The Pochteca (pronounced poash-TAY-kah) were long distance, professional Aztec merchants and traders who provided the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan, and the major Aztec city-states with luxury and exotic items from faraway lands. The Pochteca also worked as agents for the Aztec empire, keeping tabs on their far flung client states and uneasy neighbors.
Pochteca Social Organization
The Pochteca held a special status in Aztec society. They were not nobles, but their position was higher than any other non-noble person. They were organized into guilds and lived in their own neighborhoods. Access to these guilds was highly controlled and hereditary. Only a few cities in the Aztec empire could claim to be the head of a Pochteca guild.
The Pochteca had special ceremonies, laws and their own god, Yacatecuhtli (pronounced ya-ka-tay-coo-tli), who was the patron of commerce. Even if their position provided them with wealth and prestige, the Pochteca were not allowed to show it in public, in order not to offend the nobles. However, they could invest their wealth in the ceremonies for their patron god, organizing rich feasts and carrying out sophisticated rituals.
The Pochteca and the Aztec Empire
The Pochteca could travel freely all over the empire even in lands not subjected to the Mexica emperor. For this reason they also worked as spies or informants for the Aztec state.
In order to obtain precious and exotic items such as jaguar pelts, jade, quetzal plumes, cocoa, and metals, they had special permission to travel across foreign lands and were often escorted by armies along with servants and carriers. They were also trained as warriors since they often suffered attacks from the population who saw in the Pochteca another aspect of the yoke of the Aztec empire.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guide to the Aztec Civilization and the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Smith, Michael, 2003, The Aztecs. Second Edition, Blackwell Publishing