Download Native American Civilizations Presentation

Native American Civilization
Main Idea
Civilizations in Mesoamerica were some of the earliest and most
advanced in the Americas.
Objectives:
• Students will identify characteristics of Maya civilization.
• Students will discover what made the Aztec empire one of the
strongest in the ancient Americas.
• Students will identify how the Inca Empire was organized.
The Maya
Large civilization
• Olmec, Zapotec, Toltec small in
comparison
• Developed around 1000 BC
• More than 40 cities of 5,000 to
100,000 each at height
Rain forest challenges
• Slash-and burn agriculture
• Clearing forest land for crops
• Flat terraces built in hillsides to control
erosion
Early Maya Civilization
• First lived in small villages
• Grew corn, beans, squash
• Good rainfall, rich soils
Trade developed
• Farming did not provide all needs
• Villages traded for cotton, jade
• Trade of cacao, salt, obsidian helped
villages grow to cities
The Maya
Cities and Government
• Most cities built between AD 250 and 900, the Classic Age
• Cities Tikal and Copan among the most spectacular in Mesoamerica
• Brightly painted pyramids, temples and palaces found there
City-States
• Each had own ruler and government
• No ruler ever united the cities into single empire
• Cities linked even without central government
Cities linked
• Highlands traded jade, obsidian for cotton, rubber, cacao from lowlands
• Cities also linked by warfare with each other
• Through battles kings tried to gain land, power
The Maya
Achievements
• Impressive buildings and architecture, including canals
• Advances in astronomy, math, writing
• Observed movements of sun, moon, planets
Calendar system
• Created based on astronomical observations
• 365-day farming, 260-day religious calendars
• More accurate than that used in Europe at same time
Number and writing systems
• Number system included new concepts, including “zero”
• Complex writing system of glyphs, or symbols, representing objects, sounds
• Carved writing in stone, also in bark-paper book called a codex
• Only 15 survived the purge by Spanish Conquistadors and colonization
Dresden Codex
Mayan Ruins
chichen itza
http://youtu.be/q0kOyGZxKh4
Tulum Ruins
http://youtu.be/qhWItvjk9Yg
The Maya
Decline of Mayan civilization, AD 900
• Caused by number of factors
– Environmental damage, drought (slash and burn agriculture)
– Warfare increased over competition for land, destroyed more
crops
– Abuse of power by strong kings
• Civilization declined but did not disappear
– Maya moved from forest to coastal cities
– Remained for several hundred years
The coat of arms in the center of the flag is inspired
by an Aztec legend that predates today's Mexico by
700 years. Before the founding of Tenochtitlan, the
capital city of the Aztecs, an ancient prophecy told
the people how they would know where to build.
The site would be revealed by a sign: an eagle eating
a snake while sitting atop a cactus. That spot, the
marshy Lake Texcoco, was drained and cultivated by
the Aztecs and became the thriving civilization upon
whose remains the modern cities of Mexico are now
built.
The Aztecs
About the time that Mayan cities in Yucatán reached their height, the Aztecs began to
rise to power in the north. The early Aztecs were a small group of unlucky farmers
from northwestern Mexico, who in time created the most powerful empire in
Mesoamerica.
Rise of the Empire
• Began as separate farming tribes
• Probably subject of the Toltecs
• Legend: settle where they saw an
eagle on a cactus eating a snake
• Migrated south to Valley of Mexico,
1100s
• Good farmland already taken
Lake Texcoco
• A swampy island in valley
• Site where legend says Aztecs saw
eagle and snake
• Founded city of Tenochtitlán
• From here, continued rise to power
In addition to being farmers, the Aztecs were also fierce warriors. They began fighting
to control other towns around Lake Texcoco.
http://youtu.be/_nS6MpVbB_g
Map of Tenochtitlan, possibly made for
Cortes. Woodcut from Praeclara
Ferdinandi Cortesii de Nova Maris
Oceani Hispania Narratio, Nürnberg,
1524 (first publication of Cortes's
letters.) Courtesy of the New York
Public Library.
