Chapter 6 Flashcards
The Blodletting obseervance wer epolitical and religious ritials, actos of
deep piety performed as Chan Bahlum presided for funeral services
What did the Maya believe about shedding blood?
That it was necessary to do it for the usrvival of the world. IT was associated with rain and agriculture.
Although much is unclear about the ealry population of the Ameirca, what is known?
That he firstlarge wave of migraiton was from Sibera to Alaska was in 13000 BCe. Buover the Beiring Streit
Several archaeological excavation ant widely scattered sites have yeilded what date of migration?
1500 BCe
The earliest human inhabitants of the Americas lived by
hunting and gatheing.
By 8000-7000 BCe, the peoples of Mesamerica, the reigon from the central portion of modern Mexico to Hunduras and Elsavador had began to experiment with the cutivaiion of what?
beans, chili peppers,avocados, squashes,a dn gourds. Soon they had the potential of Maize, and tomatoes
Did the people fo MEsoamerica have domesitcated animals?
Not really, but they had dogs and trkyes
The tempo of Mesoamerican life quickende as elaborate cermonial centers
with monumentla pyramids, temples and palaces arose alognside the agricutral villages . The first of these centrs were not cities like those of early societes in the eastern hemisphere. Perman
Permanent residens ofthe ceremonial centers included embers of the
ruling elite, priests, and a few artisians and craftsman Large people came for good occasiosn
Agricultural villages and cermnial centers arose in where?
several region. Such as Veracruz.
What does Olmec come frome
Rubber people, the rubber trees that flourisn the region in which they inhabited
Where did the first Olmec society arise?
in 1200 BCE in the modern town of San lorezne and it was acapital ofor 400 years
What were others of cities?
La venta (800-400) and Trs Zapotes (400-100)
What was teh nature of Olmec society?
I twas most lkely authoriatarian. Untold htousands of laborers paricipated in the consturciton of all the cermonial centers.
What did each of the cermonial centers feature?
Complex temples, pyramids, altars, stone scupture and tombs fo nature. Common subjects delivered a portion of their harvest
What did common subjects have to do?
OWrk for the elites
What was the most distinctive art creations of the Olmecs?
The colossal human heads, of rulers form basalt rocks
In the absence of domesitc animals, how wasbasalt carried?
BY human laborers, Apart form the colossal heads, there were other stone sculpures
How did the Omecs spread thier infeluce?
By milary force. But htere was also trade
What did the olmecs produce?
LArge numbers of decorative obejcts from jad which they had to import. In absence of metla technology, they used obsidian from which tey fashioned knives and axes
ike jade, obsidian came form
the GUlf Coast
Among the many mysterious surrounding the Olemcs, what owas one perplexing thing
How they decined, they systematically destoryed their ceremonial centers.
Who was teh heir of the Olemc Society?
maya
Where did the Maya occpu?
Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Hunduras and El Salvador. THe highlands of Guatemal offer fertile soila nd excellent conditions of agriculte Permanentvilalges had began to appear there during the third century BCE
Kaminaljuyu
was a cereonial center but it dominated the ilife of other ocmmunities in teh region. 12-15 thousand laborers worked to built the temples.
After the 4th century,w here did Maya society flourish?
Mostly in teh porrly drained Mesoamerican lowelands wher thin tropical soils quickely lsot thier fertility.
To enhanvce the fertility, they
trapped silk form the numerous river saround the reigon. THey had a lot of miaze, cotton and caoco
Tikal
I twas the most important Maya political center. It was 600-800 CE in the height. It was city wtith a huge populaiton and big plazas,
The Maya organized themselves politically into scores of small city ckingdom
Tikal, Paelnque and Chichen ITza
What were kings associated with?
With Jaguire
What was discovered by Maya kingdom?
fought constantly with one another. Victors destoryed the poeples they defeated and took over thier cermonial centers. BUt, h
What What was teh purpose of Maya warfare?
Capture them in the battlefed. Warriors won prestige when they did so.
Chichen ITza
was in the northern Yucatan peninsula. Deaked to Damplen hostile anstincts and establish a larger political famework for Maya socoeity
What did the rulers of Chichen ITza prefer to do?
Abosrbe captives and integrate them into their own society rathern than annihapate them or offer them up as sacrifice
When did Maya poplation disaapear
800 Ce
Apart form tehe Kings and ruling families, Maya society included a large class of priests who maintianed an elaborate calenderand
transmited knowledge of writing, astronomy and mathematics. A hereditary nobilty owned most ladnd and cooperatew itth the kigns and priests
Where did Maya Merchants come form?
THey came form ruling and noble classes. their travels ahd strong political families
What was the maya calender like?
IT was very elaborate, had 365 days in it. It had the solar and the agricultral cycle.
Whad did the Maya believe that each day
derived specific characteristics form its position in both the solar and the fortune.
While building the calenderical calculations of the Olmecs, what did hte Maya also expand upn>
The rraditions of writing. They created a flexible and sophisticated of the early American systems. IT
What did the maya system contain?
IT contianed both ideographic elements and symbols for syllabkes.
What did the Maya write of?
Hof history, poetry and myth. They also kept genealogical, administrative and astornomical record .
When the Spanish arrived near teh Maya, what di dthey do ?
Destoryed all of the books
What is the Maya creation myth?
ITHe Popul Vih
What was one of the msot important sacrifices/
the BShedding of Human blood which the ya ablived would prompt the gods to send rain to the water their crops of maize. Some of this etled on war captives
What did the Blood letting rituals center on?
war aptives, ebfore sacrificing victims by decapitaiton, their captors cut of fhte ends of their ficgrues or
Apart form the calender and sacrifial rituals,w hat did the Maya also inherit?
