The Maya people used a written language and a numeral system. They were good at art, building, and math. Their priests studied stars and planets, which helped them make calendars. The Maya civilization was biggest between the years of 420 AD and 900 AD.

1. The Mayan Civilization
Boutkhil Guemide
University Mohammed Boudiaf, M’sila
Algeria

2. THE MAYA
CIVILIZATION

4. Ancient Civilzations
 Ancient Civilizations: Mesoamerican
Civilizatons
 Mesoamerica: a geographical and cultural
area which extends from Central Mexico
down through Central America.
 “Meso”: Middle (Middle America).
 Many important Ancient Civilizations
developed in this area: The Mayan
Civilization.

6. Geography:
A Growing Civilization
 The Maya lived in the
Yucatan Peninsula
 Spread out over 125,000
square miles
 The Highlands / lowlands
 With mountains and
valleys
 Southern Mexico, Belize,
Nicaragua, Honduras,
Guatemala, El Salvador

7. Geography: Lowlands
 Southern Lowlands
– Covered by a rainforest
about 150 ft.
– Contained: scattered
savannas and swamps, or
bajos
 Northern Lowlands
– Also comprised of forests
– much drier, mainly grew
small thorny trees

8. Geography:
Highlands vs. Lowlands
 Highlands:
– Climate: Much cooler and
drier; fertile soil
– Volcanic Highlands:
Source of obsidian, jade,
and other precious metals
used to develop a trade
– Subject to tsunamis,
volcanoes, and
earthquakes
 Lowlands:
– Produced crops used for
their own personal
consumption (ex. Maize)
– Played an important role in
transportation route
 Rivers (Usumacinta and Grijalva)
created from the 160 in. of
rainfall per year were vital to
civilization as a form of
transportation for both people
and materials.

9. Geography: The Rivers
 Series of rivers originate in the mountains
and flows towards the Pacific Ocean and
Gulf of Mexico.
 Serve as passageways for canoes to travel
from city to city
 Classic Period: Rivers provided water for
human consumption and access to trade
routes

10. Geography: The Rain Forest
 Covers the majority of
Mesoamerica
 Provides warmth, sunlight and
water producing a variety of
plants
 Soil: thin and poor
– For survival, plants develop
highly efficient root systems
that absorb nutrients from
dead plants
 Lowlands: Stretch from
northwestern Honduras
through the Peten region of
Guatemala and into Belize and

11. Geography: The Soil
Best soils found in southern
highland valleys where
volcanic eruptions have
enriched the earth
Spring- like climate and fertile
valleys have made southern
highlands a popular place to
settle, despite volcanic threats

12. Geography
The geographical dispersion of
the Mayan peoples across the
region resulted in the evolution of
numerous languages which are
related, but distinctive and
prevent different Maya groups
today from understanding each
other

13. Geography:
A Growing Civilization
 Archaeologists think the Maya began
working the land as early as 1500 B.C.
 They built small farming villages
 250 AD- 900 AD
 By 250 AD., some of these villages grew
into cities.
 Principal cities: Tikal, Uaxactún, Copán,
Bonampak, Dos Pilas, Calakmul,
Palenque, and Río Bec.
 Warriors fought over land and power
 No ruler united the entire Mayan kingdom
 More than 40 cities, each with a
population between 5,000 and 50,000.
 The peak Mayan population: 2,000,000
people
 The lowlands of Guatemala.

14. Mayan Cities
 Center for rituals and religion
 Pyramids such as “El Castillo” served
as ceremonial sites for priests.

15. Cities: Temples
 Mayan cities were built
around religious
centers.
 Some cities had great
palaces.
 The Maya built flat-
topped pyramids made
of limestone.
 At the top of these
pyramids were
temples.
 That was where the
Mayan priest-kings
held religious rituals.
Tikal, Guatemala

16. An Economy Based on Agriculture
 As Mayan cities grew, farmers needed to
produce more food.
 They found ways to farm places they had
not farmed before.
They farmed the sides of hills (carved
into flat terraces)
They built raised fields in the wet
lowlands
They burned trees and plants in forests
to clear the land for farming
They moved good soil to areas that had
poor soil
They dug water systems (irrigation) to
bring water to dry areas

17. Agriculture: Terraces

18. Agriculture
 By using these techniques, they grew
corn, beans and squash.
 They traded their extra food between the
highland and lowland people and with
people in Central America and Mexico
 In return, they received goods that they
could not produce; such as, jade, feathers
and cacao beans.
 Cacao beans held great value (used as
money) and was restricted to only the
most important Mayan
 Obsidian: A glass like volcanic rock was
also traded/used as money

19. Products Traded
Cocoa
Feathers
Obsidian

20. Mayan Economy
 A trade system existed through which salt,
obsidian, jade, cacao, animal pelts, tropical
bird feathers, luxury ceramics and other
goods flowed.
 Goods from the highlands were traded
with those of the lowlands.
 Obsidian was made into tools and weapons.
 People either bartered goods directly,
or exchanged them for cacao beans

21. Commonly Bartered Items

22. Social Structure
 The Social Pyramid
– Priests
– Wealthy nobles
– commoners and low-level govern
officers
– slaves and servants
Priest

23. The Rulers
 Polytheism: The Maya worshipped
many gods.
 The also worshipped their rulers.
 They thought their rulers could
influence the gods.
 Pascal: He ruled the Maya for 68
years.
 A Mayan priest as well as a warrior.
 Priest-kings like Pascal killed
animals and sometimes people as
offerings to the gods.
 The City of Palenque built a temple
that was used to record his
achievements

24.  The Maya wanted to keep the gods happy and
prevent disaster
 They believed that the gods needed blood
 Priest-kings like Pascal killed animals and
sometimes people as offerings to the gods.