The Aztecs
Conquering Warriors
Wealth and Strength
• Aztecs gained strength in 1420s with
alliance with Texcoco and Tlacopan
• Tribute paid in many forms, feathers,
food, pottery, blankets
• Alliance gained control over huge
region beyond Lake Texcoco
• Tribute was basis of economy
• Aztecs ruled 400 to 500 other city
states, 5 million people
• Required conquered people to pay
tribute
• Gained wealth and strength through
trade as well
• System of roads aided trade of goods
like jade, cacao
• Merchants also acted as spies for
Aztec emperor
The Aztecs
Tenochtitlán
•
•
•
•
•
Capital city of Aztec empire
Covered 5 square miles
Population of about 200,000
One of largest cities in world at time
Site of present day Mexico City
Enchanted Vision
Floating Gardens
• Walled compound at city center
• Swampy island in middle of lake
• Pyramid with two temples on top
• Not much land for farming
• Other temples, government buildings,
palaces, a ball court
• Aztecs built floating gardens at city’s
edge
• Political and religious heart of the
empire
• Tenochtitlán connected by canals and
causeways to biggest market
• First Europeans, “enchanted vision”
• Vendors paid tax to support army
The Aztecs
Just as the economy of the Aztec Empire was highly organized, so was its society,
with the king at the top, followed by priests.
Society and Religion
•
King was part of royal family, but had
to be elected
•
Lived in palace at Tenochtitlán
•
Certain nobles served as government
officials
•
Just below king were priests
– Interpreted calendars
– Performed religious ceremonies
Religious Ceremonies
• Believed gods needed blood
• Sacrificed as many as 20,000 victims a
year
• European perspective, “walls
splashed and caked with blood…stank
abominably”
• Slaves. prisoners used for sacrifices
• Certain warriors who captured victims
also upper class
Early Cultures in South America
The Nazca
• Desert people, 200 BC to AD 600, best
known for huge designs on desert
floor
• Many theories, including having to do
with location of water
• Built irrigation canals and relied on
springs, flooding of streams to water
crops
• Farming supported large population
http://youtu.be/FRNNjbBCGMI
The Inca Empire
Inca’s expansive empire
Government
• Brought entire South American region
into one empire
• Period of rapid expansion began 1400s
from Cuzco
• Began as small Andean tribe
• Early 1500s, empire expanded along
Pacific coast, Andes
• Pachacuti used political alliances,
military force
• Expanded by later leaders
Ruling a large empire
• Incas needed strong government
• Emperor had most power
• Did not want conquered people to
rebel
Creating stability
• Moved leaders of conquered areas out
• Moved loyal new leaders in
• Military used to protect against
rebellion, external attacks
The Inca Empire
Economy
• Strictly controlled by government
• Common people required to pay labor tax, called the mita
• Government told each household what work to do to pay tax
Mita
• Paid by weaving cloth, working on government farms, mines, building roads
• No merchants, goods distributed by government
• Extra food, goods stored in government warehouses for emergencies
Tracking goods
• Inca used quipu, colored and knotted cords representing numbers, dates
• No written language, quipu used to record taxes, number livestock, census
• Road system improved communication, helped government control economy
The Inca Empire
The government also played a big role in Inca society. Each family was grouped with
others into a cooperative community called an ayllu.
Ayllu
• Members shared
activities like farming,
building canals, rituals
• Each group of ten ayllus
had chief
• Chain of command
from emperor down to
local level
Class Divisions
• No slaves
• Most belonged to lower
class
– Farmers
– Artisans
– Servants
• Wore plain clothes
• Could not own more
than needed
• Served upper class
Upper Class
• King, government
officials, priests
• Lived in capital, Cuzco
– Stone houses
– Fine clothes
– Did not pay tax
– Attended school to
prepare to be
officials
The Inca Empire
Religion a key element of Inca society
People allowed to worship local gods
–
Sun god was most important of all
–
Believed kings related to sun god
• Main temple located in Cuzco
–
Mummies of dead kings worshipped
–
Religious ceremonies often included sacrifices of
llamas, cloth or food, rarely humans
MACHU PICCHU