The Maya: An overview
The Maya civilization spanned the Yucatan Peninsula near the Gulf of Mexico in what is currently modern Mexico and Guatemala. In its peak during the classical period from 250 A.D. to 900 A.D., the vast empire of the Maya was divided into city-states, each ruled by a king, who claimed the right to rule by lineage to the gods. These city-states were independently ruled. However, the city-states were linked through alliances and trade that kept Maya culture cohesive, and at other times set tension among the states. While the states were thought to have existed peacefully and have created political stability in the empire, at times the struggle for military power and access to resources among the kings of the city-states led to war.
The Mayans had an agriculturally based society, meaning that the majority of their population were farmers. Their market economy, combined with their barter system for trade using agricultural goods, meant that the basis of the Maya's economic success was in their farming. The Maya covered a region of great geographic diversity, encompassing rain forests with poor soil and heavy rains, mountains, and swamps with fertile but erosion-prone soil. To combat the difficult terrain, the Maya used terrace farming, especially in the mountain area, where they cut into the mountain small "steps" to put their rows of crops. This technique helped them maximize use of the mountains and grow crops on flat soil. The main crops of the Maya were maize and cacao. Cacao was a prominent trade item in the Mayan barter system, as were goods like salt, flint, feathers, shells, honey, and crafts. The barter system and economy helped define the wealth of the people by their material goods--one's wealth was defined by one's abundance of gold, jade, cacao, maize, jewelry, and sometimes slaves.
The social hierarchy of the Maya was distinctly defined. At the top of the social pyramid were the kings of the city states and their royal families; next, just below royalty, were the nobles of the royal courts; below the nobles were the merchants who gained their wealth and status through the thriving trade of the society; below the merchants were the commoners--the farmers, mostly peasants; below the commoners, at the very bottom of the pyramid, were the slaves, most often prisoners of war from Mayan conquest. Another defining feature of Mayan society was its religion. The Maya's religion was polytheistic, with their gods based on the workings of nature. Being an agricultural society, the fixation of their religion on the elements, the seasons, and the earth is in accord with the principal values of their society. The Maya worshiped many gods including the gods of maize, death, rain, war, the seasons, and directions. The Mayans saw the presence of their gods in daily life--in the fields, the weather, and the phenomenons of life and death. The Maya even say their gods in each day of the year. The Maya believed that each day was a living god whose behavior could be predicted through the use of calendars (this belief led to the creation of the Mayan calendar, an achievement discussed in the "Cultural Achievements and Leaders" section of the website). However, there is another side of the Mayan religion, a darker, intriguing side. The Maya held a belief that their gods would only be pleased if they (the Maya) payed tribute to the gods by giving up the most valuable commodity they possessed--human blood. They believed that the power of their gods was fueled by the human blood spilt during blood-letting rituals and human sacrifice. As a result, sacrifices were a major part of religious ceremonies, staining the reality of the Mesoamerican civilization.
The Mayans had an agriculturally based society, meaning that the majority of their population were farmers. Their market economy, combined with their barter system for trade using agricultural goods, meant that the basis of the Maya's economic success was in their farming. The Maya covered a region of great geographic diversity, encompassing rain forests with poor soil and heavy rains, mountains, and swamps with fertile but erosion-prone soil. To combat the difficult terrain, the Maya used terrace farming, especially in the mountain area, where they cut into the mountain small "steps" to put their rows of crops. This technique helped them maximize use of the mountains and grow crops on flat soil. The main crops of the Maya were maize and cacao. Cacao was a prominent trade item in the Mayan barter system, as were goods like salt, flint, feathers, shells, honey, and crafts. The barter system and economy helped define the wealth of the people by their material goods--one's wealth was defined by one's abundance of gold, jade, cacao, maize, jewelry, and sometimes slaves.
The social hierarchy of the Maya was distinctly defined. At the top of the social pyramid were the kings of the city states and their royal families; next, just below royalty, were the nobles of the royal courts; below the nobles were the merchants who gained their wealth and status through the thriving trade of the society; below the merchants were the commoners--the farmers, mostly peasants; below the commoners, at the very bottom of the pyramid, were the slaves, most often prisoners of war from Mayan conquest. Another defining feature of Mayan society was its religion. The Maya's religion was polytheistic, with their gods based on the workings of nature. Being an agricultural society, the fixation of their religion on the elements, the seasons, and the earth is in accord with the principal values of their society. The Maya worshiped many gods including the gods of maize, death, rain, war, the seasons, and directions. The Mayans saw the presence of their gods in daily life--in the fields, the weather, and the phenomenons of life and death. The Maya even say their gods in each day of the year. The Maya believed that each day was a living god whose behavior could be predicted through the use of calendars (this belief led to the creation of the Mayan calendar, an achievement discussed in the "Cultural Achievements and Leaders" section of the website). However, there is another side of the Mayan religion, a darker, intriguing side. The Maya held a belief that their gods would only be pleased if they (the Maya) payed tribute to the gods by giving up the most valuable commodity they possessed--human blood. They believed that the power of their gods was fueled by the human blood spilt during blood-letting rituals and human sacrifice. As a result, sacrifices were a major part of religious ceremonies, staining the reality of the Mesoamerican civilization.