Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards based on the Core Knowledge Teacher Guide for Unit 2: Maya, Aztec, and Inca Civilizations.

Mesoamerica

A historical region that includes what are today the central and southern parts of Mexico and the northern parts of Central America.

Maya

A group of peoples who have inhabited a region that includes parts of present-day Mexico and Central America from thousands of years ago to the present, whose cities thrived between about 200 and 900 CE.

Civilization

A society, or group of people, with similar religious beliefs, customs, language, and form of government.

Architecture

The style and construction of a building.

Archaeologist

An expert in the study of ancient people and the objects from their time period that remain, generally including stones, bones, and pottery.

City-state

A city that is an independent political state with its own ruling government.

Temple

A building with a religious use or meaning.

Hieroglyph

A picture or symbol representing an idea, an object, a syllable, or a sound.

Sacrifice

To give or to kill something for a religious purpose.

Pok-ta-pok

A game with religious meaning played on ball courts by the Maya using a heavy rubber ball without hands or feet.

Popol Vuh

The Maya sacred book explaining that the creator gods purposely clouded human understanding so human view of the world is 'like breath on a mirror.'

Astronomy

The study of the stars, planets, and other features of outer space.

Leap year

A year that has 366 days, or one more than all other years, and occurs every four years.

Equinox

A day in which daytime and nighttime are about the same length, which happens twice every year.

Initiation ceremony

A special event to mark a person's entry into a certain group or status.

Priest

A person who has the training or authority to carry out certain religious ceremonies or rituals.

Aztec

A civilization that thrived in present-day central Mexico from 1325 to 1521 CE.

Nomadic

Moving around often in search of food; not settled in one place.

Empire

A group of countries or territories under the control of one government or one ruler.

Emperor

The ruler of an empire.

Tenochtitlán

The capital city of the Aztec Empire, established by 1325 on a swampy island in Lake Texcoco.

Causeway

A raised road built over water to connect islands to a mainland.

Canal

A channel dug by people, used by boats or for irrigation.

Scribe

A person whose job is copying written information.

Codex

An ancient book with handwritten pages or parts, made of a long strip of tree bark that folds up like an accordion.

Pictogram

A picture or drawing that stands for a word or phrase.

Litter

A chair attached to two beams and carried on the shoulders of several people.

Reign

A period of time in which a king or queen rules.

Moctezuma II

The Aztec emperor in the early 1500s who ruled a mighty empire until the arrival of Spanish explorers.

Inca

A civilization that thrived from 1438 to 1532 on the western coast of South America, covering most of modern-day Peru and parts of Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina.

Sapa Inca

The king and absolute ruler of the Inca people, believed to be the son of Inti, the sun god.

Conquistador

The Spanish word for conqueror.

Geographical diversity

The presence of many different kinds of landforms, waterways, or other geographic features in a region.

Plateau

A large area of high, flat ground.

Clan

A group of families in Inca society that worked a shared piece of land.

Alpaca

A South American mammal valued for its long, woolly coat.

Llama

A South American mammal valued for its endurance, woolly coat, hide, waste, and meat, especially used as a pack animal by the Inca.

Census

A count of the number of people living in a certain area.

Official

A person who carries out a government duty.

Engineer

A person who uses science and math to build useful objects or buildings.

Mortar

A material used in building that is soft at first but then gets hard and rocklike.

Suspension bridge

A type of bridge in which the road or pathway hangs from ropes or cables that are attached to anchors or towers.

Terrace

A flat piece of land carved out of the side of a mountain or hill to create level fields for farming.

Quipu

An Inca record-keeping device consisting of a main string with dangling shorter colored strings tied with knots in specific patterns.

Machu Picchu

An Inca mountain fortress and royal retreat built in the mid-1400s, located seven thousand feet above sea level in the Andes.

Expedition

A special journey taken by a group that has a clear purpose or goal.

Religious ceremony

A special gathering or event that has a religious purpose or theme.

Smallpox

A serious, highly contagious disease brought by Europeans that causes a fever and rash.

Immunity

A body's ability to remain free of illness even after being exposed to the cause of the illness.

Epidemic

A situation in which a disease spreads to many people in an area or region.

Hernán Cortés

The Spanish conquistador who led an expedition to Mexico in 1519 and conquered the Aztec Empire in 1521.

Francisco Pizarro

The Spanish conquistador who led an invasion in South America starting in 1527 and conquered the Inca Empire.

Atahualpa

The Inca emperor who won a civil war against his brother, was captured by Francisco Pizarro at Cajamarca, paid a vast ransom in gold and silver, and was executed.