Chapter 11

Peoples and Civilizations of the

Americas,

600 - 1500

AP World History

I. Classic-Era Culture and Society in

Mesoamerica, 200-900

A. Teotihuacan• Large Mesoamerican

city with a population of about 150,000.

• 700 years before and 37 miles from Tenochtitlan.

• Had pyramids and temples where human sacrifice was carried out.

• Forced relocation of farm families and agricultural innovation such as irrigation and chinampas.

The city of Teotihuacán (200 B.C.E.) contains

the largest pre-Columbian pyramid structures

in the Americas. It is also known for large

residential complexes, the Avenue of the

Dead, and numerous colorful, well-preserved

murals.

• Apartment-like stone buildings housed commoners and elites lived in separate residential compounds and controlled the bureaucracy, taxes, and commerce.

• Ruled by alliances of wealthy families

–oligarchy

• Collapsed around 650 C.E. probably by mismanagement of resources and conflict within the elite or invasion. Ruins of Teotihuacán (200 B.C.E.) from the

vantage of the Pyramid of the Moon.

The Teotihuacán ruins of the Pyramid of the

Moon.

• B. Maya

1. Borrowing from Olmectraditions, same time as Gupta, Han, Romans

2. Developed large domain and lived in scattered settlements on Yucatan peninsula

3. Urban areas with thousands of people

4. Never formed a unified kingdom

5. Independent city-states, linked by trade

Geographic area of Mayan civilization in modern day

Guatemala.

http://www.history.com/topics/maya/vide

os#the-mayans

6. Agricultural economy

• draining swamps, building

elevated fields, terraced

fields, and managed

forest resources.

7. Distinctive temple

complexes and massive

pyramids

8. Staple diet of maize

(corn) and beans

9. Mayan women held no

political power but

participated in the

bloodletting rituals.

Mayan funerary Temple of the Great Jaguar within

The Great Plaza of Tikal (745 C.E.)

Residence ruins from Mayan Tikal.

10. Ritualistic polytheisma. Believed cosmos consisted

of three layers, the heavens, human world, and the underworld.

b. Rulers and elites communicated with the other worlds.

c. Fought for captives, not for territory. Elite captives were sacrificed and commoners were enslaved. (No beasts of burden)

11. Technological developments included the Mayan calendar, mathematics, and the Maya writing system.

12. Reasons for fall? Disease, disruption of trade, overpopulation and increased warfare around 800-900 C.E.

Mayan rain deity,

Chaac, with his lightning

axe that strikes the

clouds and produces

thunder and rain.

Chief Mayan deity, Kinebahan, “eyes and

mouth of the sun" is the Great God

without form, existing only in spirit.

On the winter solstice of Dec. 21, 2012, the Maya's "Long

Count" calendar marks the end of a 5,126-year era. On this

date, the sun will be aligned with the center of the Milky

Way for the first time in 26,000 years.

The Maya

• http://safari.sandi.net/SAFARI/montage/pla

y.php?keyindex=1367&location=local

II. The Post-classic Period in

Mesoamerica, 900-1500

A. The Toltecs1. Central Mexico

and built

civilization based

on Teotihuacan.

2. Capital at Tula

was ruled by dual

kings but were

destroyed by

invaders around

1156 C.E.

3. Polytheistic

Geographic location of Toltec cities in

modern day southern Mexico. Tula,

Hidalgo (#6) was the capital.

Geographic location of Toltec cities in modern day southern

Mexico. Tula, Hidalgo (#6) was the capital.

Toltec carvings usually depicted warriors or some type of

warfare.

Ruins of the Toltec capital in the city of Tula, Hidalgo.

• B. Aztecs

1. Aka Mexica people

2. Last great Mesoamerican culture before arrival of Europeans

a. empire of 12 million people

3. Controlled Texcocoregion

a. established the cities of Tenochtitlanand Tlatelolco

b. modern day Mexico City

Geographic relationship between the

Aztecs and Mayans. (Notice: The

Aztecs conquered the Toltecs)

Depiction of the Aztec capital of

Tenochtitlan in

the middle of Lake Texcoco.

Geographic relationship between the Aztecs and Mayans.

(Notice: The Aztecs conquered the Toltecs)

Depiction of the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan in

the middle of Lake Texcoco.

• C. Aztec characteristics

1. Militant warrior tradition

2. Rule by severe despot

a. chose by aristocrats

3. Priestly class to oversee rituals, including human sacrifice

4. Females maintained control of household and market

5. Ritualistic polytheistic religion with an extensive pantheon

a. most important was Huitzilopochtli, the Sun god

1.He was appeased by sacrifice with human hearts

Depiction of a royal Aztec

procession.

