HST 197 Chapter Notes - Chapter 6: Chichen Itza, Cassava, Silt
Document Summary
Mesoamerica: the region from mexico to honduras and el salvador. First large wave of migration from siberia to alaska happened in 13000 b. c. e. Migrants arrived in large numbers and quickly populated the habitable regions. Earliest inhabitants lived by hunting and gathering. Cultivation of squash, manioc, beans, chili peppers and avocados. In 4000 b. c. e. they began to cultivate corn. The were unable to harness the power of horses and oxen. They had to carry whatever they had to trade, in baskets on their backs. Permanent residents of ceremonial centers were priests, ruling elites and few artisans and craftsmen. Agricultural villages arose near the gulf of mexico. The name did not come from the ancient people but the environment that surrounded them, rubber trees. The first ceremonial center are in 1200 b. c. e. These sites were the heartland of olmecs. Common people delivered agricultural surplus to maintain the ruling elites. They also built drainage systems and large sculptures.
