World History Honors 3.03 Notes
3.03 Early Mesoamerican Civilizations
a. What is the Beringian Theory?
b. Due to the glacial build-up of various ice ages, a land bridge called Beringia appeared between what is now Siberia and Alaska. For at least five thousand years, grasslands connected the two continents. People were able to cross the grasslands into North America. Once there, they slowly migrated south.
c. Water levels rose. Beringia was submerged. Today, a body of water called the Bering Strait separates Siberia and Alaska. The population of the planet developed on two separate paths.
d. How Do the Early Mesoamerican Civilizations Compare?
A. Mesoamerica
e. Mesoamerica is a region that is defined by the cultural similarities of its indigenous populations. It extends from central Mexico through most of Central America, including Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.
f. The Aztecs and the Mayas are the most famous civilizations to thrive in this region, but they weren't the first.
B. The Olmec
1. The Olmecs were a polytheistic society,
g. The Olmec used latex from rubber trees to create rubber. This shows that the Olmec were technologically advanced.
h. The most recognizable artifacts of the Olmec civilization are their massive, carved stone heads. It is believed that they are portraits of Olmec rulers. The heads can be found at San Lorenzo, the oldest known Olmec settlement.
i. Today, a series of tombs, pavements, and monuments are all that remain of the city that was built in alignment with a constellation or star. The design and layout of La Venta tells us that the Olmec, like the great Mesoamerican civilizations that came after them, had an interest in and knowledge of astronomy.
C. The Zapotec
1. They developed their society in what is now the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Like their contemporaries, the Mixtec (Mixteca) and the Mayans, the Zapotec were likely influenced by the Olmec.
2. In the 700s BCE, the Zapotec began constructing a city
a. What is the Beringian Theory?
b. Due to the glacial build-up of various ice ages, a land bridge called Beringia appeared between what is now Siberia and Alaska. For at least five thousand years, grasslands connected the two continents. People were able to cross the grasslands into North America. Once there, they slowly migrated south.
c. Water levels rose. Beringia was submerged. Today, a body of water called the Bering Strait separates Siberia and Alaska. The population of the planet developed on two separate paths.
d. How Do the Early Mesoamerican Civilizations Compare?
A. Mesoamerica
e. Mesoamerica is a region that is defined by the cultural similarities of its indigenous populations. It extends from central Mexico through most of Central America, including Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.
f. The Aztecs and the Mayas are the most famous civilizations to thrive in this region, but they weren't the first.
B. The Olmec
1. The Olmecs were a polytheistic society,
g. The Olmec used latex from rubber trees to create rubber. This shows that the Olmec were technologically advanced.
h. The most recognizable artifacts of the Olmec civilization are their massive, carved stone heads. It is believed that they are portraits of Olmec rulers. The heads can be found at San Lorenzo, the oldest known Olmec settlement.
i. Today, a series of tombs, pavements, and monuments are all that remain of the city that was built in alignment with a constellation or star. The design and layout of La Venta tells us that the Olmec, like the great Mesoamerican civilizations that came after them, had an interest in and knowledge of astronomy.
C. The Zapotec
1. They developed their society in what is now the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Like their contemporaries, the Mixtec (Mixteca) and the Mayans, the Zapotec were likely influenced by the Olmec.
2. In the 700s BCE, the Zapotec began constructing a city