The Mayan Civilization

When the Olmec culture diapered, some of their religion and ceremonies passed to other cultures. One of those civilizations, that adapted their culture,was the Mayan . The Mayan were located in Mesoamerica, in the Peninsula of Yucata. Because of their geographical position, they could trade, farm and make some city-states. One of the best period for the Mayan civilization was called the Classic Period, and it lasted from A.D 250 to A.D 900. In those times, they began to make city-states. Some of the most important city-sates were, Tikal, Copal and Palenke.

Their city-sates were completely independent from the others. Each one had their own king, but their religion was the same in all the territory. Their social structure was: first the king, followed the novel class, made up if priests and living warriors, then the merchants and artisans, next the farmers, and at the end of the social class were the slaves. In their lands, they farm: bean, squash, and maize. Their religion consists in a polytheistic way of thinking, the most important god was the one of the fire, and they also made rituals for honoring those gods. One of these rituals was the ball game, which consists to play, but the team that lost was scarified to the gods, and the one that wins, was given a lot of fertile lands. This play was only aloud for the novel class.

The Mayan was a culture that, in all their living time, they advanced a lot in all the parts of: science, math, astrology, and writing. They made a big discovery, which was, the calendar. The calendar helps them to plan, in which days or month they had to raise their crops, and on what days, or month was better to make wars. They also develop a writing system called the glyphs. This ones stand for a whole word, syllable, or sound. Around 900 the Mayans began to abandon their lands, without us knowing wat was their reason.
But no all of them go, some of the Mayan city-states still there, with the same culture they had so many years ago.

The Olmec of Mesoamerica

The Olmec culture was the first civilization in all Mesoamerica. They lasted from 1200b.c until almost 400b.c. One of the main possibilities that make that the Olmec lived well in those times, was the geography in Mesoamerica. These geography was better that the one in Los Andes, because Mesoamerica wasn’t in a hilly place, and that help that people in that region, move better through that place. Other advantages were: the use of land for raising crops, without the obstacle of the mountains. In the Olmec culture the social classes were divided like this: first, the ruler, then, the architect, artist, administrators and engineers, and at the last part of the social classes were the farmers.

The Olmec culture was good at art. The most important features were: the jaguar, and the big heads, which reason, for what they were maid, is not well known. The Olmec religion consists in a polytheistic thinking. They also worship the figure of a jaguar, which, in the statues they were, half humane and a half jaguar. The calendar of the Olmec civilization was made, using symbols, which was their first way of writing.

The Olmec were invaded by 400b.c, and later on the Olmec began to disappear. When they disappear, their belief, their art, and their culture, were taken by other cultures. All of these began to spread by the trading of other cultures, because the Olmec were good at the agriculture, but they also need some thing that other people had, like precious stones and metal. For all Mesoamerica, the Olmec civilization was the mother culture.

The Geography of the Americas

The Ameriacas are one of the last continents that was found in ancient time. It's geography had change in all of these period, but some of the things are still the same. The Andes is one of the most importan mountains (mountain change) in all south america. In the Andes were a great variety of climats,different hights and a great variety of food. The main river of all south america is and was the amazon river, but theres also the Parana that was an important river in the south of South America. In the south of south amrica there are seasons, but these ones ocured at the contrary of the ones in northamerica, but more at the north, the climate is "the same" throughout all the year, these climate is best known as TROPICAS. Uper in south america its an ISTHMUS, best known as the Panama isthmus. This place is the divicion from southe america and mesoamerica. In mesoamerica thres a very constant climate in all the region, but, in the Sierra Madre (the most important mountain in mesoamerica) theres a varity of climats. There are some rivers in mesoamerica, but none of these ones are so much important in the place. At the north of mesoamerica there 2 seasons during the year, these ones oare: a dry season and a wet season. At the north of mesoamerica is north america. In north america theres a big mountain calles the Roky Mountains, there are the greates elevatin in all north america. In this mountains the climate is dry, but, because in north america there are seasons, theres not a specific climate in the mountains.The most importat river is called, the Mississipi River. These river was the fount of water in early times.

remember: TALL PICS HIGH PLATEAUS
NOTA: TODOAS LAS "ESENCIAL QUESTIONS" ESTAN EN EL PRIMER PARAFO.

