Within these two regions is a cultural region that

historians call Middle America or (a)   , which is made up of Mexico and Central America.

Within these two regions is a cultural region that

historians call Middle America or Mesoamerica, which is made up of (a)   .

Some of the (a)   in the Americas developed in Mesoamerica.

Scholars disagree about exactly (a)   the first people reached the Americas.

A common theory held that between 12,000 and 10,000 years ago, (a)   people reached North America from Asia.

This migration took place during the last (a)   , which lasted from about 100,000 years ago to about 10,000 years ago.

At the time, so much water froze into thick ice sheets that the sea levels dropped, exposing a land bridge between (a)   in the area that is now the Bering Strait.

At the time, so much water froze into thick ice sheets that the sea levels dropped, exposing a land bridge between Siberia and Alaska in the area that is now the (a)   .

Early evidence supported the theory that bands of hunters and food gatherers followed herds of (a)   across the land bridge between Siberia and Alaska.

They slowly moved south through (a)   .

Recent evidence suggests that people may have reached the Americas much (a)   .

They may have (a)   small boats and fished along the coasts.

As (a)   have discovered new evidence, they have modified their theories.

Researchers now base the dates of migration into the Americas mostly on evidence found at (a)   sites.

The first Americans faced a variety of (a)   in which they could settle.

For example, great mountain chains—the Rockies, the eastern and western Sierra Madre, and the Andes—dominate the western Americas.

(a)  

For example, great mountain chains—the (a)   , the eastern and western Sierra Madre, and the Andes—dominate the western Americas.

For example, great mountain chains—the Rockies, the eastern and western (a)   , and the Andes—dominate the western Americas.

For example, great mountain chains—the Rockies, the eastern and western Sierra Madre, and the (a)   —dominate the western Americas.

For example, great mountain chains—the Rockies, the eastern and western Sierra Madre, and the Andes—dominate the (a)   .

In addition, through the continents flow three of the world's five longest rivers, the (a)   of South America and the Missouri and Mississippi rivers of North America.

Far to the north and south of the continents, people learned to survive in icy, (a)   lands.

Closer to the Equator, (a)   in the hot, wet climate and dense vegetation of the Amazon rain forest.

Elsewhere, hunters adapted to (a)   like the Atacama of Chile, woodlands like those in eastern North America, and the fertile plains of both continents.

Elsewhere, hunters adapted to deserts like the Atacama of Chile, (a)   like those in eastern North America, and the fertile plains of both continents.

Elsewhere, hunters adapted to deserts like the Atacama of Chile, woodlands like those in eastern North America, and the (a)   of both continents.

In the Americas, as elsewhere, the greatest adaptation occurred when people learned to (a)   .

These changes took place slowly between about (a)   B.C. and 2000 B.C.

In Mesoamerica, or Middle America, Neolithic people cultivated a range of crops, including beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, squash, and maize—the Native American name for corn.

(a)  

In Mesoamerica, or Middle America, Neolithic people cultivated a range of crops, including beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, (a)   , squash, and maize—the Native American name for corn.

In Mesoamerica, or Middle America, Neolithic people cultivated a range of crops, including beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, squash, and (a)   —the Native American name for corn.

In Mesoamerica, or Middle America, Neolithic people cultivated a range of crops, including beans, sweet potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, squash, and maize—the Native American name for (a)   .

People in South America cultivated crops such as maize and cassava and domesticated (a)   and other animals valued for their wool.

By 3000 B C in parts of South America and 1500 B.C in parts of Mesoamerica, (a)   had settled in villages.

Populations then expanded, and some villages eventually grew into the great early cities of the Americas.

(a)  

Many scholars consider the (a)   the first American civilization; it emerged in the fertile coastal areas along the Gulf of Mexico and lasted from about 1200 to 400 B.C.

Compared to other civilizations such as the (a)   , archaeologists know little about the Olmec.

We do not even know what (a)   .

In fact, Olmec is the name the (a)   later used for these people.

But rich tombs and temples suggest that they had a powerful class of (a)   .

The (a)   did not build true cities, but rather priests and other leaders may have lived in ceremonial centers, while the common people lived in surrounding farming villages.

The Olmec did not build true (a)   , but rather priests and other leaders may have lived in ceremonial centers, while the common people lived in surrounding farming villages.

The Olmec did not build true cities, but rather priests and other leaders may have lived in (a)   , while the common people lived in surrounding farming villages.

The Olmec did not build true cities, but rather priests and other leaders may have lived in ceremonial centers, while the (a)   lived in surrounding farming villages.

