Mayan Kings & Cities
Mayan Kings & Cities. Vocab : Tikal, glyph, codex & Popol Vuh. Began in southern Mexico & ended in northern Central America. Included the Yucatan Peninsula. Northern Guatemala also was part of the Mayan Kingdom. Took on customs of the Olmecs. 250 the Mayan culture was flourishing.
Mayan Kings & Cities
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Mayan Kings & Cities Vocab : Tikal, glyph, codex & Popol Vuh
Began in southern Mexico & ended in northern Central America. Included the Yucatan Peninsula. • Northern Guatemala also was part of the Mayan Kingdom. • Took on customs of the Olmecs. • 250 the Mayan culture was flourishing. • 250 – 900 AD is known as The Period of Classic Mayan civilization. Maya Create Urban Kingdoms
Built cities like Tikal located in Guatemala. • Other sites were Copan, Chichen Itza & Uxmal. • Were independent city-states ruled by god-king. • Cities served as a center for religious ceremonies and trade. • Mayan cities featured giant pyramids, temples, palaces and carvings. Urban Centers
Pyramid IV at Tikal was the highest structure in North America until 1903. • Each Mayan city included a ball court. • The game was important. The Mayans believed it would maintain the cycles of the moon & the sun. • Used the cacao as a form of currency. • Grew maize, beans and squash. Mayan Structures
Nobility included the priests & leading warriors. • Merchants were next • Master Artisans • Peasants • The Mayan King was at the top. He was also a religious figure. Social Structure
Influenced Mayan life. • Believed in 13 layers of the sky and 9 layers of the underworld. • Gods of corn, death , rain & war. • Made offereings of food, flowers & incense. • Pierced their bodies to make blood offereings to the gods. • Made human sacrifices also. • Believed it pleased the gods and balanced the world. Religion
Human sacrifices were captured enemies. • Led to the development of the calendar , mathematics and astronomy. • Believed a god would carry the burden of a day on his back. • Mayan calendar was a 260 day , 20 , 13 day months. • Calendar was used to plant crops, attack enemies and crown rulers. • Based calendar on sun, moon & planets. • Developed the number 0. Use of numbers were for calendar & astronomy. Religion
Developed the most advanced writing system in Ancient Americas. • 800 symbols (glyphs) were used. • Used for syllables and words. Written Language
Used their writing to record historical events. • Put these events down in a book called codex. • Most famous of these books is “ The Popol Vuh” which is the Mayan version of creation. Language
800’s Mayan left their villages & cities. • The Toltecs moved into some of the abandoned cities. • The Toltecs changed Mexico. • Some believed the violence and warfare between the cities caused the disappearance. • Food shortages, famine & disease. • Eventually the Mayans broke down into small city –states and withered away. Mayan Decline