AMSCO - 1.4 Reading Notes - AP History correctly answers graded A+ 2023/2024

AMSCO - 1.4 Reading Notes - AP HistoryCahokia - correct answers - Largest of the earthen mounds that the Mississippians built - Located in southern Illinois - People abandoned here around 1450 Matrilineal society - correct answers - Means that social standing was determined by the woman's side of the family - Mississippians used this -- Ex: When the Great Sun died, the title passed not to his own son, but to a sister's son. City-State - correct answers - Used by the Mayans - Definition: Each ruled by a king and consisting of a city and its surrounding territory. - Important because this was the Mayan's main form of government Tenochtitlan - correct answers - The capital of the Aztecs - Is now Mexico City - The Aztecs located this on an island in the middle of a swampy lake in order to protect it from attacks. - Grew to almost 200,000 people - At the center of the city, a pyramid is built that is around 150 feet in height. Great Pyramid - correct answers - Pyramid at the center of Tenochtitlán that was around 150 feet tall - Built by Aztecs - Made of stone Chinampas - correct answers The Aztecs built these floating gardens on Lake Texcoco to increase the amount of space for food production. Theocracy - correct answers - Rule by religious leaders - Aztec government was this Pochteca - correct answers Special merchant class who traded in luxury goods Mita System - correct answers - Mandatory public service. - Inca people who had been conquered were subject to this. Carpa Nan - correct answers - Constructed by the Inca people - It was a massive roadway system that was 25,000 miles and was used mainly by the government and military. Explain how the Mississippian Culture organized their government and society. - correct answers - Rigid class structure - A chief, the Great Sun, ruled each large town - Rank 1. Great Sun 2. Priests, nobles 3. Farmers, hunters, merchants, and aristians 4. Slaves (usually prisoners of war) - Women farmed and men hunted - Matrilineal society - Mississippians had a relatively strict type of caste system that they used to determine the roles in society people would have. How did the Mississippian Culture decline? Why might there be different theories? - correct answers - Mississppians left Cahokia around 1450 and then continued to leave other large Mississippians cities by 1600. Historians do not agree on why these people moved. One theory suggests that flooding or other weather extremes caused crop failures and the collapse of the agricultural economy needed to sustain the populations of the large cities. The second theory says that diseases introduced by the Europeans decimated the population. - There might be two different theories because historians are not one hundred percent as to why the Mississippians moved. How do the Chaco and Mesa Verde exemplify innovative advancements? Why did they have to do this? - correct answers - The Chaco build large housing structures using clay and stones. Some of these structures included hundreds of rooms. The Mesa Verde people built multi-story homes into the sides of cliffs with the use of bricks made of sandstone. - They had to come up with these new innovations because the people lived in a dry region, so they developed ways to collect, transport, and store water efficiently. Due to the climate, trees were small and limited, so people had little wood to build their homes with. - Both groups declined later in the 13th century because of the climate becoming drier. Summarize the governing structure of the Maya. - correct answers The Mayans used the city-state. Most of the rulers were men; but, if no male heir was available or old enough, Mayan women ruled. Wars between city-states were typical and at times, city-states were overthrown. Although, Mayans rarely fought to control territory because they usually fought to gain tribute (payments from the conquered to the conqueror) and captives to be used as human sacrifices. City-states had no standing armies, so governments required citizens to provide military service if needed. Even though there was no central government that ruled all Mayan lands, usually one city-state was the strongest in a region and would dominate its neighbors. Also, each Mayan king claimed to be from a god and the king directed activities of the priests and elite scribes who administered the affairs of the state. The common people of the Maya were required to pay taxes, typically in the form of crops, and to provide labor to the government. Explain the role of religion in the Maya government and culture. - correct answers Religion was very important in the Maya culture and government. Priests held great power and women could also be priests. The priests led religious ceremonies and festivals at regular times based on the Mayan calendar. Also, the Mayans worshiped many deities and the most important were those of the sun, rain, and corn. Mayans made offering to the gods in hopes of their prayers being answered and in temple ceremonies, war captives were killed as offerings to the gods. Why were the Mayans called the "Greeks of the New World"? (give a specific example in your answer) - correct answers - Called this because of their cultural achievements - Religion and science was closely connected - Priests studied the heavens and calendars to predict the future and to determine if a time was right for war.