Maya Civilization

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Maya Civilization
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I. Classic Period 250-900 C.E.

• Located in southern Mexico, northern Central
  America
• Influenced heavily by older culture, the Olmecs
• Ball courts believed that playing this game
  would maintain cycles of sun and moon, bring
  rains
• Planned ceremonial centers, religious ceremonies
• Gods and spirits Jaguar spirit at center
• Empire of independent city-states
• Examples Tikal, Chichen Itza
• Each ruled by a god-king
• Centers of religion, trade
• Linked by common language, religious beliefs

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II. Trade Agriculture

• City states linked by trade routes and alliances
• Products salt, feathers, shells, honey, textiles
• Cacao beans sometimes served as currency
• Agriculture formed basis of Maya life
• Squash, maize (corn), beans
• Once thought to only practice slash and burn
  agriculture
• Evidence has shown more sophisticated methods
  beds raised above swamps

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III. Social Classes

• As civilization grew, more wealth and development
  of social classes
• King at top, passed title to eldest son
  (hereditary)
• Was a divine (god-like) figure
• Noble class warriors, priests
• Middle class Merchants, artisans
• Peasant farmers (majority of population)
• Slaves criminals, prisoners of war

KING PACAL,603-683 C.E.
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IV. Religion

• Polytheistic believed in many gods
• Believed each day was a living god, behavior was
  predicted by a system of calendars
• Religious practices
• Made offerings
• Pierced or cut their bodies to offer their blood
• Practiced human sacrifice, usually enemies
• Believed that it pleased the gods and kept world
  in balance

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V. Math, Calendar, Astronomy

• Religious beliefs led to developments in math,
  astronomy, and use of calendars
• Important to have an accurate calendar to know
  which god is carrying time that day
• Identify the best times to plant crops, attack
  enemies, crown new rulers
• Based on careful observation of planets, sun,
  moon
• Calculated year to 365.2420 days
• Had concept of zero

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VI. Written Language

• Most advanced writing system in ancient Americas
• 800 glyphs, or hieroglyphic symbols
• Used for record keeping, history of civilization
• Recorded important historical events in book
  known as a codex
• Only 3 of these have survived
• Creation story recorded in the Popol Vuh

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VII. Decline

• Late 800s many cities suddenly abandoned
• Other peoples moved into areas being abandoned,
  disrupted Maya civilization
• Theories
• Increased warfare between city-states disrupted
  trade, increased economic hardship
• Population growth, over-farming caused food
  shortages, famine, disease
• When the Spanish arrive in the 1500s, Maya
  divided and weak, easily conquered
• Examples of Mayan ruins

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Aztec Civilization(Late 1100s 1500s)
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I. Toltec Influence

• Toltec peoples laid foundation for Aztec
• Toltec ruled over central Mexico beginning around
  900, lasted until about 1150.
• Gained power as Maya were losing theirs
• Militaristic, human sacrifice a main component
  of religious ceremonies
• Worshiped Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent
• Became legend among different peoples of
  Mesoamerica, including Aztec

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II. Aztec Rise to Power

• Originally poor, nomadic people from deserts of
  northern Mexico
• Built up civilization from ashes of Toltec,
  around Lake Texcoco
• City of Tenochtitlan
• Formed Triple Alliance with other city-states,
  Texcoco and Tlacopan basis of Aztec Empire
• By 1500s, empire stretched 80,000 square miles,
  5-15 million people
• 38 provinces loosely controlled through strong
  military and tributes (taxes, human sacrifice)

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Aztec Empire, 1200s-1500s
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III. Social Classes
Emperor
Nobles military leaders, land owners
Commoners merchants, artisans, soldiers,
farmers
Slaves prisoners of war, criminals
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IV. Religious Life

• Religion played a major role in daily life
• Hundreds of temples and religious structures
  erected throughout civilization
• 1,000 gods
• Many adopted from other Mesoamerican peoples
• Quetzalcoatl god of learning and books, god of
  wind, symbol of death and rebirth
• Depicted as both feathered serpent and
  pale-skinned man with beard
• Practiced human sacrifice
• Thousands a year sacrificed to Huitzilopochtli
• Enslaved persons, criminals, prisoners of war

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V. Decline

• 1502 Montezuma II crowned emperor
• Demanded even more tribute and sacrifice from
  provinces
• Many provinces rebelled, threw civilization into
  chaos
• Return of Quetzalcoatl
• Many saw bad omens all around
• The Spanish invaders represented Quetzalcoatl and
  downfall of civilization
• Easily overthrew Aztec had better weapons
  disease, Aztecs weak and divided

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Inca Empire(1200s mid 1500s)
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I. Beginnings

• Built upon foundations of older civilizations
• Chavin, Moche, Nazca, Chimor
• Settled in Valley of Cuzco in Andes Mountains
• 1200s small kingdom established
• Pachacuti took throne in 1438
• Greatly expanded control over neighboring lands
• Belief that ruler was descended from sun god
• Only men from one of 11 noble families could be
  selected as leader

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I. continued

• Empire called Land of the Four Quarters
• Encompassed 80 provinces, up to 16 million people
• Used combination of military force and diplomacy
  to overtake and control territories
• Hundreds of different languages, ethnic
  backgrounds

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II. A Unified Empire

• Utilized extensive road system
• One official language Quechua
• Economy strictly controlled by government
• Regulated production and distribution of goods
• Centralized bureaucracy oversaw entire empire
• Depended on ayllu extended family group
• Groups divided into 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000
• Chief led each group
• Chain of command community-gtregional-gt central
• Demanded tribute
• Mita labor required by all able-bodied citizens

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II. Continued

• Recording keeping
• No written language utilized oral tradition
• Used the quipu a set of knotted strings to
  record numerical data
• Knots and their position on the string indicated
  numbers
• Colors of the strings represented different
  categories of information

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III. Religion

• Focused worship mostly on nature spirits
• Moon, stars, thunder, sun gods
• Mamakuna unmarried women selected for a
  lifetime of religious service
• Yamacuna men who served as full-time religious
  workers
• Sacrificed llamas and distributed goods as gifts
  from gods

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IV. Decline

• Huayna Capac Inca leader during early 1500s
• Died of disease (probably small pox) when
  travelling around Ecuador
• After death empire split in two, ruled by two
  sons
• Civil war weakened empire
• 1530s Spanish arrived to overtake a very weak
  empire