APWH Chapter 12
What were 3 differences between the upper class and the lower class?
-Highest ranking members of the aristocracy possessed extensive estates that were cultivated by slaves and landless commoners -Territorail conquests allowed the warrior elites to seize land and peasant labor as war spoils -rich had a more diverse diet, upper class was polygamous, lower class was monogamous -Aztec lower class received some material rewards from imperial expansion but lost most of their ability to influence/control decisions -while commoners could achieve some social mobility through the battle field. the highest spots were reserved for the elites
What 3 things linked Mesoamerican culture?
3 things that linked the Mesoamerican culture was material culture, religious beliefs and practices, and social structure.
What is long count and the significance of 3114 BCE?
3114 BCE is the date scholars thought the Mayans associated with creation. This was their 1st date on their "long count" calendar that counted on from 3114 BCE.
What were khipus?
A khipus was a system of knotted colored chords, and were used to aid the administration and record population counts and tribute obligations.
What was the Andean mit'a and what was required?
Andean mit'a is a labor system based on obligations to help kinsmen, hereditary chief, religious establishments. It was required members of ayllus to work the fields and care for the herds of llamas and alpacas owned by religious establishments, the royal court, and the aristocracy. Each allyu contributed a set number of workers for specific tasks each year.
What role did bloodletting play?
Bloodletting allowed kings to communicate directly with supernatural residents of the other world and with deified royal ancestors.
What was the different fate for elites captured verse the fate of commoners?
Captive elites were used for sacrifices while commoners were typically enslaved.
How did chinampas play a crucial role in the sustaining of the region's growing population?
Chinampas, known as floating gardens, allowed for year round agriculture, which provided food year round and was crucial in sustaining the regions growing populations.
What were common themes in paintings?
Common themes were rulers drawing blood from lips, ears, and penises, and of battle scenes.
Summarize the Aztec Tribute System.
Conquered/defeated people were forced to pay their "tax" with labor and goods. Aztecs received food payments such as maize, beans, and other foods but the Aztecs also demanded that they received luxury goods such as jade and feathers.
What would happen every 52 years?
Every 52 years the 2 calendars concurred and was believed to be especially ominous. The 2 calendars were the Mayan calendar and the solar calendar.
What type of sacrifice was practiced in Teotihuacan? How was it said to impact society?
Human sacrifice was practiced in Teotihuacan. The sacrifice was viewed as a sacred duty towards the gods and also as an essential to the well being of human society.
What roles did individual rulers of ruling dynasty play in this region?
Individuals didn't have a role, Teotihuacans did not concentrate power in the hands of a single ruler. There is no evidence to show power in individual rulers, there was no evidence in the art and statues.
The achievements of the Classical period were not based on new technologies but rather based on the ability of the elites to do what?
It was based on the elites ability to organize and command growing numbers of laborers and soldiers.
What did the Aztec God Huitzilopochtli require to keep the universe going?
It was believed Huitzilopochtli required a diet of human hearts to sustain him in his daily struggle to bring the sun's warmth to the world.
What was unusual about Smoking Squirrel?
Like Smoking Squirrel, some rulers emphasized the female line if it held higher status, traced the blood line.
Advances in math?
Math of Mayans incorporated the number 0 and the place value, but had limited notation signs.
What regions did the Maya civilization rule?
Maya civilization rule included Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, and Southern Mexico.
What was the role of women?
Mayan women played important roles in religious and political matters . Women helped legitimize the husbands rule, much less is known about women of lower class, played a central role in household economy, gardening and weaving, and manging family life.
Type of writing?
Mayan writing was hieroglyphic inscription that signified whole words or concepts as well as phonetic cues or syllables.
Maya fought to secure what instead of territory?
Mayans fought to secure captives.
What is one culture that Mesoamerica built their culture on?
Mesoamerican culture was based off the Olmecs.
Did they have a written language?
No written language for Moche.
What was one of the most important articles of long distance trade?
One of the most important articles of long distance trade was pottery and obsidian.
What was created to awe the masses?
Open plazas surrounded by high pyramids and elaborately decorated palaces that were often built on high ground or on constructioned mounds.
What type of products were part of the long distance trade, what limited them from moving heavier/larger objects?
Products: Gold, jewels, feathered garments, cacao, animals skins. They were limited by the absence of draft animals and wheeled vehicles.
