Mesoamerica Flashcards
What civilization was over 3,000 years ago and was located in Modern day Guatemala?
The Mayans
The fall of the Mayans?
Declined mysteriously in the 9th century.
What were the achievements of the Mayans?
-Built huge cities in the jungle
-Large Murals
-Hieroglyphic writing system
-365-day calendar system
-Number 0
What city was characterized by its vast monuments?
Teotihuacan (400 BCE - 8th or 9th century CE)
What does Teotihuacan mean?
“The place where gods were created”
Who were the successors of the Teotihuacan people in the 9th and 10th centuries?
The Toltecs
Who were the Toltecs?
An advanced civilization during the 10th-12th centuries. A regional empire that protected people from nomads. Maintained relations with societies of the Gulf Coast and the Maya. Established a large state, a powerful army, and also used irrigation.
Capital of the Toltecs?
Tula - the capital city and center of trade.
-Approx. 60,000 in & around city
What was the city of Tula like?
-An important center of weaving, pottery, and obsidian
-Traded with Mayans
-Became destabilized in 1125 CE
-Internal conflict
-Fell in 1175 CE
-Civil conflict
-Nomadic invasion
-Large fire
-Toltecs are no longer the dominant force in Mesoamerica
Who were the Mexica? (The Aztecs)
-Arrived in central Mexico in the mid-13th century
-Warriors & Raiders
-Information about Mexica survived Spanish conquests - oral testimonies recorded by Spanish missionaries; a few Mexica books survived
-By the 15th century, Mexica became the region’s dominant force
Where were the Mexica located and the empire capital?
-Settled along Lake Tenochtitlan 1345 CE
-Fish; frogs; waterfowl; nutritious soil; defensive position
-Tenochtitlan - the capital of the empire
How did the Mexica expand?
-Aztecs defeat and colonize Oaxaca
-Made alliances with two empires - Texcoco & Tlacopan
-Empire swells to 12 million people - most of Mesoamerica
What was trade like with the Mexica (The Aztecs)?
-Controlled subject territories - main objectives:
-Collect tribute obligations - 489 subject territories sent to Tenochtitlan
-Trade
-The empire had no centralized bureaucracy or elaborate structure
-Local administrators enforced tributes
-Allies did not have standing armies
The social structure of the Aztec empire?
-Rigid hierarchical society - Wealth determines dress/attire
-Warriors - male
-Privileged; wealth and honor; received land & tribute
-Males from noble families receive military training and opportunities
-Women - no role in public life
-Could not own property
-Subject to fathers; husbands
-Priests - high-ranking; elite
-Access to education
-Presided over religious ceremonies - critical to the continuation of the world
-Cultivators and slaves - most of the population
-Worked ancestral land or lands owned by the aristocracy
-Worked on public works projects - palaces, temples, roads, irrigation
-Artisans & merchants - prestigious role in society
What was the Aztec religion like?
-They were polytheistic
-gods
-Tezcatlipoca = “the smoking mirror”
-A powerful figure, giver and taker of life & patron deity of warriors
-Quetzalxoati = “the Feathered Serpent”
-Supporting arts, crafts, and agriculture
-Huitzilopochtli
-god of the sun and war
-Patron god of Mexica
What were two of the rituals they did?
-Bloodletting
-Believed that gods set the world in motion through sacrifice
-Ritualization of bloodletting so the world could continue
-Human sacrifice
-Believed it was needed to perpetuate the world to keep agricultural society going
What was the Chucuito empire?
- One of the empires of South America
-Located near Lake Titicaca - at 13,000 ft
-Dependent on potatoes, alpaca, llamas
-Traded with lowland peoples
-Terraced fields - the fields that look like steps
What was the Chimu Empire?
-Another empire of South America
-Powerful kingdom in Andean lowlands
-Emerged before 15c.
-600 miles - Peruvian coast
-Irrigation systems
-Cultivation
-Maize
-Sweet potatoes
-Chanchan - the capital city
-Brick buildings
What was the Inca empire?
-Other empire in South America
-Moved into the area of Lake Titicaca - 13th century
-Lived among Chimu and Chucuito
-Built a huge empire that stretched 2500 miles along the Pacific Coast
-Amazon and other river valleys - barriers to the East
What was the Inca Rule like?
-Government
-Ruled as military & administrative elite
-Implemented taxes to support rulers and organizational systems to store agricultural surpluses & crafts
-Use of quipu (system of cords) for record-keeping, knots on ropes
-Population
-State property
-Taxes
-Labor services owed
-Historical events
What was the capital of the Inca empire?
-Cuzco - served as the administrative, religious, and ceremonial center of the Inca Empire
-300,000 population
What were the Incan roads like?
-Extensive road system - allowed centralized government at Cuzco to communicate with all parts of the empire
-25,000 miles throughout
-Connected north & south
-Official runners - carried messages - spread Quecha language
-Travel across the empire took only days
-No wheeled transport
What was the Inca trade like?
-Trade limited
-Long-distance trade regulated by the central government
-Local barter in agricultural goods
-Some specialized crafts - local
-Pottery
-Textiles
-Tools
The social structure of the Incas?
-Ruler - descended from the sun; owned everything on earth
-Fine clothes & food
-Arsitrocrats & Priests
-Celibate and aesthetic lives
-Oversaw religious rituals: served gods
-Religion - moral - rewards & punishment
-Peasants
-Majority of the population
-Compulsory heavy labor - worked on state lands; public works
-Lived in ayllus - a traditional family clan
