The AmericasWorld History

Today’s Date Early Civilizations of Mesoamerica Page # (Your next available page)

Interactive NotebookTable of Contents

Given instructional sources, the student will demonstrate understanding of the civilization of early Mesoamerica by completing an organizer

Objective

People

Location

Religion

Architecture

Year/Reason Declined

As you read, create a separate chart, like the one shown below for each of the cultures discussed in this lesson. You may use your book, pp. 372-379 to find the information you will need.

When archaeologists first began investigating in Mesoamerica in the 1940s, they discovered a civilization they called the Olmec

The Olmec were also known as the “rubber people” because of the rubber trees that grew in the area

The Olmec were the first civilization that grew in the area, appearing around 1200 BC

They farmed along the riverbanks in the swampy lowlands along the coast of Mexico near Veracruz

They traded for jade and obsidian to make their tools, jewelry and monuments

The Olmec cities were religious centers, containing pyramids in such cities as La Venta and San Lorenzo

Olmec artisans also carved massive stone heads 10 feet high and weighing 20 tons

For unknown reasons the Olmec declined and collapsed around 400 BC They influenced later Mesoamerican cultures with their ballcourt game,

their jaguar gods and their calendar and number systems

The Olmec

Open your book to page 373 Read the story, examine the picture and

read the caption Answer the following questions Name the different objects created by

Olmec stone carvers Based on their large sculptures, what can

we conclude about the Olmec peoples?

Critical Thinking Skills

The first major city in Mesoamerica was Teotihuacan This city was the capital of an early kingdom that arose around

250 BC and collapsed around 800 AD Located 30 miles northwest of Mexico City in a fertile valley,

Teotihuacan occupied an area of 8 square miles It had as many as 200,000 inhabitants at its height It was dominated by the Avenue of the Dead, lined with temples

and finished with the massive pyramid of the Sun – 200 feet high Most of the people of Teotihuacan were farmers, blessed with

fertile soil that made their valley one of the richest areas in Mesoamerica

Teotihuacan was also known for trade, especially obsidian which was used in weapons and tools, their network spread throughout Mesoamerica

For unknown reasons, in the 8th century the city declined, the elite left and the city was destroyed and abandoned

The City of Teotihuacan

Open your book to page 380-381 Read the story, the inset captions and look

at the artist’s representation of the city Answer the following questions How does the evidence of city planning

support the presence of a civilization? What might the placement of the pyramids

at Teotihuacan indicate about the role of religion in this society?

Social History

Far to the east of Teotihuacan, on the Yucatan Peninsula, another civilization arose which was the most sophisticated in the Americas: the Maya

The Maya built splendid temples and pyramids and developed a sophisticated calendar as accurate as any in the world at that time

The Maya were a farming people, clearing away the dense jungle in slash and burn farming in southern Mexico and western Guatemala

Sometime around 800 AD the Maya civilization went into decline and the cities abandoned to the jungle

Why? No one knows but the most recent theory is that overuse of the land produced food shortages and revolts

The Maya cities would not be discovered again until the 19th and 20th centuries

The Maya

Maya Accomplishments

List some of the accomplishments of the Maya. Use a chart like the one below to make your list. You may use your book pp. 374-376 to find the information you will need.

Open your book to page 376 Read the story and examine the picture Answer the following questions Name the celestial events that shaped the

design of the pyramid of Kukulcan Why might the Maya have constructed a

pyramid to show these solar events?

Critical Thinking Skills

After the fall of Teotihuacan, new kingdoms arose in the Central Valley of Mexico, the most prominent being the Toltecs

The Toltec Empire reached its high point between 950 and 1150 AD, their capital being Tula, about 30 miles northwest of Mexico City

The Toltec irrigated their fields from the Tula River and grew a number of crops including beans, squash and chiles

The flourishing agriculture allowed the Toltecs to support a population of 50-60,000 with another 60,000 living in the surrounding countryside

The Toltec were also builders, constructing temples and palaces They were also the first to bring metalworking to Mesoamerica, working

with gold, silver and copper (soft metals) The Toltec were also influential in religion, worshipping the plumed

serpent god called Quetzalcoatl, which was also worshipped at Teotihuacan and the later Aztec culture

The Toltec began to decline around 1125 AD, falling prey to civil war Tula was plundered by the Aztec, destroying much historical evidence so

what we know of the Toltecs comes from legends told by later cultures

The Toltecs

Open your book to page 374 Examine the map and the key Answer the following questions Which cultures developed in the same

heartland? Suggest reasons for patterns you can see in

areas where cities are located.