The Olmec did not build true cities, but rather priests and other leaders may have lived in ceremonial centers, while the common people lived in surrounding (a)   .

Ceremonial centers had large pyramid-shaped (a)   and other important buildings.

Much of Olmec art is carved (a)   .

The smallest examples include (a)   figurines of people

and gods.

The most dramatic remains are 14 giant (a)   found at the major ceremonial centers of San Lorenzo and La Venta.

Scholars think that these colossal heads, which the Olmec carved from 40-ton stones, are portraits of (a)   .

No one knows exactly how the Olmec moved these stones from distant quarries (a)   .

Still, the evidence shows that the Olmec could (a)   a large labor force.

The Olmec also engaged in trading (a)   , obsidian, serpentine, mica, rubber, feathers, and pottery; through such trade, they influenced a wide area.

The Olmec also engaged in trading jade, (a)   , serpentine, mica, rubber, feathers, and pottery; through such trade, they influenced a wide area.

The Olmec also engaged in trading jade, obsidian, serpentine, mica, (a)   , feathers, and pottery; through such trade, they influenced a wide area.

The Olmec also engaged in trading jade, obsidian, serpentine, mica, rubber, (a)   , and pottery; through such trade, they influenced a wide area.

The Olmec also engaged in trading jade, obsidian, serpentine, mica, rubber, feathers, and pottery; through such (a)   , they influenced a wide area.

The (a)   and serpents that decorate many Olmec carvings appear in the arts of later Mesoamerican peoples.

Olmec also invented a (a)   , and they carved hieroglyphic writing into stone.

Recent archaeological excavations in Mexico indicate they may have developed a (a)   , which would make them the first Mesoamerican civilization to do so.

Through trade, Olmec influence spread over (a)   .

Archaeologists have identified Olmec religious and artistic influences on two later Mesoamerican civilizations—the (a)   .

Both these civilizations built (a)   -shaped temples similar to those of the Olmec.

Olmec ceremonial centers had the remains of (a)   linked to religious rituals.

Similar ball courts have been found at (a)   .

The ball game was (a)   and involved great skill on the part of the players.

They had to keep a rubber ball in motion and send it through (a)   high on a stone wall.

The ball was not allowed to touch the (a)   .

Archaeologists do not know the exact meaning of the game, but it had (a)   importance.

It also was a source of (a)   for crowds of spectators.

The grinning jaguars, (a)   , and other images that decorate Olmec carvings appear in the arts of later people.

A figure similar to the Maya god of (a)   is found in Olmec paintings on the walls at San Bartolo, and the Olmec snake god is seen in the Maya gods Kukulcan and the Aztec Quetzalcoatl.

A figure similar to the Maya god of maize is found in Olmec paintings on the walls at San Bartolo, and the Olmec (a)   is seen in the Maya gods Kukulcan and the Aztec Quetzalcoatl.

A figure similar to the Maya god of maize is found in Olmec paintings on the walls at San Bartolo, and the Olmec snake god is seen in the (a)   .

The Olmec calendar and its (a)   system were passed on to later people.

Their most important legacy, however, may have been the tradition of (a)   that were central to later Middle American civilizations.

Scholars have long thought that among the peoples the Olmec influenced were the (a)   .

New evidence suggests that the Maya may have developed ceremonial centers about the (a)   as the Olmec.

By 300 B.C., the Maya were building large cities, such as El Mirador in (a)   .

By about A D 250, the Maya (a)   —known as the Classic Period—began, with city-states flourishing from the Yucatån Peninsula in southern Mexico through much of Central America.

Before the Maya developed large population centers, like those later constructed by the Inca and Aztecs, they lived (a)   across the land.

They developed (a)   that allowed them to thrive in the tropical environment.

In many areas, farmers (a)   down forests and then cleared the land in order to plant on it.

After a few years, the fields were no longer (a)   .

The Maya would then (a)   these lands until they could be used once again.

In the meantime, (a)   would burn and clear new lands for farming.

In addition, along the banks of rivers, Maya farmers built raised fields to lift crops up above the annual (a)   .

These methods allowed the (a)   to produce enough maize and other crops to support rapidly growing cities.

The Maya cities that developed before and during the Classic Period never formed an (a)   .

Instead, individual and powerful (a)   evolved.

The smaller city-states ruled over the people living directly within and near their (a)   .

The largest ones reigned over neighboring areas as well—often requiring nearby cities to show (a)   to their kings and to participate in their ritual activities.

