Though the Toltec capital of Tula had declined by the 12th century, Toltec cultural influence persisted throughout Mesoamerica, with later civilizations claiming Toltec ancestry to legitimize their rule. Toltec artistic and literary traditions influenced Aztec culture, which would later record Toltec histories and poetry.

Toltec cultural prestige influenced later Mesoamerican literature, with Aztec poets invoking Toltec precedents to authorize their own compositions. The association of Toltecs with artistic excellence and civilized behavior established literary tropes about cultural golden ages that recurred in Mesoamerican poetry. Though few direct Toltec texts survive, their influence on subsequent literary cultures demonstrates how lost literary traditions can shape later works through reputation and legend.