MAYA
Raquel Smith Espanol II - Grade 10
Language: Mayan itself is a
language and most Mayan descendants now speak Spanish. There are 21
separate dialects attributed to Mayans.
The Mayan language was spoken 5,000 years ago.
Geography:
The Mayans lived in Central America which consists of southern Mexico. It’s located south of the tropic cancer and north of the equator.
Government:
Government was an important part of the Maya civilization. Priests seemed to be the most significant and ran everything.
Many of them were rulers of the cities. One of the most famous rulers was Lord Pacal. What was surprising was he became king at 6 and legally took the throne at 12. He was a priest/ruler and king for about 50 years before he did.
Religion:
In Mayan religion it
mostly consisted of the
worship of nature gods.
Gods like of the sun, rain,
and corn.
They showed the
importance of astronomy
and astrology.
Rituals of human
sacrifice and the building
of pyramidical temples.
Some of the Mayan
religion still lives on
today.
Social Levels:
The Mayans had 3 main social levels: Royalty- lived in
palaces. Wealthy- lived in large houses near palaces. Poor- lived in outskirts of town and they were poor.
There were slaves, peasants, artisans, nobility, priests, and leaders.
Daily life: For the everyday lives of the women it was basically quite simple. They stood home and played the role of a house wife. They woke up as early as 4:00 am and fed there families. There husbands at 5 am would go with their sons to the fields and farm.
When that was done the sons would go hunting and kill birds and things of that nature.
Husbands would come
home waiting for a hot
bath and dinner. The
women made sure their
dinner was prepared for
there men.
They would only serve
them, but oddly they
didn’t sit down and eat
with them. They would
enjoy their dinner.
Later they would create
clothing for their families
to wear.
Architecture: The hay huts were a basic structure for Mayans and most of the Mayan
population lived in these types of houses. They were made from resources around the area like the walls consisted of mud and stone.
They stood up by wooden poles. The Mayans architecture advanced over time and the buildings were big but they weren’t that tall.
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