in ancient Aztec religion was divided up into 4 quadrants, and the center - their city Tenochtitlán. The heavens were divided into 13 ascending layers, and the underworld 9 descending layers. The heavens and underworld may be better described as wheels within wheels, a more common form for the Aztecs than layers or lines. The temple in Tenochtitlán was also the place where the forces of heaven and earth intersected.

The end

Prophecies were a part of the ancient Aztec religion. Many scholars today believe that the Aztec people thought that the conquerer Hernan Cortes was their god-hero Quetzalcoatl, who had been banished. Whether or not the more educated upper class shared this belief is questionable.

The afterlife of a person was based mostly on how they died. Some, such as those sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli, would join the battle against the darkness. In ancient Aztec religion, some would eventually be reincarnated as birds or butterflies, or eventually humans. Some would be, for a time, disembodied spirits roaming the earth. Most at some point would have to make the long journey through the 9 levels of the underworld. People would be buried in a squatting position, with items that would help them in their journey. In the end they would live in darkness.

To summarize

Ancient Aztec religion was focused on how the gods, humans and nature were interconnected. There was a strong emphasis on the worship of Huitzilopochtli. The military conquest and ritual sacrifices were all related, and in a great part focused on helping Huitzilopochtli keep the sun strong so that disaster could be averted every 52 years.

For more on Aztec religion:

Ancient Aztec Religion with childrens' study guides from Lorna Dils at the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute

Ancient Aztec songs - translated by Daniel G. Brinton

Aztec gods - general info and details on the key ones

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Ancient Aztec religion hymn: Huitzilopochtli is first in rank, no one, no one is like unto him: not vainly do I sing (his praises) coming forth in the garb of our ancestors;I shine; I glitter. ~The Hymn of Huitzilopochtli (trans. by Daniel G. Brinton) Ancient Aztec religion was a complex interaction of gods, dates, directions and colours.

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The Aztecs believe in 5 gods who repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt the world until it ended in its current iteration. The Aztecs believed the gods sacrificed themselves in order to allow the sun to rise and fall. The Aztecs sacrificed blood and people in order to help their gods fight the darkness and power the sun. Every 52 years the Aztecs believed the world would end and they would destroy their possessions. The Aztecs would know that they would live another 52 years when the sky lit up with the constellation, Pleiades. The Aztecs believed nature was sacred and their religion focused on the balance and respect of the natural forces that run the Earth. The Aztec’s afterlife was split into a heaven with 13 layers and an underworld with 9 layers. Aztec’s would end up in many different places after death. Some would end up in Heaven, the underworld, or even end up being reincarnated or left to wander the Earth as a spirit. This greatly contrasted the Christian beliefs of the Europeans, who believed in one divine creator and worshiped by prayer and restriction.

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1. http://www.history.com/topics/aztecs

2. http://www.aztec-history.com/aztec-society-family.html

3. http://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/kids/aztec-family-life

4. lpsmythologywiki.wikispaces.com

5. http://www.aztec-history.com/ancient-aztec-religion.html

6. http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/the-ancient-aztecs/aztec-economy-trade-and-currency/

7. http://www.mexicolore.co.uk/aztecs/kids/aztec-family-life

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The entirety of the aztec economy was solely based on trade and the usage of marketplaces. With agriculture was being the driving force of all the exchange of goods and services.

Agriculture, the basis of the aztec economy was successfully accomplished by a series of floating rafts called chinampas, these floating rafts covered in the empire’s staple crops, corn and beans, allowed for mass farming despite the location of their city, Tenochtitlan, being surrounded by water.

Tianquiztli, the biggest marketplace in tenochtitlan was the basis of all internal trade of the city, most goods and services in the city, spare for a few specific goods sold on smaller more specialized marketplaces, meaning the vast majority of goods and services passed through the market.
Cocoa beans, known as cacao by the aztecs, was the most used currency, the quality of the bean determining the value. Quatchi however was used by more wealthy Aztecs for larger and more expensive purchases, the tightly woven fabric being very valuable, and a luxury every family desired and enjoyed.

http://aztec.com/page.php?page=economy

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Society was definitely more dominated by the men.  The man was considered the head and ruler of the home. On the contrary, women had a great amount powers and responsibilities such as providing for the family and raising children. Aztec families lived in joint households such as families of two brothers or sisters for example. An average of 4 to 7 people lived together in one household. The man was given a plot of land at around 20 years old and was expected to operate the family. Again, Women played a major role too, as they usually had jobs such as being a teacher, doctor, matchmaker, scribe, and market manager. Aztecs also were capable to have many taboo relationships than ones like in today society. Aztec family could have a husband who may have had more than one wife. Also, Aztec men were allowed to get married at around 20 years old, with a women who was age 16. Marriage was used to display the change from a child into an adult. Men did not get to choose their bride but instead his family did for him (matchmaker). Also, according to the Aztecs marriage system, marriage was a big part of being able to operate and control their land as well as completing tasks needed on a daily basis. Women would do most of the indoor household tasks, as the men were more likely to become a warrior.

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The Huey Tlatoani was the supreme ruler and primarily dealt with external problems while the Cihuacoatl was the lesser of the two rulers and dealt more with eternal affairs. The Huey Tlatoani was advised by a council of four generals. These generals were also the candidates for the next Huey Tlatoani. Laws were determined solely by this Council, the Huey Tlatoani and The Cihuacoatl.

Any city or conquered area would still keep a general air of self-control. After being conquered, the state would be forced to pay tribute to the Aztecs.

The main social distinction within the empire was between commoners and nobles. The nobles held considerably more rights than the commons, the biggest one being the right to take tribute from the commoners on your land.
Work Cited: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec#Social_structures, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_society, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztec_Empire#Law

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A: Aztecs originally lived in Central Mexico. Their capitol was Tenochtitlan.
B: There was no migration because they had established many farms that consisted of irrigation systems for their crops and local forms of hunting. Because of this, the Aztecs were able to form their own empire in Central Mexico.