American continent, an enormous extension of land in which three important cultures left a deep mark on the history of the continent and therefore, for the rest of humanity. Technological, architectural, religious and labor advances demonstrated how to create cities of colossal dimensions, under the dogmas of astrological knowledge, dominating large extensions of territory and becoming true empires, with a structured society and a political system that knew how to prevail in time, leaving us signs and evidence of what they were. We are obviously referring to culture. Inca, Aztec Y Maya. In this article we will focus on the Mayan culture, We are going to learn more about this impressive culture, its history, its politics, its society, etc.
The Mayan Culture | Location
The Mayan civilization spread throughout a wide territory between the southeast of Mexico and the northern part of Central America, which included the Yucatan Peninsula, Guatemala, Belize, part of Honduras and part of El Salvador.
The Mayans occupied an area of about 350,000 km, in a region with a coastline rich in food, extensive jungles, an area with a great diversity of flora and fauna. The Mayans occupied three different types of land, the highlands, the southern lowlands, and the northern lowlands.
- The highlands covered the area of southern Guatemala and the area of Chiapas
- The southern lowlands comprised the Petén and its areas of influence
- The northern lowlands basically comprised much of the Yucatan peninsula.
In the southern highlands area, it is an area where numerous active volcanoes have generated large deposits of obsidian, as well as numerous mineral deposits. The limestone rocks of the Chiapas area and part of Guatemala.
In the northern lowlands, in the Yucatan peninsula, located at sea level, formed by deposits of alluvial or marine origin.
As for the climate, it is a temperate climate, with temperatures that oscillate between 15 and 25 degrees, being the lowest zones of warmer climate and with high precipitations. While in the north rainfall is less and its climate is somewhat colder.
With all these data, we can imagine that if we had a warm climate, with land suitable for cultivation, with enough rocks to be able to build, we have all the ingredients so that a primitive settlement could settle in the area and progress, as like the Mayans did.
Main urban centers of the Mayan culture
The largest and best finished city was Palenque, known for its large extensions and impressive constructions. But perhaps the best known of the civilization has been the Yucatan Peninsula, in Mexico. The most famous monuments of the region were built there, such as Chichen Itza Y Uxmalsymbols of the Mayan culture.
Finally, for unknown reasons, the Mayans they abandoned the cities around the year 900. It is estimated that there were various invasions that influenced the abandonment and perhaps economic problems were strong factors that determined its end. One of the changes caused by this fact was the disappearance of the priestly class, a fact that caused the Mayans they will stop building more cities, leaving culture in oblivion.
After the abandonment of the cities, within the region of the Yucatan Peninsula a new culture emerged, produced by the migration of the Tolltecs from the north that merged with the Mayans autochthonous, generating a new and small culture called Mayan-Toltec.
Despite all the difficulties that were presented to this interesting culture, the Mayans They managed to build an urban center of grandiose characteristics, with purely sophisticated advances in fields such as agriculture, commerce or astronomy not seen in other cultures, thus generating one of the most important civilizations of America and the world.
- Palenque: It was one of the main centers of the Mayan civilization. Palenque is believed to have been built around 100 BC. C., in the formative period of the Mayan civilization, and that began as a small village of farmers. Over time, Palenque gained in importance until it became one of the main cities of the Mayan civilization during the classic period, between the 5th and 9th centuries. The disappearance of the Mayans caused the city to fall into oblivion until it was rediscovered in the 16th century by Pedro Lorenzo de la Nada. Currently, an area of more than 3 km2 has been discovered, although it is believed that there are still more than a thousand temples and hidden structures in the jungle waiting to be discovered.
- Tikal: It is another of the main cities of the Mayan civilization and one of the main kingdoms in political, economic or military matters. It emerged during the fourth century BC. C., but like Palenque it did not reach its degree of greatest splendor until the classic period. It is considered that the city reached an area of 16 km2 and that it had more than 3,000 buildings. Estimates about its number of inhabitants range between 10,000 and 90,000, but it is generally accepted that its population would be around 40,000-50,000 inhabitants. Tikal was a kingdom that maintained relations with other Mayan peoples, such as Palenque, and with more regions of Mesoamerica, for example with Teotihuacán, «the place where men become Gods«.
