Mesoamerican Geography & Earliest Civilizations

Where can lowlands be found in Mesoamerica?

• between the mountains of the Sierra Madre

• in the Jungles of the Yucatan

• along the Pacific Ocean

• around Monte Alban

Where are the highlands?

• along the Atlantic Ocean

• between the mountains of the Sierra Madre

• in the jungles of the Yucatan

• south of the Yucatan

How might the highlands be described?

• poor soil that cannot be used for farming

• rugged and rocky terrain

• fairly flat with fertile soil

• very hilly with little topsoil

What are the three main crops grown in the highlands?

• maize, squash, and beans

• cacao, barley, maize

• cacao, corn, beans

• palm, wheat, squash

How did the farmers who used slash-and burn agriculture fertilize their land?

• They used seaweed from coastal areas.

• They grew plants, such as maize and beans, and then chopped then up for fertilizer.

• They used the ash left from burning the plants and trees on the land.

• They used the manure from the animals they raised.

What was Mesoamerica's first civilization?

• Aztec

• Maya

• Olmec

• Zapotec

Which of the following correctly lists the Olmec social order?

• rulers

  farmers

  priests

  merchants

• priests

  rulers

  farmers

  merchants

• rulers

  priests

  merchants

  farmers

• priests

  merchants

  rulers

  farmers

Why is the Olmec culture thought of as the "mother civilization" of Mesoamerica?

• The Olmec taught the Zapotec and Maya how to farm.

• All later cultures used the Olmec's written language.

• People from other cultures, such as the Zapotec and Maya, studied in Maya cities.

• Later civilizations were influenced by Olmec art and religious practices.

Why did the Zapotec build terraces?

• as a place to bury their dead

• as locations for their pyramids

• to use as ball courts

• to create more land for farming

Where did the Zapotec Society start?

• in the Oaxaca Valley

• in San Jose Mogote

• along Mexico's gulf coast

• in the Yucatan