Untitled Flashcards Set

concepts: 1. From what did Maya kings draw their power? 2. How do we know so much about the Classic Maya? What are some of the ways that this knowledge has been passed down to modern times? 3. How did the solar calendar work for the Maya? How did the cyclical long count of the calendar work? Why were there 5 nameless or unlucky days? 4. How did the Maya see their relationship to their deities? How did the deities fit the cyclical beliefs of the Maya? 5. How does the Yukatek Maya belief of the creation of the world reinforce the Maya political organization and Divine rights? 6. What symbols of power did the Maya use to represent the ascension of a new Ajaw? 7. What was the process of blood sacrifice? Who would perform this rite? What did they expect out of this process?

1. What were some of the key agricultural goods the Maya grew? What about arboricultural goods? Which animal domesticates would they have kept? How about wild but tamed animals? 2. What were some of the luxury goods produced by the Maya? How did the trade for these goods correlate with the importance of a regional polity? 3. What were some of the systems of water management the Maya used for their agricultural fields and polities? 4. How were monumental buildings of the Maya decorated and finished? How were these constructed over time and what material was used in the cementing of the stones?

Why was the region of Petén so central to the Maya regional polities? Why did some polities outside of the Petén gain prominence during the Maya Classic period? 2. How was conflict manifested between regional polities in the classic Maya? 3. What are some of the major cycles of hierarchy and political organization we see across the Maya? 4. How do dynasties come to exist in human societies? How do dynasties use or create the various forms of capital? How did this help Maya kings legitimize their rule?5. What kind of accolades would an ajaw accumulate over his rule? What are some moments that rule would be passed down before the death of the current king? Why would this happen? 6. What kind of stratification did we see in the non-elite of the Maya? What kind of evidence do we have for this stratification?

1. What are some of the hypotheses for the collapse of the Maya at the end of the Classic? 2. How long does it take the Spanish to defeat the last of the existing Maya stronghold in the late postclassic? 3. What do we mean when we say there was a Maya collapse at the end of the Classic period? What happened to the Maya in the transition to the Postclassic? What do we know of the Maya today? 4. What strategies did the Spanish use to subdue and overcome the Maya societies?