People and Empires in the Americas

900 - 1500

North American Indians adapted to their environments

• 1. Ex: North west coast

–Rich resources led to large population

–Food from the sea and forest

Ex: Indians of the Southwest lived in a desert environment

Irrigation

Pottery

• Cliff dwellings

Common Features of North American Indians

1. Trading networks

2. Religion

- nature spirits

- for some, a Great Spirit

-respect for the land

Common Features of North American Indians

3. Extended families -- the basis for social organization.

The Mayan Civilization

- Yucatan Peninsula

-built great urban centers – independent city states

-giant pyramids, temples, palaces

The Mayan Civilization

Religion influenced most of Mayan life

-worship included human sacrifice

The Mayan Civilization

Religion led to the development

-calendars

-mathematics

Mayan Math

The Mayan Civilization

Developed a hieroglyphic form of written language.

Aztecs: -Central Mexico

-built planned cities, pyramids.-inherited much from earlier cultures

Aztecs

An empire based on military conquest and tribute

Practiced human sacrifice

– to keep the sun from falling from the sky

The Inca Empire1438 - 1535

- west coast of South America

- linked the empire with an extensive system of roads

- in the high plateau of the Andes Mountains

The Inca Empire1438 - 1535

- The Inca controlled all economic activity.

- farmed on terraces in the Andes Mountains

- kept records on a quipu