Mesoamerican Civilizations

Human Migration

• Turn to page 237 and answer the two geography skillbuilder questions:

– What two continents does the Beringia land bridge connect?

– From where do scholars believe the first Americans came? How did they come?

• Video

Olmec 1300 B.C.-The first civilization of Mesoamerica

They were located in the hot and swampy lowlands along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico south of Veracruz.

They had large cities that were centers for religious rituals.

They carved colossal stone heads

They may have been to representtheir ancestors or gods.

Olmec Society

• Directed a large trading network throughout Mesoamerica

• A 100-foot-high structure made of earth and clay known as the Great Pyramid at La Venta may be the tomb of a great Olmec ruler

• Numerous Olmec sculptures depict a half-human, half-jaguar creature, probably a god

• The Olmec mined and carved jade and there’s evidence of objects that came from as far away as South America.

TeotihuacánWas the first major city in MesoamericaArose around 250 B.C. and collapsed about 800 A.D.

May have had as many as 200,000 inhabitants at its height. Has a main thoroughfare, known as the Avenue of the Dead, had two main temples: The Temple of the Sun and the Temple of the Moon.

Rise and Fall of the Maya

Traits of Civilization

• Religious beliefs and theocracy

• Independent city-states

• Intensive agriculture

Strength Leading to Power

• United culture

• Loyalty to the king

• Wealthy and prosperous culture

• Productions of more food feeds a larger population

Weakness Leading to Decline

• Many physical and human resources funneled into religious activities

• Frequent warfare occurs between kingdoms

Mayan civilization• Located in the Mexican and Central American

rain forest• Represented by Chichén Itzá• Group of city-states ruled by a king• Economy based on agriculture and trade• Polytheistic religion—Pyramids

Tikal, Guatemala

Yucatán Peninsula-Maya were found in the Yucatan Peninsula and Part of GuatemalaMaya: Between 300 and 900 A.D.-Flourished during this time. We do not know why it fell into decline. The Maya abandoned their cities, we do not know why.

Political and Social StructureCities-Were built around a central pyramidPyramid-Was topped with a shrine to the gods. City-States-Each governed by a hereditary ruling class

Mayan Kings-Ruled the Mayan KingdomThey claimed they were divineWere assisted by nobles and a class of scribesMade special blood sacrifices to maintain the kingdom.People-Included townspeople, skilled artisans, officials, and merchants.Many people were peasant farmers who worked on terraced hillsides farming. Men did the fighting and hunting, women made cornmeal and were responsible for homemaking and raising children.

ReligionThe Maya were Polytheistic.

They believed that all of life was in the hands of a divine power.They were responsible for pleasing the gods.

Their gods were ranked in order of importance, the Jaguar was the god of night and was seen as evil.

The Maya practiced human sacrifice to appease their gods.

Human sacrifice was also used to mark special occasions.

When a king ascended to the throne war captives were tortured

and beheaded to mark the occasion.

AccomplishmentsLanguageThe Maya developed an independent Hieroglyphic language.

The Spanish destroyed most of the Mayan writings. They were not seen as having any value. Their language was not translated until the 20th century.

CalendarThe Maya developed a calendar that had two different parts.It had a solar calendar with 365 days, divided into 18 months with 20 days each with 5 extra days at the end. A Lunar calendar and a Calendar based on the movement of the Planet Venus. This was a sacred calendar with 260 days and 13 weeks of 20 days each. The Mayan calendar says our present world was created in 3114 B.C. and the current world will end on December 23, 2012 A.D.

Early Civilizations of the Andes

• The Chavin period:

– 900 BCE-200 BCE

– Northern highlands of Peru

– No evidence of political or economic organization

– Primarily a religious civilization- expressed in stone carvings, pottery and textiles

– May have acted as a “mother culture” like the Olmecs in Mesoamerica

Early Civilizations of the Andes

• The Nazca period:

– 200 BCE-600 CE

– Southern coast of Peru

– Farmers that used extensive irrigation canals

– Known for beautiful textiles and pottery

– The Nazca lines- still one of history’s mysteries

Early Civilizations of the Andes

• The Moche:– 100 CE-700 CE

– Northern coast of Peru

– Wide range of crops, irrigated from nearby rivers, included corn, beans, potatoes, squash, and peanuts

– Enormously wealthy- gold and silver jewelry found with semiprecious stones

– Impressive pottery depicting scenes of everyday life- images of women weavers, soldiers, musicians, and doctors- serves as written language