Vocabulary
People that are native to the land
Indigenous
Some of the most advanced indigenous civilizations existed in ___________ a historic region in Central America
Mesoamerica
The 'Lost City' of Machu Picchu was uncovered in 1911
Inca Empire
Mesoamerica stretched from present-day ______ through much of Central America
Mexico
What are the three sisters of farming?
A common crop in the Americas; also known as corn
Maize
Many of these groups practiced ____ ________, a religious ritual that was conducted by a priest on top of a __________.
Human Sacrifice and Pyramids
Because of their swampy geography, they created chinampas to grow crops
Aztec Empire
The most important food crop to indigenous societies was ________
What is a city-state?
Independent cities that serve as cultural centers for a surrounding region
The practice of believing in more than one god
Polytheistic
These advanced civilizations also created sophisticated ___________ to keep track of religious events and time.
Calendars
One of the most impressive aspects of this civilization was their complex network of roads and bridges to connect their mountainous empire
Inca Empire
Two natural resources that were important to indigenous groups of the Americas were ________ and ___________
Obsidian and Jade
Who were the Mayan people strongly influenced by?
The Olmec people
A farming technique where the land is cleared by cutting down plants and burning them for nutrients
Slash and Burn Farming
Because of the rugged terrain of the _____ __________ in South America, cities were often built on mountain tops.
Andes Mountains
This was the only ancient American civilization that had a fully-written system of language
The Maya Empire
Mesoamerica had a diverse geography that includes _________, ________, and _________ regions.
Tropical, Mountainous, and Coastal
What did aqueducts do?
Moved fresh water into the city
One of the earliest Mesoamerican groups who created a culture that influenced powerful civilizations later
Zapotec
In the 1500's, most of the great societies in Mesoamerica were conquered by _________
The used large-scale terrace farms to grow crops like potatoes and quinoa
The Inca Empire
Monte Albon was where the __________ people originated and became the most powerful city in Mesoamerica
Zapotec
What disease did the Spanish bring to Mesoamerica?
Smallpox