Ancient Andeans Civilization

South America was a place were some of the ancient civilization used to live. In Peru, one of the civilization that lived there was called, the Chavinde Huantar. This civlilization was very religios. Archeologist could know more about there religion believes because of the thing they had found in their ancient territoy. Also in their territory, archeologist had found temples and places for making religious rituals. They used to make TEXTILES for honing the gods. Because these civilizarion lived near river, they used the irrigation cistem, for raisign their crops.

As the Chavin civilization, the Nasca, who were other civilization in ancient time that lived in Peru, make a very large irrigation system, but the Nasca make their irrigation cistem by uderground water. One of the main things that are preserved from the Nasca, are the Nasca Lines. For the arqueologists, this lines may represent different thigs, such as, the worship fro the gods, a way for moving water, an astronomical calendar or the irrigation sistem moved by the AQUIFERS. Becausae of the arqueological founds, we coul know that the Nasca civilization work with potery and that they make some paint, so by those paints arts we coul differ whou the lived.

Another culture that lived in Peru was the Mochay civilization. The Mochey, as the Nasca made an advence at farming techics. They also have an irrigationsystem, as the other ancient cultures. The Mochey made two step pyramids called, the Temple of the Sun, that was one of the firdt and one of the bigestpiramids in all times, and the Moon Temple, that was the political bilding in that time. In tombs of the Moche the had foun some art made uo of gold and turquoise. But they had also had found potery that tells about their daily live. Arqueologist had not foud a lot of thigs that can tell us about theMoche beliefs.

Ancient China- The Legacy of Ancient China

During the Han Dynasty, Chinese were the only community that knew to make silk. The trades routes of the silk were called Silk Roads, in these roads there were not only for silk exchange, there were some other thingslike paper, oil and Asian horses, among other things. The silk road began in China and went trough Asia, Mesopotamia and Europe. Because this road stretch across two continents, Europe and Asia, they were called trans-Eurasians. There were also cultural, customs, ideas and styles called cultural diffusion. The most important things that were exchanged were military methods and the Buddhism.

The ideas of the Confucianism and of the Daoism had a big influence in Chinese belief system. The idea of the Confucius still important today and has influenced the philosophies of Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Then in the 6^th century the Daoism became a religion.

The Hans made a lot of advances in many things, specially in agriculture, paper and silk. All of these improvements and inventions made life easier for the people.

Ancient China- The Qin and the Han

The new ruler of China came from the state of Qin; the new emperor took the name of Shin Huangdi. He would unify and expand China. Shin Huandgi believed in a legalistic form of ruling, He end some wars that were delivering in those times. For unifying China, Shin Huangdi had a lot of power to noble people, he made some lands to be under his control, joining the land he built some roads and set a government for many different things.

A military general named Liu Bang, defeat the Qin forces, he ended the civil war and reunified China. In 202 B.C he started the Han Dynasty. He continued the form of ruling of the Qin, he used a central government and he set up a bureaucracy.

The Han was industrious people whose civilization prospered. Live in the time of the Han Dynasty was around the farming, poor farmers had to work more than reach farmers, but both had to work in the same. The farmers use the clothes they could use.

Ancient China- China’s Ancient Philosophies

There were 3 main philosophies in the ancient China. The first one was the Legalism then the Confucianism and at the last the Daoism. The legalism suggested that society must be controlled by the power, the government, through punishments and laws.

The Confucianism was made to organize the society by making some new rules in people home´s, because Confucius thought that the family was the basis of the society, and if the families obey the society will. Some of that rules were that, wifes obey their husbands, and that little brothers had to obey the big ones, that act was called filial piety.

The Daoism, believes that people could be what they want to be, if they don’t disorder the community and the force that maintains the “world” in harmony (Ying and Yang). The problem of humans is that they don’t believe in a WAY that was the force that maintains the nature in order.

