Mesoamerican

Civilizations
Chapter 11
Sections 2 and 3
STANDARD WHI.11a, b
The student will demonstrate knowledge of maor !i"ili#ations of the Western Hemis$here, in!luding the %a&an, A#te!, and
In!an b&
a' des!ribing geogra$hi! relationshi$, with em$hasis on $atterns of de"elo$ment in terms of !limate and $h&si!al features.
b' des!ribing !ultural $atterns and $oliti!al and e!onomi! stru!tures
Olmec 1300 B.C.-
The frst civilization of Mesoamerica
They were located in the hot and swampy
lowlands along the coast of the Gulf of Meico
south of !eracruz"
They had large cities that were centers for
religious rituals"
They carved colossal stone heads
They may have #een to represent
their ancestors or gods"
Teotihuacn
$as the frst ma%or city in Mesoamerica
&rose around 2'( )"C" and collapsed a#out *(( &"+"
May have had as many as 2((,((( inha#itants at its
height"
-as a main thoroughfare, .nown as the &venue of the
+ead, had two main temples"
The Temple of the Sun and the Temple of the Moon"
Mayan civilization
/ 0ocated in the Meican and Central &merican
rain forest
/ 1epresented #y Chich2n 3tz4
/ Group of city5states ruled #y a .ing
/ 6conomy #ased on agriculture and trade
/ 7olytheistic religion87yramids
Tikal, (uatemala
Yucatn Peninsula
5Maya were found in the 9ucatan 7eninsula and 7art
of Guatemala
Maya: Between 300 an !00 ".#.
5:lourished during this time" $e do not .now why it
fell into decline" The Maya a#andoned their cities,
we do not .now why"
Political an $ocial $t%uctu%e
Cities5$ere #uilt around a central pyramid
7yramid5$as topped with a shrine to the gods"
City5States56ach governed #y a hereditary ruling
class
Mayan &in's
51uled the Mayan ;ingdom
They claimed they were divine
$ere assisted #y no#les and a class of scri#es
Made special #lood sacrifces to maintain the
.ingdom"
Peo(le
53ncluded townspeople, s.illed artisans,
o<cials, and merchants"
Many people were peasant farmers who
wor.ed on terraced hillsides farming"
Men did the fghting and hunting, women made
cornmeal and were responsi#le for
homema.ing and raising children"
)eli'ion
The Maya were 7olytheistic"
They #elieved that all of life was in the hands of a
divine power"
They were responsi#le for pleasing the gods"
Their gods were ran.ed in order of importance, the
=aguar was the god of night and was seen as evil"
The Maya practiced human sacrifce to appease their
gods"
-uman sacrifce was also used to mar. special
occasions"
$hen a .ing ascended to the throne war captives
were tortured and #eheaded to mar. the occasion"
"ccom(lishments "ccom(lishments
*an'ua'e
The Maya developed an
independent -ieroglyphic
language"
The Spanish destroyed most of the
Mayan writings" They were not
seen as having any value" Their
language was not translated until
the 2(
th
century"
Calendar Calendar
The Maya developed a
calendar that had two
di>erent parts"
3t had a solar calendar with
3?' days, divided into 1*
months with 2( days each
with ' etra days at the end"

& 0unar calendar and a
Calendar #ased on the
movement of the 7lanet
!enus" This was a sacred
calendar with 2?( days and
13 wee.s of 2( days each"
The Mayan calendar says
our present world was
created in 311@ )"C" and the
current world will end on
+ecem#er 23 2(12 &"+"
&ztec civilization
/ 0ocated in arid valley in central Meico
/ 1epresented #y Tenochtitlan
/ 1uled #y an emperor
/ 6conomy #ased on agriculture and tri#ute
from conAuered peoples
/ 7olytheistic religion with pyramidsBrituals
The "ztec +e'an c. 1,th centu%y ".#"
)egan a long migration that #rought them into the
!alley of Meico"
They esta#lished their capital city at Tenochtitl4n"
Tenochtitln
&n &ztec legend said that when the people found their
new home they would see an eagle perched on a
cactus holding a sna.e" They saw this in la.e Tecoco"
Their city was #uilt up on rafts made from reeds and
covered with dirt" They were called chinampas"
7resent5+ay Meico5City is #uilt on top of this city" The
original was destroyed #y the Spanish"
*a-e Te.coco5Swampy la.e that was the home of the
capital city" Tenochtitl4n means the 7lace of the 7ric.ly
7ear Cactus"
7olitical and Social Structure
)y 1'(( there were a#out @ million people in the &ztec
6mpire"

