The Maya civilization was a dominant Mesoamerican society known for its advanced achievements in mathematics, astronomy, and writing. They developed a complex, highly accurate calendar system that combined multiple cycles. While famous for monumental cities with towering pyramids in the rainforests of modern-day Central America and Mexico, their culture was made up of independent city-states rather than a single empire.
Temple IV at Tikal stood over 200 feet tall!
Maya pyramids weren't just temples; they were status symbols and often the tombs of powerful rulers. Imagine looking up at this giant structure rising above the jungle canopy!
They used a base-20 system with only three symbols!
The Maya were math geniuses! Their number system was positional, just like ours, but based on 20 instead of 10. This allowed them to calculate complex astronomical cycles with incredible accuracy.
They look similar, but the writing systems are very different!
The Maya developed one of the world's first complete writing systems! Though the Spanish burned most of their books (codices), the glyphs they left on stone monuments help us unlock their history today.
90% of Maya people were busy farmers!
The Maya were masters of the jungle environment! Their farming methods, like building raised fields in swamps, allowed them to grow enough food to support large, complex cities.
Two interlocking calendars created one giant cycle.
Unlike our simple yearly count, the Maya tracked time with two calendars running side-by-side! When a specific day name and number finally matched up again, a full 52-year cycle was complete.
More than just jungle temples and pyramids.
The Maya invented things we still use today, like the concept of zero! They even had an ancient sports league where players risked injury playing with very heavy, solid rubber balls.
Key terms for gods and important things.
Religion was central to Maya life! They had specific gods for everything important, like the life-giving maize crop and the life-sustaining rain.
Many powerful rulers, many independent cities.
Think of the Maya as more like ancient Greece with powerful independent cities, rather than a single large empire like Rome. This allowed for diverse regional development!
Observing the heavens improved their math and calendars.
The Maya priests were also expert astronomers! They used tall structures and careful observation to track the stars, making their calendars incredibly precise.
Where the Maya recorded their history.
The Maya were prolific writers! They used durable stone for public monuments, but their paper books - codices - held the secrets to their science, most of which were tragically destroyed centuries ago.
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