Who wrote that Quzatli said he dreamed of the Europeans' arrival?

• A. Montezuma
• B. Fray Bernardino
• C. Columbus
• D. Pizarro

Answer: (B)

This question asks you to identify who recorded Aztec beliefs about the arrival of the Europeans, specifically the idea that Quetzalcoatl spoke of or anticipated their coming. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún is the right answer. He was a Franciscan missionary who compiled the Florentine Codex, a detailed ethnographic work based on interviews with indigenous Mexicans in Nahuatl. In his notes, he preserves statements and beliefs from Aztec informants, including the sense that Quetzalcoatl had predicted or envisioned the arrival of the Europeans. This makes him the source who wrote that Quetzalcoatl said he dreamed of the Europeans’ arrival. The other figures—Montezuma, Columbus, and Pizarro—are associated with events and writings from the Spanish side, or with different regions, and none are the authors of such indigenous beliefs as recorded by Sahagún.