Western Hemisphere Societies Review

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from the lecture notes.

Olmecs

Considered a Mother Culture that existed in South-Central Mexico (San Lorenzo) from 1400-400 BCE.

Olmec Deities

Included the Jaguar, sun, corn, and a feathered serpent; practiced bloodletting.

Olmec cultural elements

Jade and bloodletting tools, the appearance of a calendar system, the ball game.

Maya Classical Period

250 CE- 1400 CE, with important sites like Tikal & Chichen Itza.

Tenochtitlan

A dominant Aztec city-state, an island city with 250,000 people, built around a central temple, using canoes for travel.

Aztec Triple Alliance

Comprised of Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan.

Aztec Calendar

Two cycles: a 260-day cycle for divination and a 365-day cycle for festivals, with 52-year 'centuries'.

Inca Empire governance

Divided into four provinces, each with its own governor, meeting in Cuzco; Incas were the military and administrative elite.

Inca methods of control

Hostages and resettlement to maintain obedience.

Pachacuti

Inca ruler from 1438-1471 CE.

Tupac Inca Yupanqui

Inca ruler from 1471-1493 CE.

Huayna Capac

Inca ruler from 1493-1527 CE.

Inca roads

Built for specific purposes with unintended consequences.

Machu Picchu

A significant Inca site.

Quollqua

State-owned storehouses in the Inca empire.

Quipu

Inca record-keeping device using knotted strings.

Cahokia

Features include Woodhenge, Monks Mound, borrow pits, Grand Plaza, palisade, and Mound 72.

Haudenosaunee

A Native American Confederacy.