Geographic Determinism and the Early Civilizations in Latin America

Early Civilizations in Latin America

• Maya (300-900)

• Aztec (1325-1519)

• Inca (late 1400s-1532)

Major Pre-Major Pre-ColumbiaColumbia

n n CivilizatioCivilizatio

nsns• Maya (300-

900)

• Aztec (1325-1519)

• Inca (late 1400s-1532)

Maya (300-900)

Aztec (1325-1519)

Inca (late 1400s-1532)

Geographic Determinism

The GEOGRAPHY of a region DETERMINES how people there live

Civilization #1: Maya

Location: Southern Mexico and Central

America

Problem #1

Dense vegetation (trees and plants)

Wild plants can take over crops and buildings.

Rainforest soil is not good for farming.

Solution #1:

Slash and burn agriculture (farming by first burning down forest in an area)

Problem #2:

There are no above ground rivers or lakes.

Solution #2:

They used cenotes (sink holes)

They built ladders and

stairs to get to the

underground lakes.

They built irrigation systems to bring water to the fields.

Civilization #2: Aztec

Location: Central Mexico, where Mexico

City is today.

Problem #1:

The water in the lake was salty, so it was not good for farming, drinking or bathing.

Solution #1:

They built aqueducts to bring fresh waterfrom the mountain springs to the city.

Q: Why do you think they chose to build their city in the middle of a lake?

Problem #2:

The swampy soil was not good for farming.

Solution #2:

They built floating gardens called chinampas to grow crops.

Civilization #3: Inca

Location: Andes Mountains of South

America

Problem #1:

Steep slopes are difficult to farm

Solution #1:

The Incas used terrace farming, whichcreated small flat fields that could hold water.

Problem #2:

Inca leaders had to rule over a 2000 mile long stretch of mountains

Solution #2:Solution #2:

The Inca built roads and suspension bridges and used a messenger system to communicate with different parts of the empire

Aztec Chinampas

Inca Terrace Farming

Maya Slash and Burn

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Panama Canal

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