Empires of the Americas
While civilizations were developing in Europe and Asia,
other civilizations were beginning in the Americas. Three of
the most advanced were the Maya, the Aztec, and the Inca.
The Mayan civilization began around the year 200 A.D.
The Maya lived in southern Mexico and Central America. They
built large cities such as Chichen Itza. Like ancient Greece, the
Mayan civilization was divided into city-states. This means
that each city was independent and ruled by its own king. The
Maya religion had many gods. It was polytheistic. They
would offer their blood or the blood of their enemies as
sacrifice to their gods. To try to understand their gods, the
Maya developed knowledge in mathematics, calendars, and
astronomy. In the late 800’s, the Maya began to decline. Their
civilization ended around 900 A.D. and historians do not know
why.
The Aztec civilization came to power as the Mayan civilization was ending. By the 1400’s
the Aztec had a wealthy empire with a strong government. They were ruled by an emperor,
who was treated like a god. Religion was very important to the Aztecs. They believed in
many gods. They often went to war to capture people that they could sacrifice to their gods to
bring them good luck and fortune. The Maya and the Aztecs both built large structures called
pyramids. They were similar to the pyramids built by the Egyptians. The Aztecs main city
was Tenochtitlan. It was built on an island on a lake. They would dig up mud from the bottom
of the lake and use the mud to make their island bigger. The Aztec developed a written
language in which pictures stood for ideas and invented an accurate calendar. The Aztecs were
destroyed when the Spanish came to America.
The Inca developed their own empire in South
America about the same time as the Aztec. They
made their civilization large by conquering nearby
tribes. The Incan civilization lived high up in the
Andes Mountains. They were known for their
building skills. They built thousands of miles of
roads. They also built bridges that went across rivers
and between mountains to connect roads. One of their
greatest achievements was the construction of Machu
Picchu. It was a large city very high up in the
mountains. To help them farm on the mountains, the
Inca dug huge steps called terraces into the
mountainside. This gave them flat land on which to
plant their crops. Farming was very important to all three of the American civilizations. They
Inca also had their own system of many gods, which were important to them. The Inca were
ruled by an emperor. Unlike the Maya and Aztec, the Inca did not have a writing system. To
keep records, they tied knots in rope. This was called quipu. Like the Aztec, the Inca were
destroyed by the Spanish.
Finish Up Choose the word or words that best complete each sentence and write the
word or words on the blank line.
1. The first major American civilization was the ______________________.
2. All three of the American civilizations believed in _____________ gods.
3. The Aztec were ruled by an _________________________ who was treated like a
god.
4. The floating city created by the Aztecs was called ____________________________.
5. The Incas lived high up in the ___________________ Mountains in South America.
6. The Inca tied knots in rope to help keep records. This was known as _____________.
Think and Apply
1. What is one way in which all three civilizations are similar?
2. What is one way in which the Maya and Aztec are similar yet different from the Inca?
3. What is one way in which the Aztec and the Inca are similar yet different from the
Maya?