- Copan: It is another of the most important urban centers that are preserved from the Mayan civilization. Located in Honduras, near the border with Guatemala, it emerged under the Tikal dynasty and under its protection it became an important city-state. It is estimated that the urban nucleus of Copán had around 8,000 inhabitants, in addition to the 12,000 who lived in its “metropolitan area”. In addition, the Copan Valley was home to a rural population of around 4,000-5,000 people, so its total population is usually estimated at around 25,000 inhabitants during its heyday in the classic period. It is also known that Copán suffered a great political disaster at the beginning of the 8th century and that, as a consequence of it, it could have been under the rule of another dynasty, the Quiriguá, for two decades. Today Copán is a valley inhabited by around 3,000 people, which is accessed through a winding road and has a small airport.
The Mayan Culture | Chronology
The Mayan culture It differed from the rest of the civilizations, due to various factors of territory, climate and war that had a notable influence on the history of the Mayans. This is how then the Mayan chronology can be divided into two stages: the early classic periodalso know as Preclassic (292-593) and the Classical period (593-889), the most significant.
The term Preclassic was characterized by the development of the language Maya and the incorporation of stelae (flat stone columns) that were the basis of the construction Mayaaccompanied with vaulted spaces.
The classical period, On the other hand, it was the moment in which more advances were made, such as the incorporation of writing and the construction of up to 90 cities throughout its entire territory. The cities that were built were religious and sacred sites. There lived the priestly classin charge of carrying out religious rituals and offering ceremonies in the great temples that characterized civilization.
As for the rest of the inhabitants, they were on the outskirts of the cities, given that their settlement in tropical forest areas (southeast of Mexicothe savior, Honduras, Belize Y Guatemala) where the rains and humidity were the protagonists of every day and made it difficult to establish cities laid out in an orderly manner, generating a completely dispersed social structure. This is how it has been proven that no more than 30 people settled within a square mile, generating a dispersed and disorderly territory.
The Mayan Culture | Politics
Cities were also states during the classical period, so each Mayan city-state was independent, with an independent government and a different chief or leader in each city. These rulers were called Kinich.
After the classical period, the City States of Mayapan, Chichen Itza and Uxmal, joined in what was called “The League of Mayapan”. The government from then on would be made up of three chiefs or Ah Tepaleach one of them had been Kinich until that moment, of the member cities of the league, creating a council for the government called Multipal.
This league lasted from the year 990 AD, until the year 1200 AD approximately, the entire Mayan world was separated, being fragmented, in 16 independent cities, with independent policies. The structure was as follows:
- The Halach Uinic. Maximum ruler of the City and sole bearer of the ceremonial staff with the representation of the god of life K’awil, the main symbol of power. The position passed from father to son, thus creating a royal lineage.
- Oh Holpop. They were the political and religious delegates of the Halach Uinic, in charge of the great sacred ceremonies and custodians of the musical instruments dedicated to festivals and rites.
- nacom. Military Chief of the City
- The Ahuacan. High priest and officiant of the divinatory rites and sacrifices. As high priest he was in charge of monitoring the calendars, the sacred books and the education of the citizens.
- The Tupiles. They were the “policemen” of the time, in charge of order and compliance with the laws
- The Bataboob. All the City States had smaller cities under their jurisdiction. The Bataboob, were the governors of those minor cities. His appointment came directly from the Halach Uinic, being people of his total confidence for the organization, direction, administration of justice and supervision of collections of these cities.
- The Ah Cuch Caboob. He was the last official on the scale, in charge of organizing the work for the community, as well as collecting the taxes that the Bataboob were in charge of supervising.
The Mayan cities were always in constant fights and disputes, periods of invasions and subjugation between neighboring peoples. Leagues like Calakmul, El Caracol, Tikal. and Mayapán, of which we have just spoken, were the few that achieved regional dominance, ensuring a more or less stable government in the zones.
As these cities evolved, their political systems had to become increasingly complex. Coming to the Theocracy, where the king had divine character, therefore it had absolute power, exercising absolute control militarily, judicially or economically.
The people assumed the divine power of the king to dispose of their effort, money or life to undertake large construction projects, so it was not necessary to resort to force, it was the king’s mandate and it was fulfilled.
I know demanded tributes the subjugated peoples often liked to capture and humiliate enemy warriors, aware of the military power that the Mayans possessed. This almost…