1.4 Notes- AP History

Why were the Mayans called the "Greeks of the New World"? (give a specific example in your answer)

- Called this because of their cultural achievements - Religion and science was closely connected - Priests studied the heavens and calendars to predict the future and to determine if a time was right for war. - They had no telescopes, but the Mayans were among the best astronomers and mathematicians of early times. Their observations of Venus from their observatory enabled Mayan priests to make a calendar more accurate than the one used in Europe at the time.

Carpa Nan

- Constructed by the Inca people - It was a massive roadway system that was 25,000 miles and was used mainly by the government and military.

Cahokia

- Largest of the earthen mounds that the Mississippians built - Located in southern Illinois - People abandoned here around 1450

Mita System

- Mandatory public service. - Inca people who had been conquered were subject to this.

Matrilineal society

- Means that social standing was determined by the woman's side of the family - Mississippians used this -- Ex: When the Great Sun died, the title passed not to his own son, but to a sister's son.

How did the Mississippian Culture decline? Why might there be different theories?

- Mississppians left Cahokia around 1450 and then continued to leave other large Mississippians cities by 1600. Historians do not agree on why these people moved. One theory suggests that flooding or other weather extremes caused crop failures and the collapse of the agricultural economy needed to sustain the populations of the large cities. The second theory says that diseases introduced by the Europeans decimated the population. - There might be two different theories because historians are not one hundred percent as to why the Mississippians moved.

Great Pyramid

- Pyramid at the center of Tenochtitlán that was around 150 feet tall - Built by Aztecs - Made of stone

Explain how the Mississippian Culture organized their government and society.

- Rigid class structure - A chief, the Great Sun, ruled each large town - Rank 1. Great Sun 2. Priests, nobles 3. Farmers, hunters, merchants, and aristians 4. Slaves (usually prisoners of war) - Women farmed and men hunted - Matrilineal society - Mississippians had a relatively strict type of caste system that they used to determine the roles in society people would have.

Theocracy

- Rule by religious leaders - Aztec government was this

How was the Aztec society organized? What role did women have?

- Social rank 1. Great Speaker (political ruler as well as a divine representative of the gods) 2. Land-owning nobles (formed the majority of Aztec military leadership) 3. Scribes and healers 4. Craftspeople and traders (Special merchant class : pochteca) 5. Peasants and soldiers - Also, Aztec people could be enslaved, usually because they didn't pay their debts or were being punished for crimes. Enslaved people were used for labor and offered up as sacrifices. - Women were important in the Aztec tribute system because they wove the valuable cloth that local rulers demanded as part of the regular tribute. An Aztec husband might get more than one wife in order to be able to pay the tribute. Most Aztec women worked in their homes, but some were priestesses, midwives, healers, or merchants. A number of noble women worked as scribes to female members of royal families, so at least those few women knew how to read and write.

How do the Chaco and Mesa Verde exemplify innovative advancements? Why did they have to do this?

- The Chaco build large housing structures using clay and stones. Some of these structures included hundreds of rooms. The Mesa Verde people built multi-story homes into the sides of cliffs with the use of bricks made of sandstone. - They had to come up with these new innovations because the people lived in a dry region, so they developed ways to collect, transport, and store water efficiently. Due to the climate, trees were small and limited, so people had little wood to build their homes with. - Both groups declined later in the 13th century because of the climate becoming drier.

Tenochtitlan

- The capital of the Aztecs - Is now Mexico City - The Aztecs located this on an island in the middle of a swampy lake in order to protect it from attacks. - Grew to almost 200,000 people - At the center of the city, a pyramid is built that is around 150 feet in height.

City-State

- Used by the Mayans - Definition: Each ruled by a king and consisting of a city and its surrounding territory. - Important because this was the Mayan's main form of government

Summarize key achievements of the Inca. Why were these significance to the empire?

In math, they created the quipu, a system of knotted strings used to record numerical information for trade and engineering and for recording messages to be sent throughout the empire. In agriculture, they developed intricate terrace systems for the cultivation of crops like potatoes and corn. The terraces used waru waru, which was raised beds with channels that captured and redirected rain to avoid erosion during floods and that stored water was used during dry periods. Incans also created a massive roadway system called the Carpa Nan and it was used by the government and military.

What arguments surround the connection of these Mesoamerican cultures?

Many historians argue that most of these cultures are based on the Olmec civilization because of how many features are alike when compared. For instance, the Olmec feathered snake-god became important in both the Mayan and Aztec religion. Also, the images on Olmec pottery have been found in pottery of other civilizations. The Olmec/s pyramids, ball courts, and ritual sacrifices were also imitated in other cultures. Some historians argue that different cultures developed complex civilizations more or less independently.

Explain the role of religion in Aztec government and culture. How does this differ from the Maya?

