Mesoamerican Civilizations Notes
Government/Religion/People Today
Mayan:
Government: City States:
Collection of multiple sections of the civilization under one rule. Each city state had
their own government.
-East City State had _______________, ________________, and _______________ at
the top of the governments. Everyone else was a commoner.
-Priests and Kings created Laws for the civilization to follow. If you broke a law there
were ____________________________.
Religion: Polytheistic Religion – Believed in many Gods and had nearly 2 million followers
-Believed that there was a ___________________world/after life. Everyone went
down, not to the sky.
-Human Sacrifice: Needed to over blood to Gods to keep them happy and was a
privilege to be sacrificed.
People Today:
-Very few individuals practicing traditional Mayan traditions. Mostly of the 7 Million
Maya people today live in southern Mexico or South America.
Aztecs:
Government:
-City State type government with an Emperor or Huey Tlatoani in charge of the entire
empire
-Under the Emperor was the “Council of Four”. Gave advice and ran the army for the
Aztecs.
-Nobles helped to select the next ruler. Typically someone in the family
Religion:
-Very violent nation who used human sacrifice as well. They sometimes did nearly 200 a
week if they felt the Gods were angry with them.
-Aztec warriors fought in many religious wars, as they tried to conquer other civilizations.
-Group that created religious calendar which was said to predict the end of the
world…well we are still here!
People Today:
-There is no longer a group of pure Aztec people. There are still relatives living in Mexico.
Nearly 1,000,000 people were of Aztec descent still today. They carry on many of the
same traditions…except for the human sacrifice part!
Incas:
Government:
-Single ruler or the “Sapa Inca” which means sole ruler. Ruled over the entire empire.
-Incas collected taxes, and if you didn’t pay you were punished. (Typically death)
Religion:
-Believed in many Gods, and were a blood thirsty culture. They sought out and conquered
many different tribes, typically enslaving the men.
People Today:
-As with other nations, very few people left if any. Mostly traditions are passed down to
people who live in southern Mexico or northern South America.