sentences:  In the Post Classic period, Huastec territory shrank due to incursions by Nahuas and Otomi in the south and west, culminating into Aztec conquest of much of the territory by the early 16th century.This loss of land would continue into the Spanish colonial period with mestizos coming to dominate the region, especially in the Veracruz and Tamaulipas coast areas.Nahua communities and the Nahuatl language are now the most dominant indigenous influence in La Huasteca, especially in the south and west of the region.