Meso- American Civilizations
Chavin
the first major South American civilization, which flourished in the highlands of what is now Peru from about 900 to 200 B.C.
Cahokia was the largest city in North America until...
Phillidelphia surpassed it in the year 1800
Iroquois
5 allied tribes of the eastern- great lakes. The Iroquois leagues goal was to have joint defense and collaboration
Zapotec
An advanced society to the southwest, in what is now the Mexican state of Oaxaca after the decline of the Olmec. They shared traces of Olmec influences. A unique civilization. In a mountain and valley region. Created a writing system, and calendar system
Nazca
Culture that flourished along the southern coast of Peru from around 200 B.C. to A.D. 600
Monte Alban
First urban center in the Americas, built by the Zapotec. Giant plaza paved with stones, pyramids, temples, and palaces
The expedition of Francisco Pizarro resulted in the destruction of the Inca empire.
It could be said that the conquests of the Aztec and Inca empires were a result of European imperialism.
A study of Aztec, Mayan, and Inca agricultural systems would show that these civilizations adapted to their environments with farming techniques
Mayas = slash and burn farming Aztecs = chinampas (floating gardens) Incas = terrance farming
Mound Builders
Members of any of a number of cultures that developed east of the Mississippi River in what is now the United States and that are distinguished by their large earthen mounds, built during the period 2000 B.C.E.-1250 C.E.
Olmec
Mesoamerica's first known civilization builders. Mother tribe to all Mexican Indians. Influenced the religion, architecture, and artistic traditions of other societies. Prosperous people with large trade network and economy. Had an abundance of rubber. Polytheistic. The decline is a mystery
A road system helped unify the Inca Empire
Over 14,000 kilometers
The Andes mountains had a great influence on the development of the Inca empire.
The Inca adapted to their physical environment by building footbridges that connected their roads across the Andes mountains.
One similarity of the Aztec, Maya, and Inca empires is that they created complex civilizations.
The Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas were highly developed, complex civilizations that used advanced technology
One similarity between the Mongols of Central Asia and the Incas of South America was that both societies adapted to difficult physical environments.
The Mongols adapted to the STEPPES and the Incas adapted to the Andes Mountains.
These early Latin American civilizations used advanced technology to build complex structures.
The archaeological evidence found at the Mesoamerican sites of Tenochtitlan (Aztecs) and Machu Picchu (Incas) suggests that these societies were highly developed and organized cultures The Inca city of Machu Picchu had a government with laws, leadership, and a military force.
The expedition of Hernán Cortés resulted in the destruction of the Aztec empire.
The fall of the Aztec Empire was a direct result of the conquest of Tenochtitlán (the Aztec capital) by Hernán Cortés in 1521.
The Andes Mountains and the Amazon river have influenced South America's economic and political development. How?
These diverse landforms prevented Latin American unity. Caused isolation between civilizations.
Europeans brought new diseases (e.g. smallpox) to Latin America.
They had devastating effects on indigenous peoples. Millions of native peoples in the Americas died because they had no natural immunity to these diseases. Smallpox outbreak spread throughout Mexico. Between 1500 and 1600, the native population of Central Mexico decreased from 25 million people to 1 million people.
The declining Native American population led to shortages of labor in 16th and 17th century North and South America.
This labor shortage provoked the Atlantic slave trade (the importation of slaves from Africa).
Moche
about 100 AD to 700 AD, a civilization on the northern coast of Peru
At it's height, the Aztecs ruled hundreds of other city-states and...
about 5 million people were part of the empire.
Mesoamerica
area that stretches from central Mexico to northern Honduras. Where more than 3,000 years ago the first complex societies of the Americas arose
The Zapotec, Toltec, and Maya all...
built cities.
The Maya civilization (4th-10th centuries) ...
built temple complexes and developed the concept of zero.
Maize
corn, that early farmers grew; became most important crop
The Incas had an...
extensive system of roads that linked cities all over the empire
Ice Age
from 1.9 million to about 10,000 BC huge sheets of moving ice called glaciers spread southward from the Arctic circle
The mound builders lived...
in the Great Plains region
Beringia
land bridge that connected Asia and North America; first Americans crossed it
Mesoamerica is a region that includes...
southern Mexico and northern Central America
The Aztec use of the calendar and the Maya writing system both illustrate...
that pre-Columbian cultures in the Americas flourished prior to European contact.
The Incas had a farming system...
that provided crops for the entire society
Slash and burn agriculture was used by...
the Maya to clear forest land for farming.
The Aztecs built the city Tenochtitlán on a swapy island in Lake Texcoco because...
they saw an eagle perched on a cactus eating a snake there.