Ancient America
- 6H.2.3 Explain how innovation and/or technology transformed civilizations, societies and regions over time (e.g., agricultural technology, weaponry, transportation and communication).
- SWBAT assess how the Agricultural Revolution impacted the development of Mesoamerica.
EQ > How did the Agricultural Revolution impact Mesoamerica?
The first inhabitants of the American continents were nomadic hunters and gathers. These nomads probably arrived in North America around 40,000 years ago, following a land bridge that formed between North America and Asia. It is believed that another group of humans migrated from Asia into North America around 12,000 years ago. Some scientists also think that some people might have used boats to follow ocean currents to the tip of South America, while others arrived following ice from Western Europe.
For thousands of years, these early inhabitants of the Americas made a life by hunting game and gathering food from seeds, berries and wild plants. Then, around 5000 B.C., an Agricultural Revolution(Neolithic Revolution)took place near present day Mexico.
Questions:
- How did nomadic hunter-gatherer groups arrive to the Americas?
- Another name for the Agricultural Revolution was ______.
Agricultural Revolution
For thousands of years, the inhabitants who lived on the American continents lived off the land. Then, in 5000 B.C. near present day Mexico, many groups of people began to discover farming. They realized that they could plant crops such as corn, pumpkins, potatoes and squash, and by doing so, could better provide for the needs of their people.This new technology spread from Mexico outward to other parts of the Southwest, so that by 3000 B.C., many groups of people in the region were actively practicing farming.
Questions:
- The Agricultural Revolution began about ______years ago in present day ______. By 3,000 B.C. the Neolithic ______had spread to the ______.
Villages Develop
The practice of farming the land led to the development of villages. The people no longer had to travel in search of wild game and plant life. Instead, they could settle down in one place, and begin to build more permanent structures. These permanent villages allowed for more complex societies and cultures to evolve in the region. New religions and governments began to form, and individuals began to become more specialized in their jobs.
This specialization of work tasks allowed technology to really take off, so that great advancements were made. The people became more skilled in tool making, creating special implements for farming, fishing, building and so forth.
All of this meant that the standard of living in the Americas could be greatly improved. This improved standard of living led to a population explosion. By A.D. 1500 it is estimated that more than 50 million people lived in the Western Hemisphere.
Questions:
- Why do you think the Agricultural Revolution led to the growth of villages?
Cultural Differentiation
The various peoples inhabiting North America gradually developed many different and unique cultures. Each culture was heavily influenced by the land and natural resources around the people. These cultures included their traditions, religious practices, and their everyday lives and customs.
As this happened, the various cultures became regionalized. That is to say that the cultures of different groups of people were very similar to one another in the same region, but very different from the cultures of the peoples in another region. The process of cultures developing in a specific region is known as cultural differentiation.
The regions that developed in North America were the Arctic, the Northwest, the California region, the Great Basin, the Southwest, the Great Plains, and the Eastern Woodlands. Central America and South America developed numerous regions as well. We will start with Mesoamerican cultures.
Questions:
- Name the cultural regions.
- Why do you think environment affected the way culture developed?
Mesoamerican Cultures
The people who inhabited Central America formed a number of advanced civilizations between 1500 B.C. and 1200 A.D. As one civilization faded in the region, another developed to take its place. Later civilizations borrowed many aspects of culture from earlier civilizations, as well as creating their own unique traditions. Historians call these civilizations the Mesoamerican cultures. The word ‘meso’ means ‘middle.’ These peoples all lived in Middle America.
The Olmecs
6H.2.3 Explain how innovation and/or technology transformed civilizations, societies and regions over time (e.g., agricultural technology, weaponry, transportation and communication).
6H.2.4 Explain the role that key historical figures and cultural groups had in transforming society (e.g., Mansa Musa, Confucius, Charlemagne and Qin Shi Huangdi
Objective: SWBAT assess how the Olmecs became the first major civilization to evolve in Mesoamerica
EQ > How did the Olmecs build the first major civilization in Mesoamerica?
The first civilization to evolve in Mesoamerica was that of the Olmecs. The Olmec (OHL-meck) lived between North America and South America, in Central America (what is now the southern part of Mexico). This was good land for farming, with a big river bringing plenty of water. People had recently begun to farm corn and beans there, about 2000 BC. Around 1500, as population grew, they formed into villages, and then into towns, and then into cities, and soon some men emerged as their leaders.They had formed the Olmec nation.
The Olmecs were expert farmers and practiced a type of farming known as slash-and-burn farming. They would cut the trees of a forest down and wait a period of several months as the trees dried out. They would then light the trees on fire, burning them all into ashes. These ashes acted as a fertilizer, making the soil more fertile. These farmers then farmed the land a few years until it was no longer fertile, at which point they moved on to the next forest.
