Transcript Cultures of Middle America

Cultures of Middle America
•In about 1325, the Aztecs, a people who
lived in the Valley of Mexico, began looking
for a place to build a new capital.
•According to legends, the Aztecs asked
their god of war where they should build it
this capital.
•They built it in the middle of Lake
Texcoco.
•The Aztecs built Tenochtitlan, their capital.
Cultures of the Mayas
• The Olmec were ancient peoples who
thrived in Middle America before the
Aztecs built their capital city.
• The Olmec are known for their pyramidshaped temples and huge carved stone
heads.
• Later, an important culture developed
in part of Central America and the
Yucatan Peninsula to the north.
These people, called the Mayas,
established a great civilization and
built many cities in this region of
Middle America.
• The Mayas greatest period was from
about A.D. 250 until 900.
A Farming Culture
• Mayan life was based on farming. To grow
crops, Mayan farmers used a technique called
slash-and-burn agriculture. They first cleared the
land by cutting down trees. Then they burned
their tree stumps, saving the ash to use as
fertilizer. Finally they planted seeds.
• Mayan farmers grew a variety of crops, including
beans, squash, peppers, papayas, and
avocados.
• But their most common crop was maize, or corn.
In fact, maize was important to the Mayas that
one of the gods they worshipped was a god of
corn.
Centers of Religion and Government
• Mayan cities were religious and governmental
centers. A different ruler commanded each city.
• The most important religious events took place
at large temple-pyramids. Some of the
ceremonies included human sacrifices.
• Skilled mathematician, Mayan priests developed
a calendar to plan when to hold religious
celebrations.
• The Mayas also created a system of writing
using signs and symbols called hieroglyphics.
They used them to record information in books
made from barks of fig trees.
The Mayans Abandon Their Cities
• Around A.D. 900, the Mayas abandoned
their cities, and their civilization declined.
No one knows the exact reasons they left.
• Crop failures, war, diseases, or overuse of
natural resources may have altered the
Mayan way of life. Or people may have
rebelled against their leaders.
• Today, the descendants of the Mayas still
live in in Middle America.
The Aztec Empire
• The Aztecs first settled in the Valley of Mexico in
1100s.
• In spite of its swampy origins, Tenochtitlan
became a magnificent capital city.
• As the population of Tenochtitlan grew the
Aztecs realized they needed more farmland.
• Their solution was to build many island gardens
in the shallow lakes around the capital. These
raised fields, called chinampas, were made from
rich soil dredged up from the lake bottom.
Religion and Farming
• To bring good harvests, Aztecs priests held ceremonies
that would win the favor of their gods. Their most
important god was the sun god.
• Aztec religion taught that the sun god would not have the
strength to rise and cross the sky every day without
human blood. Therefore, Aztec religious sacrifices
ceremonies included human.
• Prisoners captured in war often served as human
sacrifices.
• Aztec priests created a calendar based on the
Mayan calendar. They also kept records using
hieroglyphs similar to those used by the Mayas.
Aztec Society
• Aztec society had a strict class structures.
The emperor was most important. Next
were members of the royal family, nobles,
priests, and military leaders. Soldiers were
next in importance. Below soldiers came
artisans and merchants. Then came the
farmers. They made up the largest class of
people.
• The lowest position in Aztec society was
held by slaves, most of them were
prisoners captured in battle.
• War was a part of life in the Aztec Empire, as
new territory was conquered.
• Most of the young men over the age of 15
served as soldiers for a period of time. They
were well trained and well equipped.
• Priests and government officials did not serve in
the military.
• Aztec women were not allowed to work as
soldiers or military leaders, though they could
train to be priestesses.
• Most women-even women from noble familieshad to be skilled at weaving.
The End of an Empire
• In 1519, Spanish conquistadors invaded the
Aztec Empire.
• Some of the people whose lands the Aztecs had
conquered joined forces with the Spanish.
• Together, they fought the Aztecs and tried to
overthrow the Aztec emperor, Moctezuma.
• Diseases carried by the Spanish spread to the
Aztecs and killed many of them.
• In 1521, the Aztecs surrendered to the Spanish.
The once-powerful Aztec Empire was at an end.