Religion was important to the Aztec society. They worshipped hundreds of deities, many who were considered to have both male and female aspects. They had feasts and rituals as well as human sacrifices. The Aztecs believed that the gods had sacrificed themselves in order to create the world, so they saw human sacrifice as a repayment. They differ from the Maya in the aspect of how they think about human sacrifice. The Mayans used human sacrifices as a way to hopefully have their prayers answered, but the Aztecs see human sacrifice as a repayment for human sin/the gods dying before them.

Explain the role of religion in the Inca Empire (make sure to look at priests, human sacrifice, and animism).

Religion was very important in the Inca Empire. The name Inca is defined as "people of the sun" and Inti was the sun god (the most important for the Incas). Inca rulers were thought of as Inti's representatives on the earth. The Temple of the Sun in Cuzco formed the core of the Incan religion (honoring the sun and royal ancestor veneration). Royal ancestor veneration was a practice intended to extend the rule of a leader. It included mummifying dead rulers to continue their "rule" and were thought to keep their servants, possessions, and property in their life after death; so, Incan rulers couldn't expect to inherit property upon assuming power. Priests were talked with before important actions. To the Incas, the gods controlled everything and priests could determine the gods' will by observing the arrangement of coca leaves in a dish or by studying the movement of a spider. Priests diagnosed illnesses, foresaw the outcome of battles, solved crimes, and decided what sacrifices should be made to which god. Serious events like famines, plagues, and defeat in battle called for human sacrifices, but scholars do not think that human sacrifice was practiced as often as the Aztecs. Animism is the belief that elements of the physical world could have supernatural powers. Called huaca, they could be physical features like a river or a mountain peak. They could even be small objects like a stone, a plant, or a built object (ex: bridge).

Explain the role of religion in the Maya government and culture.

Religion was very important in the Maya culture and government. Priests held great power and women could also be priests. The priests led religious ceremonies and festivals at regular times based on the Mayan calendar. Also, the Mayans worshiped many deities and the most important were those of the sun, rain, and corn. Mayans made offering to the gods in hopes of their prayers being answered and in temple ceremonies, war captives were killed as offerings to the gods.

Pochteca

Special merchant class who traded in luxury goods

Chinampas

The Aztecs built these floating gardens on Lake Texcoco to increase the amount of space for food production.

What key developments led to the decline of the Aztecs?

The Aztecs did not have wheeled vehicles and pack animals, which meant that agriculture was inefficient. They were too committed to military victory and the constant need for human sacrifices. Resentment from the tribes built up and they were prepared to rebel if they saw the opportunity to succeed, which comes later.

What other methods of control did the Aztec utilize to govern?

The Aztecs grouped city-states into provinces. They would move warriors and their families to each province's capital to ensure the province remained under Aztec control. Also, an Aztec official was placed in each capital to collect tribute from local officials.

How did the Aztecs utilize a tribute system to control their population?

The Aztecs used a tribute system so that the conquered people were forced to pay a tribute, surrender lands, and perform military service. Tribute also included practical goods like food, cloth, firewood, feathers, beads, and jewelry. The Aztecs let local rulers stay in their positions as tribute collectors. This allowed Aztec political dominance without direct administrative control. The conquered people were extended Aztec protection in exchange.

What led to the decline of the Inca Empire?

The Incan Empire was in the middle of a civil war of succession after the death of Huayna Capac before Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro arrived. Some scholars think that the civil war weakened the Incan military, making it easier for Pizarro's forces to take over. Others think that diseases spread the Europeans led to the decline. Despite whatever scholars think, the Spanish had killed or enslaved the native population by 1572, thereby ending the Incan Empire.

How did the Inca rule their extensive territory efficiently?

The Incan Empire was split into four provinces and each province had its own governor and bureaucracy. Conquered leaders who showed loyalty to the empire were rewarded. Conquered people were subject to the mita system instead of having to pay tribute. Men between the ages of 15 and 50 provided agricultural labor and other forms of labor, like the construction of roads.

Summarize the governing structure of the Maya.

The Mayans used the city-state. Most of the rulers were men; but, if no male heir was available or old enough, Mayan women ruled. Wars between city-states were typical and at times, city-states were overthrown. Although, Mayans rarely fought to control territory because they usually fought to gain tribute (payments from the conquered to the conqueror) and captives to be used as human sacrifices. City-states had no standing armies, so governments required citizens to provide military service if needed. Even though there was no central government that ruled all Mayan lands, usually one city-state was the strongest in a region and would dominate its neighbors. Also, each Mayan king claimed to be from a god and the king directed activities of the priests and elite scribes who administered the affairs of the state. The common people of the Maya were required to pay taxes, typically in the form of crops, and to provide labor to the government.

Explain how the Inca's mita system differed from the Aztec tribute system.

The mita system was mandatory public service, so it benefited everyone. The Aztec's made people pay tribute to the government.