"The Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in the pre-Columbian Americas."
Explore the rich culture and achievements of the ancient Mayans, who built amazing pyramids, created a complex writing system, and had advanced knowledge of mathematics and astronomy.
Geography: The physical and human geography of the Maya Civilization, including the location of major cities and trade routes.
Archaeology: The study of Maya ruins, artifacts, and cultural practices.
Agriculture: The cultivation of maize, beans, and squash, and its importance to the Maya economy.
Religion: The complex pantheon of Maya gods and goddesses, and their role in Maya society.
Mathematics: The development of the Maya's sophisticated numbering system and calendar, which allowed them to make precise astronomical observations.
Art and Architecture: The elaborate stone carvings and pyramids of the Maya, which reflect their sophisticated understanding of mathematics, astronomy, and religion.
Language and Writing: The development of Maya hieroglyphics, which allowed them to record their history, religion, and culture in a written form.
Trade and Commerce: The development of Maya trade networks and the importance of trade to Maya society.
Warfare: The role of warfare in Maya society, and the construction and defense of Maya cities.
Social Structure: The complex social structure of the Maya, including the roles of nobles, commoners, and slaves in Maya society.
Food and Drink: The types of food and drink consumed by the Maya, and how they prepared and consumed them.
Medicine and Healing: The development of Maya medicine and healing practices, including the use of herbal remedies and spiritual rituals.
Gender and Sexuality: The roles of men and women in Maya society, and how sexuality was understood and expressed.
Music and Dance: The importance of music and dance in Maya religion and society, and the types of instruments and dances the Maya developed.
Mythology and Legend: The creation myths and legends of the Maya, and how they reflect Maya beliefs and values.
Preclassic Period (2000 BC: AD): This period is characterized by the rise of the first Maya cities, the development of agriculture, pottery, and the first monumental architecture.
Classic Period (250 AD: AD): This period is considered the peak of the Maya civilization. The cities grew in size and complexity, new technologies were developed, and the Maya made significant achievements in art, astronomy, mathematics, and writing.
Terminal Classic Period (800 AD: AD): This period marks the decline of the Mayan civilization. The cities were abandoned, and the population decreased due to political instability, droughts, and food shortages.
Postclassic Period (900 AD: AD): This period saw the resurgence of Mayan civilization in some regions, such as Yucatan and the highlands of Guatemala. New cities were built, and the Maya developed new trading networks and religious practices.
Colonial Period (1521 AD: AD): This period corresponds to the European colonization of America. The Maya population was subjected to forced labor, tributes, and religious coercion.
Modern Period (1821 AD: Present): This period starts with the independence of Mexico from Spanish colonial rule. The Maya people have struggled to maintain their cultural identity, language, and land rights in the face of modernization, globalization, and political violence.
"[...] southeastern Mexico, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western portions of Honduras and El Salvador. It includes the northern lowlands of the Yucatán Peninsula and the Guatemalan Highlands of the Sierra Madre, the Mexican state of Chiapas, southern Guatemala, El Salvador, and the southern lowlands of the Pacific littoral plain."
"Their descendants, known collectively as the Maya, number well over 6 million individuals."
"The cultivation of the staple crops of the Maya diet, including maize, beans, squashes, and chili peppers."
"The first Maya cities developed around 750 BC, and by 500 BC these cities possessed monumental architecture, including large temples with elaborate stucco façades."
"Hieroglyphic writing was being used in the Maya region by the 3rd century BC."
"In the Late Preclassic, a number of large cities developed in the Petén Basin, and the city of Kaminaljuyu rose to prominence in the Guatemalan Highlands."
"Beginning around 250 AD, the Classic period is largely defined as when the Maya were raising sculpted monuments with Long Count dates. This period saw the Maya civilization develop many city-states linked by a complex trade network."
"In the Maya Lowlands two great rivals, the cities of Tikal and Calakmul, became powerful."
"In the 9th century, there was a widespread political collapse in the central Maya region, resulting in civil wars, the abandonment of cities, and a northward shift of population."
"The Postclassic period saw the rise of Chichen Itza in the north."
"In the 16th century, the Spanish Empire colonized the Mesoamerican region, and a lengthy series of campaigns saw the fall of Nojpetén, the last Maya city, in 1697."
"Rule during the Classic period centered on the concept of the 'divine king', who was thought to act as a mediator between mortals and the supernatural realm."
"Kingship was usually (but not exclusively) patrilineal, and power normally passed to the eldest son."
"Closed patronage systems were the dominant force in Maya politics."
"By the Late Classic period, the aristocracy had grown in size, reducing the previously exclusive power of the king."
"Architecturally, city buildings included palaces, pyramid-temples, ceremonial ballcourts, and structures specially aligned for astronomical observation."
"The Maya developed sophisticated art forms using both perishable and non-perishable materials, including wood, jade, obsidian, ceramics, sculpted stone monuments, stucco, and finely painted murals."
"The Maya recorded their history and ritual knowledge in screenfold books, of which only three uncontested examples remain, the rest having been destroyed by the Spanish."
"The Maya developed a highly complex series of interlocking ritual calendars, and employed mathematics that included one of the earliest known instances of the explicit zero in human history."