The Olmec villages were organized, with a market square in the center where trade and business could take place. They worshipped a variety of gods and deities. Their chief god was believed to be a being with a human body and a jaguar face. The Olmecs built huge religious stone emblems of their gods and rulers. Some of these emblems were more than nine feet tall, and weighed more than 40 tons. These massive figures were transported miles across the terrain without the use of wheels or the aid of animals.
The earliest Olmec city was at San Lorenzo. The Olmec rulers got their people to build groups of big stone temples. People used these temples to worship the Olmec gods, but they also use them (like Sumerian ziggurats) to store food and generally as government buildings. Very recent discoveries show that the Olmec used writing to record their thoughts on slabs of stone (like our gravestones). They developed a glyph writing system like the Sumerians and Egyptians to keep records.
The Olmec traded with other people all over South America. Archaeologists find Olmec pottery all over Central America and Mexico, and pottery from other people who lived nearby is also found in Olmec cities. Probably the Olmecs also traded tar, or bitumen - sticky black oily stuff like asphalt that you can use to patch boats and seal up roofs. Some of the trade was probably on boats that travelled up and down the rivers, and some of it was overland, carried by traders walking from city to city.
Around 900 BC, after three hundred years, the Olmec pretty much abandoned their main cities. and moved their government to another city, which is now called La Venta. Possibly this was because of changes in the weather at this time, or it may have been because the river changed its course and the people moved to be near the new riverbed. Or, some people think it could have been because of a civil war or invasions.
The Olmec state continued to rule Central America for another five hundred years after this move, but by 400 BC the Olmec seem to have lost control of this area. Nobody knows how this happened, or why. As they lost control, new leaders like the Maya and the Zapotec gradually took over.
Questions:
- What was the importance of farming?
- What was slash and burn farming?
- ______was one of the earliest ______.
- They developed a ______writing system like the Sumerians and Egyptians to keep records.
- Their chief god was believed to be a being with a human body and a ______face. The Olmecs built huge religious stone emblems of their ______.
The Mayans
6H.2.3 Explain how innovation and/or technology transformed civilizations, societies and regions over time (e.g., agricultural technology, weaponry, transportation and communication).
6H.2.4 Explain the role that key historical figures and cultural groups had in transforming society (e.g., Mansa Musa, Confucius, Charlemagne and Qin Shi Huangdi
Objective: SWBAT assess Mayan achievements.
EQ > What were the Mayans major achievements and how do they affect present society?
Around 900 B.C., a group of people known as the Mayans begin to settle the territory around the Yucatan Peninsula. When the Olmec rulers began to lose control of their country about 600 BC, new leaders came forward and took over ruling in Central America (modern Guatemala). These were the Maya. By 300 A.D., the Mayan culture had become quite advanced. The Mayans were not ruled by a central government. They shared the same language, traditions and culture, but small local governments led them.
Archaeologists divide Maya history into three time periods, the Pre-Classic, the Classic, and the Post-Classic. The Pre-Classic period begins about 700 BC, about the height of the Assyrian Empire in West Asia, or the Etruscans in Italy. At this time, the Maya were beginning to build stone temples like the ones the Olmec had built before them.
The Classic Maya period began about 250 BC. During the Classic period, the Maya (MY-ah) built many cities with stone buildings and many more stone temples. People carved inscriptions on these temples, saying who had built them and in what year. This is the first evidence of writing from North or South America, so it may be the Maya who invented writing in this area. Around 900 AD, though, the Maya people abandoned many of these cities and temples, and kept on with their traditions mainly in the northern part of their country, the northern Yucatan. This would be about the time of the Abbasid Empire in West Asia.
By 900 A.D., the Mayan culture began to decline. It is not entirely clear as to why, however, many historians believe that war broke out between different members of royal families. This civil war made farming difficult, and as a result, many people died from hunger and disease. In this Post-Classic period, after about 900 AD, people mostly stopped carving inscriptions. They kept on building some temples and other stone buildings, but they don't seem to have been doing as well as they were in the Classic period. In the Post-Classic period, the Maya were more open to learning from their neighbors, especially the Aztec people to their north, in Mexico. In the end, however, the arrival of Spanish invaders in 1519 AD brought smallpox and measles to the Maya, and most people died of these diseases. The few who survived could not defend their country against the Spanish invaders, and so Central America was taken over by the Spanish king.
