Olmec Origins
What do the Olmec get credit for in MesoAmerica?
They were the first civilization
What was the capital city of the Aztec Empire?
What is Tenochtitlan
What achievement are the Maya most famous for?
Their advanced writing system.
How was the kingdom divided and ruled?
Quarters with governors
What year did the Spanish first enter Tenochtitlan?
What is 1519
Where were both of these located?
DD
NM and The Southeast, Midwest, eastern part of the U.S.
What giant sculptures are the Olmec famous for creating?
What are colossal stone heads?
According to legend, what bird did the Mexica see sitting on a cactus?
DD
What is an eagle
How did the Maya rule themselves?
They lived in separate city-states.
What did they do to make farming work for them?
DD
terraces and canals
What disease helped weaken the Aztec Empire?
What is smallpox
What are two products/items tell us that that the Mound Builders were trading far and wide?
DD
shells, obsidian, mica
What useful material did the Olmec make from trees?
What is rubber
What kind of religion were these people and what ceremonial practice was done to appease the gods?
Polytheistic, human sacrifice
Name one factor that may have contributed to the collapse of Maya cities.
Drought, climate change, overpopulation, warfare, or political unrest.
What did all Inca subjects owe the government?
Labor service (mandatory work).
Who was the last Aztec ruler when the Spanish arrived?
Who was Moctezuma
What is unusual and impressive about the Chaco buildings left behind? (two things)
DD
Many stories and kivas
How did the Olmec influence later civilizations?
Their culture influenced later civilizations such as the Maya and Aztec.
What important requirement did every Aztec male citizen have?
He had to attend school until age 16.
What was the name of the books they wrote?
DD
Codices
They had no writing system but they did have a system to communicate with knots on a rope called...?
DD
Quipu
What were the three things the Spanish were looking for here?
Gold, God, Glory
What did the Chaco build to expand their culture?
What evidence supports the idea that the Olmec developed locally?
Archaeologists found no evidence of contact with Africa, Asia, or Europe.
Why was the location of Tenochtitlan both difficult and helpful?
DD
It was an island, swampy and difficult to settle, but it provided protection and access to resources.
Why is the Maya collapse still debated by historians?
Because there were likely many causes rather than one single cause.
What is the name of the most famous settlement of the empire?
Machu Pichu
What advantages helped the Spanish conquer both the Aztec and Inca Empires?
Guns, horses, steel weapons, disease, and surprise attacks
What do we believe the Mound were built for?