Depiction of a royal Aztec procession.

6. Large urban capital with 150,000

7. Agricultural economy with cacao beans

a. Sometimes used as currency

b. Established irrigation and chinampas, but also received food from tribute.

1. subject people for the most part were allowed to govern themselves so long as they paid tribute

c. Goods were exchanged through barter.

1. mostly lightweight goods2. road system

which allowed for trade to flourish

Example of Aztec sacrifice to the god

Huitzilopochtli, the god of war and the

sun. He required a daily diet human

parts in order bring sun’s warmth to

the world.

Examples of the Aztec class system.

Example of Aztec sacrifice to the god Huitzilopochtli, the god of

war and the sun. He required a daily diet human parts in order

bring sun’s warmth to the world.

Aztec Video

• http://safari.sandi.net/SAFARI/montage/pla

y.php?keyindex=1021&location=local

Compare Them

• Aztecs similar to Romans in that they tied

their empires together by building roads

• People were allowed to govern

themselves so long as they paid tribute

• Both were conquerors and borrowers

III. The Northern PeoplesA. Southwestern Desert Cultures

• The Hohokam established extensive irrigation systems in the Salt and Gila valleys around 1000 C.E.

• Shows increased political centralization

• The Anasazi constructed Kivas in the American southwest.

– Kivas were underground buildings

– Used as pottery and religious ceremonies

• Largest Anasazi, or ancient ones, was in Chaco Canyon (New Mexico)

• The Chaco Canyon community engaged in trade, hunting and irrigated agriculture and exerted some political and religious dominance over the area but declined due to drought, overpopulation, and warfare.

Early Native American geographic

areas in the southwest part of

modern day U.S. & Mexico.

Anasazi cliff dwellings at Mesa

Verde.

B. Mound Builders: The Mississippian Cultures

• The Hopewell culture came out of the Adena culture and was based in the Ohio Valley.

• The major Hopewell centers were ruled by chiefs and they served as priests and managed secular affairs such as long distance trade.

– chiefdom

• The Hopewell built large mounds both as burial sites and as platforms upon which temples and residences of chiefs were constructed.

• The Hopewell sites were abandoned around 400 C.E., but the mound building was continued by the Mississippian culture (700-1500 C.E.).

• The Mississippian chiefdoms were made possible by increased agricultural productivity, the bowand arrow, and expanded trade networks.

• The largest center was Cahokia but was abandoned around 1250 because of climate changes and population pressure.

Recreation of the Mound Builders of

Caohokia near modern day east St. Louis

Illinois. It is the home of the largest mound

constructed in N. America (100 ft high) and

had a population of about 20,000 (similar in

size to Mayan cities)

Mound Builder cultural sites around the Mississippi river.

Example of a Mound Builder site.

Mounds were used for burial temples and chief residences.

• 1. What were the Aztec people also known as?

• 2. What were the Aztecs most known for?

• 3. How were Aztecs rulers chosen?

• 4. In what ways were Aztecs similar to the Persian Empire?

• 5. In what ways were the Aztecs different from the Persian Empire?

• 6. In what ways could you compare the Aztecs with Islamic caliphates?

• 7. In what ways could you contrast the Aztecs with Islamic caliphates?

• 8. Why do you think Aztec people were content with ritual sacrifice?

• 9. Why was trade in the Aztec empire mostly only for small goods?

• 10. In what ways were Northern American peoples different from Mesoamerican peoples?

• 11. In what ways were Northern American peoples similar to Mesoamerican peoples?

IV. Andean Civilizations 600-1500A. Cultural Response to Environmental Challenge

• Andes, dry coastal plain, and Amazon forced inhabitants to organize labor effectively.

• The clan (ayllu) held land collectively, and assisted each other in production and to supply goods and labor to the clan chief.

• The mit’a was introduced around 1000 and required each ayllu to provide a set number of workers each year for religious establishments, royal court, or the aristocracy.

• Work was divided along genderlines.

• The Andean region is divided into four different ecological zones; the coast, mountain valleys, higher elevations, and the Amazonian region. Topography of modern day

South America.

The Andes Mountains of modern day South America.

B. Moche• North coastal region of Peru in

about 200-700 C.E.

• Moche society was stratified and theocratic.

– Led by religious leaders

• Commoners supplied mit’alabor to the elite while the elite military leaders and priests lived atop large platforms and decorated themselves in magnificent clothing.

• Moche artisans were skilled in the production of textiles, portrait vases, and metallurgy.

• Decline can be attributed to a series of natural disasters and pressure from the warlike Waripeople.

