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Study Guide for: The Maya, Aztec and Inca Civilizations
1. The Maya built their civilization on the Yucatan Peninsula.
2. The Mayan city of Tikal would not have had wheeled vehicles.
3. The Maya had a system of numbers, a system of writing, and a calendar, but not
scientific tools.
4. The largest and most important buildings in Mayan cities were the pyramids.
5. The Aztecs built their civilization in Mexico.
6. Before the Aztecs built their civilization, they could be described as wanderers.
7. The Aztecs were known as fierce warriors.
8. The Aztec civilization had constant warfare, performed many human sacrifices, and
was a society centered on religion.
9. Montezuma was the ruler of the Aztec Empire in 1519.
10. The Aztec government was an empire united by a single ruler.
11. The Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan was built on an island.
12. The Aztecs constantly waged war because they needed prisoners for human
sacrifices.
13. The Inca ruled the Pacific Coast of South America.
14. The Andes is a mountain range that extends through the middle of the Inca Empire.
15. The Sapa Inca was the sole ruler of the empire.
16. The Inca tax collector and matchmaker was called He-Who-Sees-Everything.
17. The most important animal for the Inca was the llama.
18. The Inca used a quipu to record information.
19. The Incas farmed on mountainsides by cutting terraces into the mountain.
20. Cuzco, Quito, and Machu Picchu were cities in the Inca Empire.
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21. The Inca engineers achieved suspension bridges, terraced farmlands, irrigation
systems, but not wheeled carriages.
22. The Aztec and Inca both gave the Spanish curious and friendly greetings.
23. Hernan Cortes led the Spanish invasion of the Aztec Empire.
24. Montezuma and Atahualpa were emperors taken hostage by Spanish invaders.
25. The Spaniards’ rapid success in conquering the Aztec and Inca empires was not due
to greater loyalty to their leader.