Geography Skills

On a half-slip of paper, answer the following question

How do you suppose the Mesoamericans were so good with architecture and engineering? Explain

Closure

Today’s Date The Aztec and the Inca Page # (Your next available page)

Interactive NotebookTable of Contents

Given instructional sources the student will demonstrate understanding of the Aztec and Inca cultures by completing an organizer

Objective

The origins of the Aztec are uncertain Sometime in the 12th century they began a long migration that

brought them to the Central Valley of Mexico They eventually settled in the middle of Lake Texcoco, building

their city Tenochtitlan, from which they would rule until the Spanish conquest

Tenochtitlan was a wonder of engineering, built in the middle of the lake, with causeways connecting it to the mainland

Soon the Aztecs used their ferocious war making ability to bring the other lake tribes under control

It was just a matter of time before the Aztec expanded outward, reaching into Guerrero, Michoacan, Oaxaca and the Gulf Coast

From the subject tribes, the Aztec exacted tribute, goods flowed in to Tenochtitlan, enriching the Aztec

The Aztec

The Aztec were ruled by an emperor who had absolute power, and who claimed lineage from the gods

He was advised by a council of lords and government officials The nobility held positions in the government Noble children were sent to temple schools where they learned to be

warriors Once adults, they could continue their military training or become a

priest or a government bureaucrat Most people were farmers, using chinampas to plant as many as

three crops a year Aztec traders did business throughout the empire, also acting as

spies to keep the Aztec informed The main god was Huitzilopochtli, the war god, who demanded a

steady diet of human hearts to keep the sun in the sky Another important god was Quetzalcoatl, who had gone into exile

but promised to return to wreak vengeance upon his enemies

Aztec Society

Open your book to page 378 Read the story, examine the picture and the

inset with caption Answer the following questions According to the illustration, at what age

would a girl learn to weave on a loom? How does the different educational focus of

Aztec boys and girls reflect the different roles of Aztec men and women?

Document-Based Questions

The Inca were just one tribe in Peru, centered on their capital of Cuzco in the mountains

In the 1440s, under the leadership of Pachacuti, they embarked on a campaign of conquest

Eventually they brought the entire region under their control Pachacuti and his successors Topa Inca and Huayna Inca extended Inca control

as far south as central Chile and Ecuador and into the western Amazon basin The empire contained as many as 12 million people The Inca state was built on war so all young men were required to serve in the

army With some 200,000 men, the Inca army was the largest and best equipped in

the region Control of conquered areas was closely regulated, with nobles sent to be

governors, local leaders could stay as long as they were loyal to the Inca Forced labor was an important part of the state – all Inca were required to work

for several weeks a year Laborers could be moved from one part of the empire to another, depending

upon the need

The Inca

Open your book to page 383 Examine the map, read the inset captions Answer the following questions Estimate in miles the length of the Inca

Empire Examine the dates on the map legend.

Then, explain what the map suggests about the relationship between these civilizations

Geography Skills

Open your book to page 384 Read the story about Pachacuti Answer the following question Why did Pachacuti require his other sons to

declare allegiance to Topa Inca?

People in History

Inca Road System

Summarize the ways that the Inca road system unified the empire. You may use your book pp. 384-385 to find the information you will need.

One project that required a great deal of labor was a system of roads to connect the empire

The road system stretched from Colombia to south of Santiago, Chile

People lived by farming, developing a system of terracing on the mountain sides

They grew corn, potatoes among other things The Inca were easily the best engineers among the

Native American peoples Besides the roadways, they built suspension bridges

and aquaducts Buildings and temples were made of stone cut so

precisely that they didn’t need mortar

Inca Culture

As you read, complete a pyramid diagram showing the hierarchy of the Inca’s political organization. You may use your book pp. 384-385 to find the information you will need.

Closure On a half-slip of paper, answer the following

question Why do you suppose the Inca needed such

an intricate road system? Explain.

That’s it for the Americas! Ready for the quiz?