Major city sites of the Moche.

The Moche were the most accomplished

ceramic artists of the Americas. (Ceramic

warrior)

An example of stone artistry on

structures at Pyramids at Moche.

C. Tiwanaku and Wari• Civilization of Tiwanku

was located in Bolivia.

• Urban construction consisted of large terraced pyramid, walled enclosures, and a reservoir.

• Ruled by a hereditary elite.

• The Wari had contact with Tiwanaku, but was a separate culture, was built without central planning, with different techniques, and on a much smaller scale than Tiwanaku.

Wari’s political formation emerged in the

highlands of Peru. Tiwanaku, near Lake

Titicaca, are recognized as one of the

most important precursors to the Inca

Empire.

The ruins of the city at Wari. It was surrounded by a large wall

and included a large temple at the center.

• D. Inca 1. South American highlands

• Centralized empire with its capital at Cuzco (modern day Peru)

• Inca left local rulers in place and took their heirs to Cuzco. This created an imperial bureaucracy.

2. Absorbed many tribes in central-western South America

3. Covered 3,000 miles

4. strong military and used it to expand the traditional exchange system that linked the Andes together

5. Extensive irrigated agricultural economy

-needed because of rugged terrain

6. Large urban centers

The scope of the Incan empire.

7. Polytheistic religion

centered around worship

of the sun

8. Patriarchal society with

few rights for women

9. Privileged class of

nobles, headed by a king,

royal ancestors revered

10. No written language

11. Impressive

achievements in building

with cut stone

Trails through the Andean mountains (Incan

empire). Demonstrates the importance of

the lama.

Machu Picchu (7,970 ft) - Built at the height of

the Inca Empire (1450 C.E.) and was never

found by the Spanish and consequently was not

plundered and destroyed. Its inhabitants were

likely wiped out by smallpox before the Spanish

arrived.

Ruins of Cuzco, the capital of the

Inca Empire, contained the home

of the royal court and the state

religion.

12. Cuzco laid out in the shape of a puma and its palaces were the scene of rituals, feasts, and sacrifices of textiles, animals, tribute goods, and the occasional human.

13. Did not introduce new technologies, but made more efficient use of existing technology to increase the profits gained by trade. Technology included astronomy, weaving, copper and bronze metallurgy, and gold and silver working

14. When the elite fell into civil war in 1525, Inca control over its vast territories weakened

Machu Picchu (7,970 ft) - Built at the height of the Inca Empire

(1450 C.E.) and was never found by the Spanish and

consequently was not plundered and destroyed. Its inhabitants

were likely wiped out by smallpox before the Spanish arrived.

V. Comparative Perspectives

A. Political and Economic Comparisons• The Aztec and Inca Empires shared similarities in the use of

powerful armies, strong economies based on large

workforces, and their dependence on organized government

and religious practices that connected secular rulers to the

gods.

• Distinctions were in their systems of distributing goods and in

their management of the empire.

• Aztecs used local leaders, while the Inca created a strong

central government administered by trained bureaucrats.

B. Imperial Comparisons• Both the Aztec and the Inca were the last in a line

of successive indigenous populations organized

into strong empires from former collapsed

civilizations.

• The arrival of Europeans ended the cycle of crises

and adjustment in both regions.

Maya 300-900 Aztec 1400-1521 Inca 1400-1540

Borrowed from Olmecs Last great Mesoamerican

culture before the arrival of

E’s

South American highlands

Agricultural economy Militant warrior tradition Extensive irrigated

agricultural economy that

adapted to rugged terrain

Distinctive temple

complexes and pyramids

Rule by severe despots Large urban centers

Polytheistic Priestly class to oversee

rituals, including human

sacrifice

Polytheistic religion

Urban areas with

thousands of people

Large urban capital No written language

Independent city-states

linked by trade

Agricultural economy with

cacao beans

Women have few rights,

ruled by kings and

succession was hereditary

Staple diet of maize and

beans

Decentralized network of

city-states that paid tribute

Worked with cut stone

1. What were the most important shared characteristics of Mesoamerican cultures in the classic period?

2. What role did warfare play in the postclassic period of Mesoamerica?

3. In what ways did Mesoamerica influence the cultural centers in Northern America?

4. How did the Amerindian peoples of the Andean area adapt to their environment and produce socially complex and politically advanced societies?

5. How was labor divided in Andean society?

6. What unique shape was the city of Cuzco?

7. How did the Incans ensure that conquered peoples would not rebel?

8. Which animals in South America were valued because of food, transportation, although limited, and wool?

9. MIA mmhs website, DO NOT DO IN YOUR NOTES, you will turn this in tomorrow