Mesoamerica

Cuzco

capital of Inca Empire

Mesoamerica

region of North America, including Mexico and Central America, in which civilizations with common cutural features developed before Europeans entered the continent

Maize

corn

Olmec

the earliest American civilization, located along the Gulf Coast of Mexico from about 1400 B.C. to 400 B.C.; known for enormous stone heads

Tenochtitlán

capital city of the Aztec empire, on which modern-day Mexico City was built

Chinampas

in the Aztec empire, artificial islands used to cultivate crops; floating gardens

Teotihuacán

city that dominated the Valley of Mexico from about 200 A.D. to 750 A.D. and that influenced the culture of later Mesoamerican peoples

Chavín

a culture that thrived in the Andean region from about 900 B.C. to 200 B.C.

Moche

a culture that thrived in the Andean region from about 400 B.C. to 600 A.D.; built canals to bring water to their desert homeland

Quipu

a collection of colored strings that were knotted in different ways to represent various numbers; used by the Inca

Maya

a widespread civilization that peaked from 300-900 CE; greatly influenced by the Olmec

Aztec

civilization located in the Valley of Mexico; united neighboring city-states into an empire

Maya Achievements

temples, astronomy, accurate calendars, numbers, a hieroglyphic writing system

Tikal

large Mayan city located in present day Guatemala

Chichen Itza

large Mayan city on the Yucatan Peninsula; El Castillo (a massive step pyramid) dominates the ancient city

Yucatan Peninsula

large piece of land in southeast Mexico and portions of Belize and Guatemala surrounded by water on most sides

Pok-Ta-Tok

Mesoamerican ball game; losing team possibly sacrificed

Sacrifice

Offering of life to please the gods; was a significant feature of several Mesoamerican cultures, including the Mayans and Aztecs

Maya Script

Maya system of writing used glyphs, which could be either pictographs (directly representing objects) or ideograms (representing abstract concepts like actions or ideas

Inca

civilization located in the Andes Mountains of South America

Macchu Pichu

an Inca citadel; one of the New Seven Wonders of the World

Zapotec

a people living in south central Mexico c. 900 BC; built a capital city at Monte Alban

Obsidian

a volcanic glass used to make sharp knives

Toltec

a people living in central Mexico c. 950-1150 CE; introduced metalworking to Mesoamerica; absorbed into Aztec empire

Three Sisters

the main agricultural crops of various indigenous people of Central America: squash, maize ("corn"), and beans planted together