Geography of Middle America
I. The first people in the Americas may have come from Asia, the Beringia land
bridge about 40,000 to 25,000 years ago.
A) Beringia formed a land bridge between Asia and North America.
1. This became possible when the oceans sank during the ice age.
2. Beringia is located where the Bering Straight is today.
B) Many scientists believe that it was across this land bridge that people first
came to America.
1. By 15,000 years ago, hunters and gatherers had spread through
America.
II. The first civilizations developed in Middle America or Mesoamerica, (Meso
means middle)
A) The early people who traveled south from what is now the United States
found warmer lands.
B) There were great mountains, lush coastal plains and dry plateaus.
1. These lands had a large and varied animal population.
2. It also has three main climate regions defined by elevation.
III. There are three main climate zones in Middle America
A) Most of Middle America is a tropical zone (tierra caliente). This is the
hottest region. Temperatures over 80 degrees most of the time.
B) The Central Plateau is the tierra templada, which is the mild climate
C) The highest mountain regions are cold or tierra fria.
IV. These three climate regions all have one thing in common, the rainy season.
A) The rainy season comes between May – October. This is when the most
rain falls
B) Between November and April the skies are usually clear and very little if
any rain falls.
V. The rain forests of Middle America are unique environments with a huge
variety of plants and animal life.
A) The main forest requires more than 80 inches of rain a year.
B) The rain forests are home to a huge variety of plants and animals. ¾ of the
worlds living things are found in rain forests.
IV. The first settlers of Middle America were hunters and gatherers who lived in
the Central Plateau. Early Americans gathered onions, squash and avocados. They
hunted rabbits and deer and like other early people they moved around a lot.
The Olmec Civilization
I. The Olmec built one of the earliest civilizations in the Americas, starting around
1200 B.C.
A) The Olmec civilization flourished along the Gulf of Mexico from about
1200 B.C – 400 B.C.
B) This area was made up mostly of rain forests.
1. This area was rich with food such as fish, turtles, ducks, wild
turkeys, boars and deer.
2. The rain forest also gave them fruits such as guava.
II. It was their success in agriculture, however, that allowed the Olmec to build a
stable culture.
A) The Olmec used a method known as slash and burn to clear the rain forest
to farm.
B) Like the farmers of Egypt and China the Olmec farmers made use of river
flooding.
1. Their main crops were corn, beans and wheat.
III. The Olmec were Craftworkers who designed objects such as carvings, beads
and necklaces.
A) These objects were traded with people in other parts of Middle America for
food.
B) Clay goods and figures in the Olmec style have been founding places as
distant as Olmec lands in Central Mexico, more than 300 miles to the north.
C) Olmec traded their goods for food, feathers and animal skin/fur.
IV. Around 400 B.C. Olmec civilization was slowly beginning to disappear.
A) Historians are not sure why the culture fades.
B) Some think the system of agriculture began to break down from over use of
the land.
C) Olmec settlements were abandoned and the rain forests eventually
reclaimed the land.
D) Middle American civilization (Olmec) lived on in the Artifacts it left
behind.
E) The Mayas were a huge Middle America civilization that was built on the
Olmec achievements.