Vocabulary

Video

Transcript

 
The Maya are considered one of the most advanced civilizations to have existed in the Americas before the Spanish conquest. But who exactly were the ancient Maya people, and what led to the collapse of their civilization?

 
As early as 1800 BC, the Maya began settling and establishing villages in what is today Mexico and Central America. Maya civilization peaked from 250 to 900 AD, during what archaeologists call the Classic Period.

More than 40 cities flourished throughout the region, with populations as large as 50,000. The Maya built magnificent urban centers consisting of stone structures, including pyramid temples that were central to Maya religious practices.

 
In addition to these impressive city structures, agriculture played a key role in Maya civilization. Corn was one of the predominant crops.

The Mayan creation story tells of major gods, the basis of Mayan religion, who created humans out of yellow and white corn.

The Maya also made significant advancements in mathematics and astronomy. They invented the concept of zero and developed an accurate calendar system used to guide the Maya agricultural cycles. The calendar was based on observations of the Sun and sky over thousands of years.

The Maya also developed the only known system of writing in Mesoamerica: hieroglyphs. In fact, much of what we know about ancient Maya civilization comes from deciphering hieroglyphic characters inscribed on pottery, stone slabs, and other ruins discovered at ancient sites.

Hieroglyphs have revealed that despite the Maya’s ingenuity and agrarian lifestyle, conflict was prevalent among some Maya city-states as they battled for control of the region.

Throughout much of the Classic Period, the city-state of Tikal, located in modern-day Guatemala, reigned as the closest thing to an empire in Maya history.

But for a period of roughly 130 years, the Tikal people were overtaken through force and diplomacy by Calakmul, a rival kingdom.

Toward the end of the Classic Period, around 900 AD, most Maya cities had collapsed. Among the theories are warfare, a volcanic eruption, and perhaps most likely, drought.

However, archaeologists still debate why, as new evidence continues to emerge.

Despite the decline of ancient Maya civilization, the Maya people have by no means disappeared. More than 7 million Maya are estimated to be alive today in their indigenous homelands and around the world. While they participate in modern global life, they continue to follow agricultural and ceremonial practices of their ancestors.

Questions

 
Mayans. The Spanish built the pyramids of Mesoamerica. True or false?

Aztecs. Did the Classical Mayan Civilization last from 3,500 to 2,500 BCE?

Incas. The Mayans had one large, capital city and many smaller towns and villages. Is this right or wrong? Did hundreds of thousands of people live there?

Easter Islanders. Was wheat the staple crop of the Mayans?

Gobekli Tepe. Were the Mayans smart? What fields did they excel in?

Nile River, Egyptians. Did the Maya have a writing system based on a phonetic alphabet?

Sumerians. Was the Mayan Civilization an industrial society?

Babylonians. The entire region live in peace. Is this correct or incorrect? Did the Mayan Civilization last to this day? What happened to the Mayan people?

Assyrians. I have visited Tikal, Chichen Itza, Palenque and Tulun. Yes or no?
 
 
 
Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro Have you or your friends visited Egypt, Mexico, China, India, Greece, Italy, Malta, Cyprus?

Huang He Valley. Would you and your friends like to visit these places? Would you like to live in Yucatan, Cancun or Belize?

Phoenicians. My friends and I would like to be an archaeologist, linguist, astronomer, architect, botanist, historian.

Ancient Greece. What might happen in the future?

Ancient Rome. What should governments, people and businesses do?