Questions: Early Mesoamerica: The Olmec and the Classic Maya
4 questions to test your understanding
Score: 0 / 4
Question 1 Multiple Choice
Which crop formed the agricultural base of Mesoamerican civilizations?
AWheat
BRice
CMaize
DPotatoes
Maize was domesticated in Mexico and, with beans and squash, fed Olmec, Maya and later Mesoamerican societies. Potatoes were an Andean staple, and wheat and rice came from Afro-Eurasia.
Question 2 True / False
The Maya people vanished after the collapse of the southern lowland cities in the 800s CE.
TTrue
FFalse
Answer: False
The collapse ended the Classic political system in the southern lowlands, but Maya cities in northern Yucatán continued, and Maya communities met the Spanish in the 1500s. Millions of Maya people live in Mexico and Central America today.
Question 3 Multiple Choice
How was the Classic Maya political world organized?
AAs one empire ruled from Tikal
BAs many independent city-states ruled by divine kings
CAs a republic governed by elected councils
DAs a province of the Aztec Empire
Maya city-states such as Tikal, Calakmul, Copán and Palenque each had their own ruling dynasty. Powerful cities formed alliances and fought wars, but no single state ruled all Maya lands.
Question 4 Short Answer
Give two explanations historians and archaeologists have proposed for the Classic Maya collapse.
Think about your answer, then reveal below.
Model answer: Any two of: prolonged droughts; endemic warfare between city-states; population growth beyond what the land could support; deforestation and soil loss; loss of faith in divine kingship when rulers failed to prevent crises.
Most researchers now see the collapse as the result of several pressures acting together, with evidence for drought from lake and cave records and evidence for warfare in inscriptions and fortifications.