Ancient India-Geography and Indian Life

India is a subcontinent. It has important mountains, rivers and valleys. Two of the biggests mountains are the Hindu Kush and the Himalayas. One of the rivers is the Ganges. The mountais help to block cold north winds from reaching India. This seasonal winds are calles monsoons . This winds shaped India´s climate.

The Harappans was and old civilisation. As earliest communities are locate near rivers, because there they have more sources of the river and from the land, and the Harappans civilization were not the exeption. Some communities that stay near the rivers, were placed in the planned cities.

The believe of "what was the religion of the Harappans" is not already know, but archeologists had found some items that maibe were used for religius rituals. That was one part of the Harappans culture, that archeologist know about this comunity. They were a group that expand their culture, they expanded about 500,000 square miles, from their territory. Some of the culture they expand was, their form of weighting and their form of measurement. They also trade somo of the things they use to work in different activities, like thier instruments they used for agriculture.

Ancient India- The legacy of India

India has many influence in the part of religion. India has two main religions, the Hinduism and the Buddhism. A lot of people in the world are one of these two main Indian religions. One of the most important religious person in the history of India was Mohandas Gandhi. This 2 religions have infuenced in modern lives, and in people with other religions.


Indian art also afect people normal everyday life . For example, many plays in Southeast Asian nations are based in the Sanskrit epic of the Mahabharata. Indians paint Buddhas holines. Also in other parts of the world there were temples maid with the same technics they used in India.

In another way India afect normal life, was in mathematics. The nurmal numeral we use come from Indians. In one time of the history they trade with Arabian people, and these people brought the numerals of the West. This two numerals joind and form the Hidu-Arabic numerals. This was the greates influence in mathematics.

Ancient India- The Origin of Hinduism

THE ORIGINS OF HINDUISM

The origins of Hinduism began when Aryans began to migrate from Europe to India. In contrast to the city- dwelling Harappans, the s were herders. The migration was made (the scientists think) because of earthquakes, floods, drought, a pluge or an invation. When they move, they took with them their religion. They were polytheistic (believe in many Gods). Their religion was the Brahamanism, so they also believed in the reincarnation and in a karma.

The people were organized in castes. There were 5 different positions, the Brahmana, ther were included the priests, scholars and teachers,who were the most important people in the caste order. In the second place there are the Ksatriya, ther where included the rulers, novels and warriors, those people were importants but not so much. In the next caste there are the Vaisya, who were the bankers, merchants and farmers. In the last position were the Sundra, were included artisans and laborers. After many centuries, a fifth group came into being that was considered below all other clases. This fifth group is called untouchables .

The religion of the Hinduism develop from de Brahamanism. In this religion people were polytheistic (believe in many Gods). They also believe in the reincarnation a that in life people have a karma.They also believe they can reach the Gods, by making their souls one with the Gods, or that they can reach the highest point of illumination and comprehension of life.

Ancient India- Buddhism and Indias´s Golden Age

The Buddism is a religion, where persons tried to be in contact with the gods, that means that if the reach that point they would reach the higest point of illumination, the nirvana. The first person who reachs the nirvana was called Siddarta Gautama. Each person in live has a dharma, that means that they have a purpose in live a person has. In Buddhism the main teachings were the ahism (nonviolence) but some other teachings are the meditating (can be a path for making the soul of a person and the soul of a God, only one). Some others things they teach in Buddhism, "people suffer because their minds areate ease", "that condition comes from waiting what one doesn´t have from waiting"," people cant stop suffering by not wanting" and " people can stop waiting by following the Eightfold Path".

Maurya was an Buddistic empire, which its emperor, Asoka tried to rule in peace. He tried to spread the Buddhism in all India. He traid to belive in people, that they could make things right by their side.

The Guptas were the empire that comes next of the Mauray, they tried to rule all by the war in A.D. 320. Also as the Mayray empire, the Gupta empire tried to expand the Buddhism for all India. In this time the Gupta empire loosed many territories, but it was still bery big. In his power India had a golden age, and became tried to become reacher.