AP World History Chapter 11

Mit'a

A draft that took the able-bodied men from Indian civilizations and used them for public works projects. It was the mit'a that built the great Incan road system as well as other religious and political buildings.

Cheifdom

A political system in which a territory is ruled by a hereditary chief that has responsibilities as both a religious and political leader. The North American civilizations around the East Coast primarily used the cheifdom system of government.

Khipu

A system of knotted cords used by the civilizations around the Andes mountains. This counting system was used to record monetary obligations as well as a population census.

Tribute System

A system of payment in which conquered peoples pay a tribute to the conquerer to show their superiority over the land. The tribute system was put into place in the Americas by the Aztecs and was later copied by other American civilizations.

Anasazi

An ancient North American civilization centering around the Four Corners region by 600 C.E. The economy of the Anasazi was based on their agriculture, specifically, the maize, beans, and squash.

Wari

Another civiliation near Tiwanaku that flourished about the same time as Tiwanaku. It is theorized that Wari was originally dependent on Tiwanaku, or that Wari and Tiwanaku were two parts of the same empire.

Tenochtitlan

One of the capitals of the Aztec empire. Tenochtitlan was organized around clans, and was dominated by religious rituals.

Chinampas

Small, artificial islands used by ancient Mesoamericans for agriculture. The chinampas allowed crops to be produced year-round.

Ayllu

The clan that served as a social sub-unit. The ayllu was prominant in Andean civilizations, such as the Moche or the Inca.

Teotihuacan

The major city in Mesoamerica around the seventh century C.E. Teotihuacan was the center for cultural and religious activities.

Aztecs

The major civilization in Mexico after the fall of Tula and the Toltec civilization. The Aztecs, also known as the Mexica, originally came from the north and pushed into central Mexico along with many other groups.

Toltecs

The major civilization in Mexico after the fall of the Mayan empire. It is thought that the Toltecs may have descended from a small population outside of Teotihuacan and migrated south over time.

Maya

The major civilization in Southern Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula from 150 B.C.E. to 900 C. E. The Mayans were not unified politically, and instead were ruled by rival monarchies.

Inca

The major civilization of South America that reached its peak around the mid-16th century C.E. The Incan Empire was built upon traditional Andean economic practices, and at its height controlled land from Peru to the middle of Chile.

Moche

The prominent civiliation in modern-day Peru around 600 C.E., before the rise of the Incan Empire. The Moche did not have any political unification, and instead depended on trade and agriculture.

Tiwanaku

The prominent civilization in the Andes Mountains before the rise of the Incan Empire. Tiwanaku, like the Moche, depended on trade among different agricultural areas in the empire.