Mayan Religion
The Mayans believed that the universe was made up of two separate worlds, the everyday world and the otherworld. The everyday world was the world in which they lived. The otherworld, they believed, was where gods, spirits, and their dead ancestors lived. The village chief acted as the leader of political life as well as the priest. He was responsible for standing between his people and the otherworld. He performed important religious ceremonies that the Mayans believed would earn the favor of those in the otherworld and bring about their blessings. These ceremonies included the sacrifice of humans as well as the blood letting of the priest.
Mayans had many lasting accomplishments. The Mayans are one of the first peoples to develop and play professional sports. Think of how important this is in our own society today. One of the most important sports played by the Mayans was called Pok-a-tok. Using a solid rubber ball, which was about the size of a basketball, teams battled one another in a way that reminded the people of ancient Mayan battles and legends. The goal of this game was to hit the ball into a stone hoop. The ball could not be picked up, however. It had to be bounced off of leather shields that were attached to the players' arms, legs and chest. The Mayans also became excellent scientists in many different fields, including medicine, astronomy and mathematics. They tracked the movement of the stars and planets across the sky, and were able to accurately predict celestial events such as eclipses. They also developed an accurate calendar of 360 days, which they used to plan their harvests and religious ceremonies.
One of the most important advancements developed by the Mayans was written language. The Mayans developed a complex system of writing, which consisted of both an alphabet, as well as symbols, which represented whole words or thoughts. These writings were recorded in books made out of bark and plaster, as well as carved into monuments, bones and stone. Many of these writings have survived to the present, and help give us an accurate look at the Mayan's history and culture.
Questions:
- Where and when did the Mayans settle?
- What other societies coincided with Mayan society?
- In the end, however, the arrival of ______invaders in 1519 AD brought ______and measles to the Maya, and most people died of these diseases.
The Teotihuacanos and Toltecs
6H.2.3 Explain how innovation and/or technology transformed civilizations, societies and regions over time (e.g., agricultural technology, weaponry, transportation and communication).
6H.2.4 Explain the role that key historical figures and cultural groups had in transforming society (e.g., Mansa Musa, Confucius, Charlemagne and Qin Shi Huangdi
Objective: SWBAT assess Teotihuacano and Toltec achievements.
Just outside of present day Mexico City, a civilization developed known as the Teotihuacanos. This people built a massive capital city that at its height had more than 200,000 inhabitants. This city was expertly laid out, with wide streets, town squares, markets and plazas.
This massive city had over 600 pyramids, which were believed to be used for religious purposes. It also had well over 2000 apartment buildings where many of the people of this civilization lived.
The Teotihuacanos thrived for nearly 750 years. Then, in 750 A.D., invaders from the north, known as the Toltecs, conquered and destroyed them.
The Toltecs arrived on the scene around 750 A.D.,to form a new Mesoamerican empire. Using their powerful armies, the Toltecs began to conquer much of the territory in the region. Their capital city was called Tula. The Toltecs were expert miners and effective traders. These efforts brought significant wealth to their empire. In 1170 A.D., invaders attacked the capital of Tula and were able to conquer it. As a result, the empire itself collapsed.
The Aztecs
6H.2.3 Explain how innovation and/or technology transformed civilizations, societies and regions over time (e.g., agricultural technology, weaponry, transportation and communication).
6H.2.4 Explain the role that key historical figures and cultural groups had in transforming society (e.g., Mansa Musa, Confucius, Charlemagne and Qin Shi Huangdi.
6H.2.1 Explain how invasions, conquests, and migrations affected various civilizations, societies and regions (e.g., Mongol invasion, The Crusades, the Peopling of the Americas and Alexander the Great).
6C.1.1 Analyze how cultural expressions reflected the values of civilizations, societies and regions (e.g., oral traditions, art, dance, music, literature, and architecture).
Objective: SWBAT assess Aztec achievements and the effects they had on Mesoamerican culture.
EQ > What were the Aztec’s major achievements and how did they affect Mesoamerican culture?
In 1200 A.D., a group of nomadic hunters called the Aztecs migrated into Mesoamerica in search of food and wild game. By 1325 A.D., the Aztecs had settled in present day Mexico City, and had built a large, beautiful and powerful city on a small island they called Tenochtitlan.
As the population of Tenochtitlan grew, the island became too small. Their innovative solution was to make the island bigger. They built large wooden rafts, which they covered with mud and secured to the lakebed with stakes. Many people lived and farmed on these floating parcels of land.
The Aztec Empire
Itzocoatl was one of the Aztec’s most powerful and influential rulers. He ruled from about 1428 to 1440. Through alliances he made the Aztecs the most powerful tribe in all of Mexico and surrounding regions. By 1500, the Aztecs had used both their military strength as well as political ties to conquer almost all of the territory in and around their capital city. Their empire stretched from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Atlantic Ocean in the east. Eventually the Aztecs would control roughly 500 states with over five million people.