HIST 380 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Syllabary, Maya Script, Spondylus
6 Oct 2018
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The spaniards did not conquer the americas alone, they had help from indigenous peoples and africans. Original settlers often assumed that indigenous people were all the same group, with no individual tribes. Human beings evolved in africa, traveled to asia and europe, and crossed a land bridge into the americas. Vikings did live there for a while and other europeans may have traveled, but they made little impact. Many europeans viewed native peoples in the americas as savages without civilizations. 8,000 years ago the indigenous stopped nomadic hunting and settled into civilizations. Many cultures started in mesoamerica and the andes, but shortly before columbus the mexica and inca empires were largest. Ball courts, often used in cosmic ceremony. Important materials such as jade, obsidian, and cacao. Common diet of maize, squash, and beans. Principles of common directions and duality (everything comes in pairs) Complex pantheistic religion (many gods, such as nature deities, royal ancestors and multi-tiered heaven and underworld)
