Maya society concerns the social organization of the Pre-Hispanic Maya, its political structures, and social classes. The Maya people were indigenous to Mexico and Central America and the most dominant people groups of Central America up until the 6th century.[1]
In the Neolithic Age, Maya society has contributed to the fields of astronomy, mathematics, agriculture, art and writing.[2] The Mayans would peak as a civilization between 250 - 900 AD. This included complex cities, social life, and politics. Mayan civilization began to decline after this time period, and remaining Mayans would revert to more of a hunter-gatherer society. These remaining tribes would eventually be conquered by Europeans in the 1500s.[citation needed]
The Maya lived in Mesoamerica, concentrated in the Yucatán Peninsula, the Peten district of northern Guatemala and southern Mexico. The Maya reached the height of their civilization during the Classic Period of Maya civilization (A.D 250 to 900) before a decline starting about 900 AD.[1] The Maya Civilization, centered in these tropical lands, reached their peak of power and influence around the sixth century.[3]
The Maya practiced body modification,[4] including cranium modification, dental modification, skin modification and piercings. The Maya valued individualism through body modification.[4] Body modification sometimes reflected one's political status, a cultural belief that body modification may ward them from evil spirits, impersonating important cultural figures and to signify important events that have happened through one's life.
The Maya were known to engage in warfare to procure nearby resources, assert political control over neighbors, procure slave labor and sacrificial victims for rituals. Warfare in Maya society was frequent.
Mayasociety concerns the social organization of the Pre-Hispanic Maya, its political structures, and social classes. The Maya people were indigenous to...
establishment of the first complex societies in the Maya region, and the cultivation of the staple crops of the Maya diet, including maize, beans, squashes...
Ancient Maya women had an important role in society: beyond propagating the culture through bearing and raising children, Maya women participated in economic...
Yucatec Maya parents, the ceremony called hetsmek' is still practiced even among professionals living in Mérida, the capital of Yucatán. Maya populations...
archaeology, the classic Maya collapse is the decline of the Classic Maya civilization and the abandonment of Maya cities in the southern Maya lowlands of Mesoamerica...
include Nakbe, Uaxactun, Seibal, San Bartolo, Cival, and El Mirador. Mayasociety underwent a series of profound transformations between c. 100 AD and...
Yucatec Maya (/ˈjuːkətɛk ˈmaɪə/; referred to by its speakers simply as Maya or as maaya t’aan [màːjaʔˈtʼàːn]) is a Mayan language spoken in the Yucatán...
Chichen Itza in English and traditional Yucatec Maya) was a large pre-Columbian city built by the Maya people of the Terminal Classic period. The archeological...
Mesoamerica, there was an evident shift in the roles women played in ancient Mayasociety as compared with the previous two centuries. It was during this time...
iyom kʼexelom, and receive prestige for their practice. Midwives in Mayasocieties are responsible for the ajtuj ("pregnant woman") and her unborn child...
after the Classic Maya collapse. The chroniclers have also been accused of colonial bias, but the most comprehensive account of Mayasociety, by Diego de Landa...
perpetuation of Mayasociety. The goals and motives of warfare in Maya culture are not thoroughly understood, but scholars have developed models for Maya warfare...
in Maya culture was the ritual offering of nourishment to the gods and goddesses. Blood was viewed as a potent source of nourishment for the Maya deities...
Until the discovery that Maya stelae depicted kings instead of high priests, the Maya priesthood and their preoccupations had been a main scholarly concern...
The Maya (/ˈmaɪə/) are an ethnolinguistic group of indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group...
The Maya Region is cultural, first order subdivision of Mesoamerica, located in the eastern half of the latter. Though first settled by Palaeoindians by...
texts and is depicted in the art of the Classic Period (200–900 AD). The Maya played instruments such as trumpets, flutes, whistles, and drums, and used...
Ancient Maya cuisine was varied and extensive. Many different types of resources were consumed, including maritime, flora, and faunal material, and food...
Death rituals were an important part of Maya religion. The Maya greatly respected death; they were taught to fear it and grieved deeply for the deceased...
of years. The Maya civilization spread into the area of Belize between 1500 BC to 1200 BC and flourished until about 1000 AD. Several Maya ruin sites, including...
Trade was a crucial factor in maintaining Maya cities. Activity consisted mainly of foods like fish, squash, yams, corn, honey, beans, turkey, vegetables...
bee society. Bonsels' original book contains fewer than 200 pages. The storyline is centered on the relation of Maya and her many adventures. Maya is a...
Women have traditionally created textiles in Mayasociety, and textiles were a significant form of ancient Maya art and religious beliefs. They were considered...
Maya Americans are Americans of Indigenous Maya descent. Most Maya Americans originate from western Guatemala and Chiapas. The Cold War led to the spread...
In pre-Columbian Maya civilization, ceremonial dance had great importance. However, since dance is a transient art, it is inherently difficult for archeologists...
Maya medicine concerns health and medicine among the ancient Maya civilization. It was a complex blend of mind, body, religion, ritual and science. Important...
Maya script, also known as Maya glyphs, is historically the native writing system of the Maya civilization of Mesoamerica and is the only Mesoamerican...
ideological and cultural functions within ancient Mesoamerican societies, in particular the Maya. When performed by ruling elites, the act of bloodletting...
Maya astronomy is the study of the Moon, planets, Milky Way, Sun, and astronomical phenomena by the Precolumbian Maya Civilization of Mesoamerica. The...
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