The Mayas

A detailed Summary of The Mayas

The Mayas, a generally very peaceful tribe, started their civilization around

300 AD. These people were in the region of the Middle America. When they started living here, most of the land was thick forests and mountains. They lived in what is now Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and part of Mexico in central America.

The first city the Mayas built was Uaxactun in Northern Guatemala. This city was built in 328 AD. Soon thereafter, their main city and worshipping place was built: Tikal. Tikal was located at the base of the Yucatan Peninsula. There were over 3000 structures and 6 pyramids reaching as high as 190 feet. There were also seven temple places and many man-made reservoirs.

Still another city was made: Copan. Copan was a very large city also. In this city, many people studied and worked. Also people learning to become part of the government and people learning to become scholars came here.

Outside of the cities was where most of the common people lived. They only went into the cities to pray, go to ceremonies, and to study. The houses the Mayas lived in consisted of one room made out of stucco with one door, a thatched roof, and no windows. All of the cooking was done outside. To make their

All of the Maya people farmed and did other jobs. The main crop was corn which was popped, eaten regular, or dried and ground into flour. In addition to corn the Mayas grew cacao, squash, beans, and cotton. Each family grew some or all of these crops and kept bees for honey and turkeys and ducks for soups and for other things.

houses more colorful, they painted murals on every wall. Each family had a plot of land by their house to grow fruits and vegetables.

There were four different categories of the priests. The high priest, the working priests, the Nacon, and the Chacs. The high priest was called Ahau Kan Mai. His job was to lead the very holy ceremonies and to educate the children of the nobility. The working priests' job was to conduct the daily services, take care of the sick, and to teach. The Nacon's job was to make the sacrifices. The Chacs assisted the Nacon.

Since there was no king that ruled all of the Maya people, people chose local leaders to form the ruling class. The leaders had many tasks and were very busy. So every Maya person was expected to share their food with the leaders. The regular men and women wore plain white clothing, but the noblemen wore embroidered clothing that was full of color and the noblemen also wore jewelry. Craftsmen were very important to the priests and leaders because they built their houses, furniture, made their clothing, and even made some of the things used in ceremonies.

McKissack, Patricia C. The Maya. Chicago: Children's Press, 1985.

By 889, the Maya cities were abandoned bec

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Approximate Word count = 1057
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: People