1. Ancient Latin American Civilizations
Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas

2. Maya Civilization
Arrived in (present-day) northern Guatemala around 1000 BC
The Mayas are BEST known for:
Studying the stars and planets (led to a calendar being created)
Developing a system of writing called HIEROGLYPHS
The Maya also lived in southern Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, and Belize.

3. Maya Origins and Religion
Early Maya lived in small, isolated villages
Villages soon began TRADING with each other---as TRADE increased, villages GREW
TRADE, not RULERS, linked the Maya’s cities
Religion:
Worshipped MANY gods
EXS: sun god, moon goddess, and maize (corn) god
Believed each god controlled a different part of everyday life
Wanted to please the gods---believed them to be BOTH HELPFUL and HARMFUL

4. Advancements
Studied math and astronomy extensively (With a lot of detail)
Created calendars based on various movements
Ex.: 260-day calendar for sacred days and a 365-day calendar based on the sun’s movements
Maya calendar was MORE accurate than any calendar used by Europeans until the 1700s.

5. HIEROGLYPHS Created a system of writing called Hieroglyphs
Best developed written language in ancient Latin America
Example of Maya hieroglyphs from the Museo de sitio in Mexico.

6. The Mayans Disappear? Early AD 900s, the empire began to decline
People stopped building structures and left the cities, moving back to the countryside
There are MANY theories (ideas) as to why the Maya empire collapsed, but one thing is for sure---by the time the Spanish arrived in the 1500s, the Mayas had faded.

7. Aztec Civilization Arrived in the Valley of Mexico in the 1100s
The Aztecs were made up of a number of wandering warriors, most from the Mexica tribe
All the “good” land was taken, so they settled on a swampy island in the middle of Lake Texcoco
Had little land to farm on, so the Aztecs built floating gardens called CHINAMPAS

8. Aztecs Expand
1325: began building their capital, Tenochtitlan, and conquering nearby towns
Came to power mainly due to war and the conquest of other peoples
The Aztecs forced those conquered to pay TRIBUTES (taxes)
How could tributes be paid?
Food, cotton, gold, or slaves
Tributes allowed the Aztecs to grow very rich

10. Aztec Society The MOST important member of society was the EMPEROR
Chose trusted nobles to oversee his demands regarding trade, payment collections, and warfare
All men, including PRIESTS, had to join Aztec army for 2 reasons: (1) help maintain a powerful empire and (2) religious.

11. Religion
Religion:
Worshipped MANY gods, believed the gods controlled nature and human activities.
Exs.: Quetzalcoatl, Tezcatlipoca, and Huitzilopochtli
Human sacrifices were regularly made by priests to please the gods
(mostly SLAVES and those captured in battle were sacrificed)

12. Aztec Achievements Sculpted stone pyramids and statues
Like the Maya, studied astronomy and made a calendar
Like the Mayans, used HIEROGLYPHS for their writings and kept detailed records of historical information
Had a strong oral tradition

13. End of Aztec Empire Late 1400s: Spanish arrive
Are looking for (1) Adventure, (2) Riches, and (3) Converts to Catholicism
1519: Group was led by conquistador (conqueror) Hernan Cortes
Aztec’s are taken over by Cortes and the Spanish
Hernan Cortes vs. Montezuma II story

14. Incas
1200: Settled in Cuzco, which is a village in the Andes (South America)
Began as a small tribe in the Andes
Cuzco eventually became the capital city
Mid 1400s: Inca ruler, Pachacuti, began to expand Inca territory (some conquering)
Other leaders soon followed his example
Empire eventually stretched from (present-day) Ecuador to central Chile
About 12 million Incas lived in the empire

15. Inca Government To rule effectively, built a strong CENTRAL government
Pachacuti removed local leaders from conquered lands because he wanted to remain the MAIN leader/ruler
Created an official language (Quechua) to UNIFY the people
Government also told households what work to do.

16. Social Divisions
Inca had NO Slaves, didn’t practice this idea.

17. Incan Religion Worshipped many gods
Inti, the sun god was the most important
Incas thought their rulers were related to the SUN god (their most important) and that they never really died.
Inca had ceremonies with sacrifices, but didn’t use humans like the Maya and Aztec.
Those outside of Cuzco worshipped other gods as well and at other “sacred” locations
Mountaintops, rocks, and springs

18. Inca Achievements Excellent farmers, builders, and managers
Cuzco (capital) was the center of government, trade, learning, and religion
Built more than 19,000 miles of roads
Why?
Roads allowed the Incas to better govern their empire; they could get to other areas easier

19. Achievements continued
The Incas also built canals and aqueducts
What is an AQUEDUCT?
Pipe or channel designed to carry water from a distant source
Why did the Incas feel that canals and aqueducts were important?
Allowed the Incas to irrigate (dampen) land that was otherwise too dry to grow crops

20. Inca Language? Had NO written language
Recorded info. using a QUIPUS (kee-pooz)
What is a Quipus?
A “writing” system of knotted strings where the knots=numbers and the different color strings represent info. about crops, land, and other important topics
When Spanish arrived, they had Inca stories/historical info. written in Spanish

21. Quipus

22. The End of the Inca Empire
Late 1520s: Civil War breaks out amongst the Incas—2 brothers both want to be NEW ruler
Atahualpa (ah-tah-WAHL-pah) vs. Huascar
1532: Atahualpa wins, but the fighting has weakened the Inca army
On the way to his crowning, Atahualpa learns of a Spanish group in the area; led by Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish attack
Atahualpa is captured (and later killed) and the Incas are defeated