&ztec 6mperor
1uled over the &ztec 6mpire"
$as the supreme leader of the people"
-e claimed that he was divine"
7eople
Made up of commoners, indentured wor.ers, and
slaves"
Most people were farmers, #ut they also traded with
people in the surrounding areas"
Men were to #e the warriors, while a womanCs role was
to #e in the home" $omen were allowed to own and
inherit property and enter contracts" $omen wove
tetiles and raised children" They could also #e
priestesses"
)eli'ion
-ad a polytheistic religion #ased on warfare"
/uitzilo(ochtli
Their chief god" -e was the god of the sun" The
&ztec
o>ered him human sacrifce to give him strength to
#attle the forces of dar.ness each night so that he
could rise each morning"
0uetzalcoatl
The feathered Serpent
-e #elieved he had left the valley of
Meico and promised to return in triumph"
/uman $ac%i1ce
6ach &ztec city contained a pyramid where they
practiced human sacrifce as a way to postpone
the end of the world"
#est%uction o2 the "ztec
The su#%ugation of the people of the &ztec
6mpire #red hatred and discontent among the
people" $hen the Spanish arrived they did
not have a di<cult time fnding allies to fght
the &ztec"
/e%nn Co%t3s 141!
Spanish ConAuistador who came to the valley of
Meico in 1'1D with ''( soldiers and 1? horses" -e
was at frst greeted #y the &ztec 6mperor Montezuma
EMoctezumaF" The Spanish later .idnapped the
6mperor and made him a puppet" The people re#elled
and the 6mperor was .illed" The Spanish #arely
escaped"
The Spanish returned several months later" Many of
the natives had fallen ill with Smallpo" Cort2s and his
allies destroyed the &ztec capital and su#%ugated the
&ztec people"
3ncan civilization
/ 0ocated in the &ndes Mountains of South
&merica
/ 1epresented #y Machu 7icchu
/ 1uled #y an emperor
/ 6conomy #ased on high5altitude
agriculture
/ 7olytheistic religion
/ 1oad system
0ate 13((Gs 3nca
The 3nca started as a small group that were located in
Cuzco" They did not #egin to #ecome powerful until
after the fall of the Moche of 7eru"
Pachacuti
Hnifed the 3nca and esta#lished the 3nca 6mpire"
Irganization of the 6mpire
3ncan state was #uilt on war"
The conAuered peoples were all
taught the same language"
6ach region was appointed a governor
who answered to the 6mperor"
1oad SystemJ 2@, *(( miles of 1oad
The 3nca #uilt roads to unify their
people" 1oads made travel and
communication throughout the empire
more e<cient"
There were rest houses and storage
depots along with #ridges to span
ravines and waterways"
Cultu%e Cultu%e
$ere reAuired to marry from within their own social
group"
$omen were epected to live at home, the only
alternative was to #e a priestess"
Most people were farmers, they also herded llamas
and alpacas"
0ui(u 0ui(u5& system of .notted strings used #y the 3nca to
.eep records"
5%eat Buile%s 5%eat Buile%s
They had great #uildings
made of stone held without
mortar" Their roads also
show their a#ility as great
#uilders"
Machu Picchu Machu Picchu
City #uilt at *,((( ft a#ove
sea level"
6%u+am+a )ive% 6%u+am+a )ive%
1iver #elow Machu 7icchu
+efeat
The Spanish arrived in 1'31
1'31J :rancisco 7izarro
Spanish ConAuistador led a #and of 1*( men with
superior weapons"
The 3nca, li.e the &ztec, were devastated #y disease"
Smallpo
+evastated the 7opulation
Civil $ar
&fter the death of the 3nca 6mperor a civil war #ro.e out,
7izarro too. advantage and defeated the people"
+efeat
7izarro and his men esta#lished 0ima as the new capital
of the Spanish Colony in 1'3'"
&chievements of Mayan, &ztec,
and 3ncan civilizations
/ Calendars
/ Mathematics
/ $riting and other record5
.eeping systems