What buildings/structures were the most important in the city?
Pyramids were he most important building/structure in the city.
Who was Quetzalcoatl?
Quetzalcoatl, known as the feathered serpent, was a god to the Teotihuacan. He was a god that was believed to be the originator of agriculture and arts.
What is swidden agriculture?
Swidden agriculture is the cutting down of trees and brush then burning the dead vegetation.
How was Teotihuacan different from other civilizations in regards to being a military state?
Teotihuacans used their military to expand trade relations, the Teotihuacan was not an imperial state controlled by a military elite.
Teotihucan's city is located near what modern day city?
Teotihucan's city is located near modern day Mexico City
What are 3 possibilities that led to the fall of the Maya?
The 3 possibilities to why the Maya empire fell are, the destruction of Teotihuacan which disrupted trade, thus undermining the legitimacy of Maya rulers who had used these goods in rituals, growing population that led to environmental deration and declining farming productivity, and epidemic disease and pestilence.
What other culture was this similar to?
The Mayan culture is similar to early Greeks, more specifically the Mycenaean-era Greeks.
What technological aids did the Maya do with out and yet constructed their monumental architecture?
The Mayans had no aid of wheels, pulleys, wheelbarrows, coats, or metal tools.
After the Chavin, what culture rose in South America? What region did they rule?
The Moche culture rose. The region was the north coastal region of Peru.
What part of Mexico did the Toltec live?
The Toltec lived in Central Mexico.
What culture did the Toltec borrow from?
The Toltecs borrowed from the cultural legacy of the Teotihuacan.
What does the archeological evidence in regards to walls tell us about the city from before and after 500 CE?
The absence of walls/defensive structure suggest Teotihuacans enjoyed relative peace during early development; the archeological evidence reveals that the city created a powerful military to protect long distance trade and to compel peasant agriculturists to transfer their surplus production to the city.
What was the capitol city of the Toltec?
The capitol of the Toltec empire is Tula.
What type of buildings did commoners live in in Teotihuacan?
The commoners in Teotihuacan lived in apartment like stone buildings.
Upon what lake was the early Aztec society based on?
The early Aztec society was based on lake Texcoco.
What was the main capital city of the Aztec?
The main capital of the Aztecs was the city Tenochtitlan.
What do murals reveal about the end of civilization?
The murals suggest that the cities final decades were violent.
What was Teotihucan's city population from 100 BCE - 750 CE? How did this compare to cities around the world?
The population was between 125,000 & 200,000 inhabitants. The city was larger than all but a small number of contemporary European and Asian cities.
What happened to it's temples?
The temples were pulled down, also religious images were defaced.
How many people a year may have been sacrificed?
There is not a reliable number, but the numbers clearly reached into the thousands a year.
What domesticated animals did they use?
They used alpacas and llamas to transport a region's goods across difficult terrain.
What has been found in the burial practices of the upper class here?
They were buried with rich treasures, gold, silver, and copper jewelry, textiles, feather ornaments, and shells. Also found in the practices were 2 women and 3 men, each with 1 foot amputated to ensure continued subservice and dependence in after life.
The Inca were pastoralists, this means they were dependent specifically on what?
They were dependent on vast herds of llamas and alpacas, they provided food, clothing, and a means of transporting goods.
The Toltec buildings were often decorated with what?
Toltec decoration had a more warlike and violent character than the decoration of earlier Mesoamerican cultures, nearly all Toltec public building and temples were decorated with representations of warriors or with scenes suggesting human sacrifice.
The Toltec were the 1st military state that was based largely on?
Toltecs created the 1st conquest state based largely on military power.
What materials were used to make tools and weapons in Teotihuacan?
Tools/weapons were made of obsidian.
What valley was their culture based on?
Valley of Cuzco
What happened to Topitzin?
Was one of the rulers of the Toltec empire, was exiled, along with his cult, the Quetzalcoatl.
What is a draw back to the swidden agriculture technique?
While this technique did produce high yields for a few years, it eventually used up all of the soil's nutrients, eventually forcing people to move to more fertile land because of the lack of nutrients in the current.
How was this region of the same culture do in political unity?
While unified culturally, the Mayans were not unified politically.
What was the population of the Inca empire by 1525?
more than 6 million inhabitants by 1525
