Chapter 1 section 1The Earliest Americans

Summary: History of the People

• 1st: Descendants of those who crossed the land bridge from Asia to the Americas

• 2nd: Olmecs (1200 BC- 400 BC)• 3rd: Mayans (AD 200 - 900)• 4th: Aztecs (AD 1200-1521)• 5th: Incas (AD 1438-1532)

Regions• Mesoamerica: The area

extending approximately from central Mexico to Honduras and Nicaragua in which civilizations flourished prior to the arrival of the Europeans.

• South America: Continent from Colombia and Venezuela south

Map

Olmecs (1200 B.C.-400 B.C.)

• Arts:– Decorated cities with large carved stone statues– Carved jewelry and other small objects from jade– Used obsidian as a carving tool

• Agriculture:– First to grow maize (corn) for food

• Engineering– Built large drainage systems to direct water away

from fields and settlements

Mayans (250 - 900 A.D)• Yucatan Peninsula (in the rainforest)• Religion:– Society centered around religion and most of their

accomplishments were driven by religious beliefs.– RELIGIOUS INSPIRATION: Priests needed to keep

accurate time in order to hold religious ceremonies at the correct moment

– ACOMPLISHMENT: Mayans studied the sky (sun, earth, moon, stars) and developed a calendar system.

Mayans (250 - 900 A.D)

• RELIGIOUS INSPIRATION: Mayans needed to decorate temples and tombs with elaborate murals.

• ACCOMPLISHMENT: They developed hieroglyphics and a complex number system.

•RELIGIOUS INSPIRATION: Mayans needed temples in which to worship•ACCOMPLISHMENT: They built huge pyramids with steps using careful planning.

Mayans (250 - 900 A.D)

• Around 900 A.D., civilization declined mysteriously.

• Possible causes:– Overused the land and could not grow enough

food– War– Spread of disease

• Mayan descendants still live today and speak Mayan language.

Aztecs (1200-1521 A.D.)

• Tenochtitlan = capital (today = Mexico City)– Built on 2 islands with lake in

the middle– Stepped pyramids– Marketplaces where people

traded gold, silver, and pottery

•Moved from the north into central Mexico around 1100s•Conquered a large empire (most of Mesoamerica) because they were fierce warriors•Because of their large empire, they created a huge trade network• The people they conquered had to pay tributes (forced

payments) to Aztecs

Inca (1438-1532)• Lived in the Andes Mountains in South America• Capital = Cuzco• They expanded their empire to most of western

South America (pacific coast)• Strong central government (king)• Language- – oral: Quechua– No written language: only system of knotted strings

(quipu)

Inca (1438-1532)

• Claim to fame:– Building (allowed for good communication and

control)• Huge stone blocks• Highways running the length of the empire• Paved roads• Rope bridges

– Art

Write the following QUESTIONS and ANSWERS in your notebook. You will see these again on your assessment.

• Question 1:– Why did Paleo-Indians begin the first migration to

the Americas?

• Question 2: – Where did the earliest American societies exist?