How did conquistadors like Pizzaro and Cortrez communicate with their native allies?

by MTabarrok

I might have a misunderstanding of the timeline, but it seems like almost as soon as the spanish arrived there were translators there. How did these translators learn spanish so quickly? who taught them?

Mictlantecuhtli

There's always room for discussion, but perhaps the section Cross-cultural communication and lingua francas from our FAQ will answer your inquiry.