Empires of America

1. Empires of America

3. Key Terms and Concepts • Many scientist believe that the first people arrived in North America during the last Ice Age. • Large amounts of water froze into huge, moving sheets of ice called glaciers. • The Bering Land Bridge was a bridge between northeastern Asia and present-day Alaska. • The people who crossed the bridge into Alaska between 38,000 and 10,000 BC were called Paleo-Indians.

4. Key Terms • Mesoamerica – is a region that includes what is now Mexico, parts of Central and South America • Hunter-gathers – people who hunted animals and gathered wild plants for food • Migration – is the movement of people or animals from one region to another

5. Olmec • Built the first pyramids • The first civilization in Mesoamerica • 1200 BC to 400 BC • Built huge stone heads • Olmec has been called the mother culture, because it existed first

6. The Olmec were the first major civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco. The Olmec flourished during Mesoamerica's Formative period, dating roughly from as early as 1500 BCE to about 400 BCE. Pre-Olmec cultures had flourished in the area since about 2500 BCE, but by 1600-1500 BCE Early Olmec culture had emerged centered around the San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán site near the coast in southeast Veracruz.[1] They were the first Mesoamerican civilization and laid many of the foundations for the civilizations that followed.[2] Among other "firsts", the Olmec appeared to practice ritual bloodletting and played the Mesoamerican ballgame, hallmarks of nearly all subsequent Mesoamerican societies.

7. The Olmec colossal heads consist of at least seventeen monumental stone representations of human heads sculpted from large basalt boulders. The heads date from at least before 900 BC and are a distinctive feature of the Olmec civilization of ancient Mesoamerica

8. The Mayans • Known for great stone pyramids • Remembered for their calendar • Farming community • Ruled by a theocracy • Society ruled by religious leaders • 2012

9. The Mayans • Mexico • Belize • Honduras • Guatemala

10. Pyramids

11. Pyramids • Built of stone • Religious temples built on top • Built by slaves • Important Ceremonies

12. Mayan Calendar • Priests believed the gods were seen in the stars & moon • Very precise study of astronomy led to the creation of the calendar • 365 day calendar

13. Mayan Hieroglyphics • Symbols or pictures to represent words or ideas

14. Shortcomings • Mayans did not have wheeled vehicles or horse, everything was carried or sent by water • 900 A.D. Mayan civilization began to decline • Most likely explanation was severe drought, but no one knows for sure

15. Aztec

16. Tenochtitlan • Capital city of • the Aztecs

19. What did Europeans think? • “great stone towers and temples and buildings that rose straight up out of the water” – Diaz del Castillo • “There are forty towers at least, all of stout construction and lofty… The workmanship both in wood and stone could not be bettered anywhere” – Hernan Cortes

20. Aztec Warriors • Created massive armies • Conquered all nearby people • Worshipped the god of war • Very bloody society

21. Aztecs • Organized around religion • Human sacrifice key to gaining favor of the gods • Farming main source of income • Fierce warriors whose superior military ability was key to their success.

22. Inca • Largest empire of the early Americas • Over 10,000 miles of stone roads

23. Inca • Led by the an emperor, thought to be a descendant of the sun god • Owned all Inca land • Capital city of Cuzco • Began as a small tribe in the Andes Mountains in South America

24. Inca - Lifestyle • Farmed using terraces • Broad platforms cut into steep slopes • Maize, squash, peppers, melon, potatoes, tomatoes • Decorated temples and cities in gold to honor the gods

25. Machu Picchu

27. Record Keeping • No written language • Kept record of the empire using quipus • Patterns of knots and colors tied into ropes to keep count

28. Homework Choose 1 of the 3 empires discussed in class today. In 1 paragraph (5-7 sentences), describe why you would choose to live in that society. Explain what you find fascinating about their culture, and mention what might worry you. Use specific examples.