Over the course of hundreds of years, many different city-states held power, with (a)   a constant theme of life among them.

Cities such as Palenque, Copån, and Piedras Negras all carried great influence in their time, but the largest and most supreme power resided in the rulers of (a)   and Calakmul.

While the Maya were not united politically as later Aztec and Inca civilizations came to be, city-states maintained regular contact through a system of (a)   , which generated much wealth.

Traders carried valuable (a)   long distances by sea and along roads made of packed earth.

Trade goods included items of daily use—such as honey, salt, and cotton—and (a)   but prized items such as feathers, jade, and jaguar pelts.

These goods might have been used in ceremonies or to show (a)   .

Each Maya city had its own ruler, who was usually (a)   .

Maya records and carvings show that (a)   occasionally governed on their own or in the name of young sons.

(a)   served many functions in support of the ruler.

Some were military leaders, while some collected (a)   and enforced laws.

Others managed (a)   , similar to the way the Olmec used collective labor for monument and temple building.

Scribes, painters, and sculptors were also very highly (a)   .

Merchants may have formed a (a)   in society, though the wealthiest and most powerful merchants were certainly nobles, as they had been in the Olmec civilization.

The majority of the Maya were (a)   .

They grew maize, beans, and squash—the basic food crops of (a)   —as well as fruit trees, cotton, and brilliant tropical flowers.

To support the cities, farmers paid taxes on food and worked on (a)   .

Some cities also included a population of (a)   , who generally were commoners who had been captured in war.

The cultural life of the Maya included impressive advances in learning and the (a)   .

In addition, the Maya developed a complex polytheistic (a)   , perhaps inherited from the Olmec, that influenced their cultural life as well as their spiritual beliefs.

Many Maya today maintain elements of the traditional religion established by the ancient Maya, such as the belief that each person's spirit is associated with a particular (a)   .

The cities of the Maya are known today for their towering temples and palaces built from (a)   .

Temples rested on pyramid-shaped (a)   , reflective of the Olmecs' first pyramid, that were often quite large.

Atop the temples, priests performed rites and sacrifices, while the people watched from the (a)   below.

Some temples also served as (a)   places for rulers, nobles, and priests.

Palaces may have been used as (a)   as well as locations for meetings, courts, and other governmental activities.

The multi-use aspect of royal residences is (a)   of the Olmec ceremonial centers.

The Maya placed elaborately carved (a)   on many of their buildings.

They also sculpted tall stone monuments, as did the Olmec, each of which is called a (a)   .

These carvings preserve striking images of nobles, warriors in (a)   , and powerful rulers.

They also represent the Maya gods, including the creator god Itzamna (et SAHM nah), the rain god Chac (chakh),

and the (a)   god K'inich Ajaw (keen EECH ah HOW).

The Maya also developed a (a)   writing system, which scholars did not decipher until recent decades.

Maya (a)   carved inscriptions on stelae that include names of rulers, mentions of neighboring city-states, and

dates and descriptions of events.

They also wrote about astronomy, rituals, and other religious matters in books made of (a)   paper.

Spanish conquerors later burned most of these books, considering any works that were written by (a)   to be unacceptable.

(a)   books, however, were taken to Europe and have survived into the present.

Maya texts reveal that priests were dedicated students of (a)   , the study of the stars and planets that assumes heavenly bodies influence human

affairs.

Advances in astronomy were closely linked to (a)   .

Maya priests needed to (a)   accurately in order to produce an accurate calendar.

They developed a 365-day (a)   calendar as well as a 260-day religious calendar, recording the correct timing for important ceremonies.

Maya priests also invented a counting system based on three symbols: a dot to represent one, a bar for five, and a (a)   for zero.

With these three symbols, they could keep track of (a)   .

Even peasants could use this simple form of (a)   for trade.

The Maya were one of the only early civilizations to understand the concept of (a)   .

Along with counting, the Maya developed other, more

(a)   concepts in mathematics.

About A.D. (a)   , the Maya abandoned man of their cities.

In the (a)   , cities flourished for a few more centuries, but there, too, the Maya eventually stopped building them.

By the time the (a)   arrived in the 1500s, the Maya mostly lived in farming villages.

Archaeologists do not know for sure why Maya civilization declined, although (a)   .

For example, frequent warfare may have taken its toll on society, or overpopulation could have led to over-farming and (a)   of the soil.

Throughout the region, however, the (a)   of their jungle and mountain locations allowed many Maya to survive the encounter with the Spanish.

Today, more than (a)   Maya people live in Guatemala and southern Mexico.