25. Mayan Religion
Mayan religion had many
gods.
The gods were not seen as
completely good or evil.
They changed based on what
desirable at that point in
time.

26. Mayans believed in three
major planes: the Sky, the
Underworld, and the Earth.
Heaven composed of 13
layers; various dieties live
there
Much of the Mayan religion is
based on cycles.
When to plant crops and when
to call for rain.

27. The underworld,
Xibalba, is
composed 9
layers.
There are gods
for each layer of
the Heavens
and the
underworld.

28. There were 13 Mayan
gods of the Heavens
who helped create
human beings because
they believed they
needed subjects to
worship them.

29.  Hun Hunahpu – maize
god
– Father of the hero twins
– Most important deity for
the Maya
– He brought about the
creation for the present
world age.
 Chac – god of rain,
thunder, and lightning
– Both adored and feared by
the Maya
– He was portrayed as both a
benefactor and a violent
warrior.

30.  Gukumatz – Feathered
snake god
– Taught the Maya the arts
of civilization, including
codes of law, agriculture,
fishing, and medicine.
 Ixchel – Earth and Moon
Goddess
– Goddess of creativity,
weavers and childbirth,
goddess of medicine and
reason, and a bringer of
the storms.

31. Like many ancient civilizations, Mayans never used
iron or steel to make their weapons. Instead, they
were formed of obsidian or volcanic rock.

33. Mayan Achievements
 H= hieroglyphs (a writing system)
Each picture stood for an object
and/or a sound.
 Some hieroglyphs stood for whole
ideas, such as life or happiness.
 Hieroglyphs were carved on the
stone columns and record books
called a codex

35. Astronomy
• They knew exact
moon phases
• Able to predict sun
and moon eclypses
• They created very
precise 365 day
calendars for
harvesting.
• They also had a 120
day calendar for
religious events.

36. Mathematics
 Mathematics: A number system. Were the first
to use the symbol of zero (binary math)
 The number system was based on units of 20.

38. Recreation
 The Mayan Ball
Game
 Players tried to hit a solid
rubber ball through a
stone ring by using their
leather-padded elbows,
wrists, and hips.
 People from all levels of
Mayan society watched
and placed bets on the
outcome of the game
 Slaves, land and homes
could be won and lost
during a game
 The losing team were
sacrificed and the captain
of the defeated team was
beheaded.

40. Mayan Architecture
• Of all the objects created by the
Maya, the largest most striking are
their buildings
•A Maya city from the Classic Period
usually consisted of a series of
stepped platforms topped by
masonry structures, ranging from
great temple-pyramids and palaces
to individual house mounds.
•Maya architecture is characterized
by a sophisticated sense of
decoration and art, expressed in bas-
relief carvings and wall paintings.
•The buildings were cool,
weatherproof, and if not shaded by
nearby trees, they lasted many years
with very little maintenance

41. Mayan Architecture
 The Maya used soft limestone
that was found in many parts
of their land and was
relatively easy to quarry and
shape.
 If this material was
unavailable they would make
use of granite, slate, or even
river rocks
 Stone temples held the graves
of rulers and, occasionally, of
others of high rank
 The permanent architecture
grew to be an essential part of
Maya religious life and a very
visible part of the city centre.

42. The Temple of the Giant Jaguar The Pyramid of the Magician in Uxmal
The Great Gate at Labna The Temple of the Sun

46. Mayan Medicine
 Ancient Mayan medicine was an
effective and simple way to
maintain a healthy society.
 Massages were thought to be the
remedy for every illness or
disease.
 The givers of these massages
would have been called Shaman’s.
 Plants were used to create tea
which would cure headaches,
skin irritations and other wounds.

47.  A crucial part of Mayan healing
had to concern with the sauna.
 Ancient Mayans believed that
sweating would heal the body,
therefore creating the first
saunas.
 Broken bones did not have a
remedy therefore were
amputated.

48. Maya Medicine
 ULCERS, GASTRITIS
 Mineral crystal
stone: Put in water
and drink the water
every day.
 For sores in the
mouth, put directly
on affected area. No
side effects.
 For thousands of
years, the Mayan
elders have been

49. Maya Medicine
 DIABETES,
HYPOGLYCEMIA,
BLOOD SUGAR
STABILIZER Billy Webb
Bark Tea.
 Boil one hand full of
bark. Drink 1/2 cup of
tea twice daily, until
blood sugar stabilizes.
 DIARRHEA Traveler's
Tonic.
 Take 3 tablespoons
every hour for as long
as condition persists.

50. The End of the Maya
 The collapse of the Mayan civilization is one
of the great mysteries.
 The Mayan culture thrived for about 600
years.
 By 900 C.E., the Maya had abandoned their
cities to the jungle
 Possible causes:
Populations of the cities grew to fast for
the farming system
Long periods of drought (dry weather)
causing crop failure
Warfare: Wars were very bloody, hand-to-
hand fighting with clubs and spears
Invaders from central Mexico helped to