Pre-classic Maya

1000 BCE 300 CE

El Mirador:400 BCE to 400 CE

Peak population: 100,000 to 250,000

Massive stone buildings: La Danta 230 Ft. tall

Large Urban Center supported by suburban areas outside of the city

Classic Maya

300 CE 900 CE

Tikal200 to 900 CE

300 people per square mile

Stories of alliances and wars with surrounding city-states

Ruled by Teotihuacan leaders around 400 CE

Tikal Temple: 154 Ft High

Maya Commonalities

Separate city states shared a common culture, political system, writing system, and similar languages.

Political:• Monarchy lived in the city center• Used elites as administrators: collecting

agriculture from outer areas, collecting taxes, facilitating trade and tribute

• Class of Scribe-priests who were in charge of calendar calculations and history

• Self mutilation rituals• Human sacrifice rituals

Maya Commonalities

Separate city states shared a common culture, political system, writing system, and similar languages.

Cultural

• Popul Vuh: Origin story of earth

• Many deities controlled everything on earth

• Dualistic views: Male/Female, good/evil, day/night

• Worship through sport: The Ball Game

Calendar

• The Maya developed a sophisticated calendar.

• The ritual calendar that developed in Mesoamerica used a count of 260 days.

• There were 20 day names, each represented by a unique symbol.

• The 260-day or sacred count calendar was in use throughout Mesoamerica for centuries, probably before the beginning of writing.

Mayan Numbers:

Maya Writing

• Over 800 different images were used to record their history

• Some are logographs• Some are syllabic• Multiple spellings were acceptable

king sky house child

Teotihuancan‘ 200 BCE 600 CE

Peak population: 200,000

Pyramid of the Sun: 216 Ft. tall

One of the largest cities in the world at this time

Diverse city with foreign centers

System of Alliances and war

Norte Chico

Developed 3000 BCE

Some signs of specialization

Established trade networks to survive along coast

Influenced: Chavin, Moche, Wari, and Incan

Chavin de Huantar‘ 1200 BCE 400 BCE

Cultivated Maize and potatoes(High and Low altitude crops)

Domesticated Llamas in high altitude areas to carry heavy loads

Religious/Cultural Spread: Art, temples, ceremonial centers, language

Moche 200 CE 700 BCE

Moche

Bantu Migrations6000 BCE 100 CE

• Climate changes in the Sahara started the migration

• The development of agriculture and iron gave the Bantu the advantage over hunter-gatherers living in the region

Exceptions: Batwa

• Agriculture and Population growth

Bantu Migrations Alternatives to Empire:

• Rarely built large citiesException: Zimbabwe

• Mostly practiced ancestor worship

• Established trade and marriage within Bantu culture

• Left no written records

Bantu MigrationsSo how do we know?Diffusion• Archaeology: artifacts show

a shared culture

• Language study: Glottochronology

Overall Effects of Bantu Migrations

“Bantu migrations had an enormous impact on Africa’s economic, cultural, and political practices.”

• Influenced skills: growing crops (adapting and spreading crops), metallurgy for tools and weapons

• Influenced culture: ancestor worship, ideas of states, and language

• Influenced environment: land cultivation, domestication