1. Natives of Mesoamerica Connie Douglas, Kennedy Nodler, and Elena Brownlee G Block

2. Location Includes Southern Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador Some of Honduras and Nicaragua Famous tribes include Aztec, Olmec, and Maya

3. Enviroment Adapted & controlled environment for their gain Domestication of maize, beans, squash, chili lead to change in the built environment Transition from hunter-gathers to life in agricultural villages Society then became stratified Mayans used basic slash and burn agriculture

4. Economy system of trade routes developed for exchange of luxury goods: Obsidian, jade, cacao, cinnabar, shells, ceramics Class resulted from the trade system One class, the middleclass, helped to increase the demand for the goods Economy, the trade routes, fell and so did the society Maya did not use "money" in the modern sense Studies are ongoing at Mayan sites & new technology is being used Aztecs traded everything, and it was an important part of their life traders were looked at highly because it was so important relied heavily on agriculture and farming

5. Political Structure No known political system for centuries Royalty appears 300BC in Aztec and Maya cultures Believed to be demigods Made executive decisions This system lasted until conquest

6. Religion History in infamous for the embarrassingly plethoric array of gods stretching from the beginning of time to now Spanish destroyed most evidence of religious systems From what is left, it is believed they’re system was based off cosmology Gods and ideas of afterlife were based off the stars Their gods were rulers of earthly elements I.E. Tlaloc was the god of fertility, water/storm Human sacrifice was common among these

7. Roles of women If you thought target was bad, wait until you see the gender roles established in Mesoamerica: children given toys to predict their future roles based upon their sex Played dominant roles in fieldwork and family life Prepared meals Tended to animals Head of the household

8. Art-literature Themes- animal life and earthly elements, gods and dieties Mediums- metals, jewels, stone, clay, Jade very popular throughout Meso America- especially Olmec Sculptures often praising gods, except Maya, whose subjects were important people Clothing was brightly colored and adorned; Aztecs wore jewelry and its said the emperor never wore the same thing twice Mayans likely to have invented writing in the Americas- syllabary system like the Egyptians

9. European relations Aztecs attack Hernando Cortes on Noche Triste He fights back and conquers Most Mayan cities were abandoned when Spaniards came Fransisco de Montejo conquered the Yuketan in 1521 Most civilations in this region were ancient and died out long before the Spanish got there

10. Sources! http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/southamerica/before1500/literature/maya.htm http://www.aztec-history.com/ancient-aztec-art.html http://www.lost-civilizations.net/mayan-art.html http://nairiok.org/MesoAmerica.html http://www.angelfire.com/ca/humanorigins/government.html http://www.angelfire.com/ca/humanorigins/religion.html http://www.mesoamericas.com/mesoamerica/religion-mythology http://anthrojournal.com/issue/october-2011/article/gender-in-mesoamerica-interpreting-gender-roles-in- classic-maya-society http://anthrojournal.com/issue/october-2011/article/gender-in-mesoamerica-interpreting-gender-roles-in- classic-maya-society http://www.academia.edu/210964/Gender_Roles http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/Maya/p/Ancient-Maya-Economy-And-Trade.htm http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/the-ancient-aztecs/aztec-economy-trade-and- currency/ http://www.legendsandchronicles.com/ancient-civilizations/the-ancient-aztecs/aztec-economy-trade-and- currency/