History,+famous+people,+important+events

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History, Famous people and Important Events
By, Victoria and Stephanie

HISTORY
The Maya's used to live along the Caribbean Coast, but they moved to the Pecan, somewhere around 1200 B.C. The Pecan was a wild rain

forest with many dangers such as poisonous snakes or droughts and heat. They created a writing system of glyphs, which are symbols.

From A.D. 200-900, the eldest son of the king took the kings place. Sometimes the women would be able to rule the Maya city-states, but

only when the Dynasty was afraid of been extinct.( wiped out)

The Tikal had fights with neighbors and some invasions. Therefore, it rose and fell, but in the late A.D. 600, all the way to the late 800, it

became quite amazing and powerful. The population then was around 60,000 people and their were amazing temples and pyramids built.

The tallest structure was called Temple IV and it was 229 feet!!(70 meters!) But the key to Tikal's great wealth and success, is it's location.

Trading was very important to the Mesoamerica, and all traders traveled by the river. But there was not a single river that flowed all the way

across the peninsula. So the traders had to carry the goods on their backs. And it just so happens, that on there route by feet, they must go

through the city, Tikal. The Tikals took great advantage of that and didn't let them pass for free!

There were 4 major stages:


 * Archaic Period (8000b.c.-2000 B.C.)
 * the Mayans learned how to plant beans, corns, peppers and squash
 * they used pots and stone tools


 * Pre classic (2000 B.C.- 200 A.D.)
 * Writing appers for the first time, developed their language
 * first heard of the long count calender which has 365 days and also uses a zero
 * the mayans invented a new kind of government with nobles and kings
 * Classic (200 A.D.-700 A.D.)
 * They built famous maya pryamids
 * First dynasty establishes (K'inich Yax K'uk' Mo')
 * They carved their history on stones
 * Post Classic (900 A.D.-1500 A.D.)
 * Mayans moved to the Yucatan Peninsula
 * Chichen, Itza, Uxmal and Mayanspan were important cities during this time

** FAMOUS PEOPLE **
The names of Maya rulers are often confusing, some were from gods, nature, animals, or supernatural creatures. Epigraphers have given

nicknames from the appearance of their glyphs, or simply gave them a number or letter. Some kings are given nicknames because their

names are not yet uncovered.

In 562, Tikals ruler, Double Bird, was captured. Once the ruler was captured, the war would end and the city with the captured king would

have to pay the enemy. Once Double Bird was captured, Tikal sank into darkness. Hasaw brought the city back to power. The city Dos

Pilas, killed his father. But Hasaw was smart, when his troupe was strong enough to attack, he did not send the troupes to Dos Villas for

revenge, as much as he wanted to get revenge, he had to think for the whole city. So instead, he sent the troupes to Calakmul. Calakmul

was Tikal's strongest enemy, if he could defeat Calakmul, he could break the enemy alliance and the city would once again be free. The war

went on for many years, but in the end, around 692, Tikal won! Tikal was a free city once again and the city rose from the time of darkness.

Hasaw was very wise and stregthened Tikal by inviting other kings to Tikal. He prepared wonderful feasts and dancing, therefore, he won

them over. Cacao was just like money, so Hasaw made delicous drinks out of Cacoa. The kings went home with a feeling of fear and awe

of Tikal's great king. So they didn't want to fight Tikal again. Hasaw made larger Pyramids and made Tikal bigger and better and best. And

Hasaw was only the beggining of Tikal's power. His son Yik'in Chan K'awil and his grandson, Yax Ain II also developed Tikal into a great city

after Hasaw retired. But in the ninth century, not only Tikal but many other great city's power mysteriously and abruptly ended. Jungles crept

over many cities and the city's sank into darkness, never to come out again. No one knows what happened, and it will probably be a

mystery for a long long time.

**IMPORTANT EVENTS** The Mayans started to live in villages in about 1500 B.C. along the Pacfic ocean caost (which is part of Mexico is today). About 1000 B.C., the Mayan villages moved into the center part of the country. About 400 A.D., the first Mayan Dynasty was started at Copan (a city) by Kinice Yak Kuk Mo (which is a name). About 750 A.D. the famous Temple of the Heiroglyphc stair way was built! Then about 850 A.D. the Mayans started to leave the central rainforest and the Mayans started to get smaller. In 1502 A.D. a European (Christopher Columbus!) made their first contact (and that's when the postclassic period ended). = = = =

= Annotated Bibliography = Perl, Lila. __The Ancient Maya__. NEW YORK: Franklin Watts, 2005. 6+. This book is really informational. It has timelines and many pictures. It tells you EVERYTHING! This is a really really really good book because it has all you want to now, such as rulers, time periods, history, celebrations, food, houses, famous buildings and more! We got a lot of info of this book. SO did the rest of our group members!  "Mayan History." __Crystalinks__. . This is the best site ever! It has lots of pictures and it includes information about other cultural areas of the tribe.   "Mayan Pyramids in Mexico." __Mayan Pyramids in Mexico__. Lost civilizations. 8 Dec. 2008 .  This a a great web site because it has really good pictures!  Landmeier, Phillip. "The Ancient Maya." __The Ancient Maya__. 1997. 9 Dec. 2008 . This is also a great website about Anicent Mayans. It has info about a lot of stuff.  "History of Belize." __Wikipedia__. 9 Dec. 2008 <[|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/history_of_belize_(1502-1862])>.  This is a Wikipedia website about the history of Belize. You can find out lots about the history of Belize.

 "Maya Civilization." __BrainPop.__ 2 Dec. 2008. http://www.brainpop.com/socialstudies/worldhistory/mayacivilization/  This online database has some information on Mayan Civilizations. It's not the best place to look for info about tribal living but you learn about the actual tribe. BrainPop also has movies about other tribes.

Baquedano, Elizabeth. __Aztec, Inca and Maya__. Grand Rapids: Dorling Kindersley, Incorporated, 2000 This book has lots of information about the Mayans, the Aztecs and the Incas. It has information about every cultural area you are able to chose from in this project. It has bright, colorful drawings and pictures.

"Maya." __Grolier Encyclopedia.__ 2 Dec. 2008. http://go.grolier.com/  This online database is an online encyclopedia. You can type in any keyword and get some info on it. If you type in Maya, you can get some good information about everything you need to know. This is a great website for reasearch purposes!

Perl, Lila. __The Ancient Maya__. New York: Franklin Watts, 2005. This is a really good book. It has information that everyone in the group can benefit from. It has pictures, timelines, detailed descriptions and lots more! It is a great website to use for research! <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">