A ball game fromthe Olmecs. IT domr times had two men, the obejtive of it was for player to score points by propelling a ruber ball through a ring or onto a marker wihtout using thier hands
What was teh ball made out of?
Solid baked rubeer, and could cause a conc ussion. It someitmes had a death thing for the lusor
Did the earliest settlers in teh valley of Mxico build an extenisve rirgation system?
No, but channeled some of the water for mthe moutnain streams into their fields and establish a productive society
Teotihuacan
was probably a large agriuctural village by 500 BCe, it expanded rapidly after abotu 200 BCe and by the end fo the millenium, it spopulation appreaoched 50 thousand. By 100 Ce, it had 2 pyramids. The Pyramid of the son
What happened when the city delcined?
The books along with it wen t awa. It would have shed ight of it
What was crucial for the survival of the society?
Priests since htey kept the calender and ensured tha tplanting nad harvestin gook place at the appropriate seasoins. Thus, it would hav enot been unusual for them to govern Teohituacan in the name of the gods
Apart fro rulers and priests, Teohtihuacan’s populaiton inclded who
cultivator, aritians, and merhcants> Perhaps as many as wo thirds of hte cities inhabitatns worked during the daysin fields surrounding Teotihuacan and returned to their small aparatments in the city at night
What were artisians famous for?
Obsidian toolsa nd fine orange pottery. they had trade and exchange networks.
Was their military organizaiton
not until later
Like the Maya, what were the cultural tradtions of Teotihuacan built on?
htey were built on that of the olmecs
When did Teotihuacan decline?
When they ha dincreasing military pressure
Although they were exact contemporaries, Mesoamerican and Andean societies developed
Largely independently. the heartland of early Andean society was teh region now occupied by the staes of Peru and Boliiva. Geography discouraged ocmmunicaiton
What things diffused?
The Gold, maize and squashes. IT
Most ofthe early Andean heartland came under cultivation between 2500 and 200 BCe, a perment settler dotted the coastal reigons in pariculars
at did they cultivate?
Tehy cultivated beans peanutes, sweet potatoes, cotton,
The Rich marine life of the Pacific OCean supplemented Agricultrual harvests enablign coastal people to build an
increasingly complex soieyt. Setltements prbably appeared later in teh andean ighlands than in the cosastal regions but many varieties of potato supported agricultural ocmmunities in the highlands after 200 BCe .
Shortly after the eyar 100 BCe, a new religion appeared suddenly in the central Andes–
the Chavin cult which enjoyed enormous popularity during the period 900 to 800 bCe spread throughout most of the teritorry occupied by mdoern Peru
What was the cult designed to promote?
Fertility and abundant havests. In anycase, the large temple complexes and elaborate works of art that acocomanie
What were the works of art that were produced?
They produced intricate sotne carvings representing their deities with the features of human and wild animals suhc as jaguars
During the era of the Chavin cult, Andrean society became increasingly complex..how?
Weavers devised tecniques of producing elaborate cottong textiles, soem wiht itricate pattersnand desings. Artisians manyufactured alrge, light and strong fishnets ofgold, silver and copper
Along with cities, there were also regional states.the earliest Andean state arose in teh many valleys on the
western side of the mountains.
They coordinated the building of irrigation systems so that the lower valleys could support
intensive agriculturea nd they established trade and establishing exchange netwokrs that support intesive agricultre. And they established trade and exchange networks that tied the highlands and the central velly
This organization of the Andean valleys into integrated economic zones did not come abuout by accident
Buidier sof the eary Andean state wokred deliberately and did not hesitate to use force to consolidate their domains
Surviving stone fortification and warriors depicted in wokrs of art testify that the early Andean states relied heavlily on arms to
enforce
Mochica state had its base
At teh valeys of th Moche River. Most of the ceramics were heads, others represent the major gods and various subordinate deities
What did May Mochica ceramics take the form of?
Portrates of indididuals heads. Others represented th e ajor gods and subordiante deities. Some of the Mochica people: aristorcarts wou
When did Human Migrats reach Australia?
Before people had begun to cultivate crops- o keep herds of domesticated animals. Inevitably then, the earliest inhabitants lived by hunting and gathering their food
For thousands of years, what did migrants most likely do?
Travel back and forth but soon folowed different plans
Hunting and Gathering Societies
Australia- lived in small mobile ocmmmunities, elarned to exploit things. They found large plant life
WHo were the Austronesian people:
The earliest inhabitants of New Guine foraged for food like thier neighbors to the south.The Angents we
Who were teh Austronesian peple?
They were people speakignthe austronesian langauge whose modern linguistic relatives include Malagasy, language or Madagascar. They were good seaen
Austronesian seafarers cam form
Socities that depended on the cultivation of root crops and the herd of animls. Whne they setlted in NEw Ginea, th taro, pigs, adn chciken to the land
Austronesian Migrations to Polynesia
They possessed sophistacated boats and found uninhabited islands to domesticate thier crops and keep heir animals.
Once they had established socities, what dud Austroneisicans do?
They arrived at Vanatu. From there took other places
What were the Lapita?
Came from New Ca…they maintianed communication and exchanged networks throughout large region extending abotu 500 km. Whenever they settles, Lapita people estbalished agricultral villages werethey raised pigs, chick and introducedyams,t aro and bananas
What was trade with teh Lapita
Pottery, jewelry
What was What was the leadershi
It was chie leadership passing from son to osn.
