Maya numerals Maya numerals Numbers above 19[edit] Numbers after 19 were written vertically in powers of twenty. For example, thirty-three would be written as one dot above three dots, which are in turn atop two lines. The first dot represents "one twenty" or "1×20", which is added to three dots and two bars, or thirteen. Therefore, (1×20) + 13 = 33. Other than the bar and dot notation, Maya numerals can be illustrated by face type glyphs or pictures. Addition and subtraction: Adding and subtracting numbers below 20 using Maya numerals is very simple.[2]Addition is performed by combining the numeric symbols at each level: If five or more dots result from the combination, five dots are removed and replaced by a bar. Similarly with subtraction, remove the elements of the subtrahend symbol from the minuend symbol: If there are not enough dots in a minuend position, a bar is replaced by five dots. Zero[edit] In the calendar[edit] Detail showing three columns of glyphs from La Mojarra Stela 1. Notes[edit]
Mayan hieroglyphic writing Mayan hieroglyphic writing, system of writing used by the Maya people of Mesoamerica until about the end of the 17th century, 200 years after the Spanish conquest of Mexico. (With the 21st-century discovery of the Mayan site of San Bartolo in Guatemala came evidence of Mayan writing that pushed back its date of origin to at least 300 or 200 bc.) It was the only true writing system developed in the pre-Columbian Americas. Until the mid-20th century, very little Mayan writing could be deciphered except for the symbols representing numbers, dates, and rulers’ names and denoting such events as birth, death, and capture. During the 1950s the linguist Yury Knorozov demonstrated that Mayan writing was phonetic as well as hieroglyphic. The Mayan writing system is complex: a single sign may function as a logogram and also have one or more syllabic values; similarly, a single logographic sign may be used to represent several words that are pronounced in the same way.
History for Kids: Aztecs, Maya, and Inca Back to History The three most dominant and advanced civilizations that developed in the Americas prior to the arrival of the Europeans were the Aztecs, the Maya, and the Inca. Map of Aztec, Mayan, and Incan Civilizations by Ducksters Aztecs The Aztec Empire was located in central Mexico. The capital city of the Aztec Empire was Tenochtitlan. The Aztec called their ruler the Tlatoani. Maya The Maya civilization began as early as 2000 BC and continued to have a strong presence in Mesoamerica for over 3000 years until the Spanish arrived in 1519 AD. The Maya were located in Central America in a region that is today made up of southern Mexico, the Yucatan Peninsula, Guatemala, Belize, and northern El Salvador. The Maya were the only American civilization to develop an advanced written language. Inca The Inca Empire was centered in Peru and ruled over much of the west coast of South America from the 1400s to the time of the Spanish arrival in 1532. ActivitiesCrossword PuzzleWord Search
THE PHOENICIANS Mediterranean trade: from the 11th century BC The Phoenicians inhabit the region of modern Lebanon and Syria from about 3000 BC (see Palestine and Phoenicia). They become the greatest traders and the best sailors and navigators of the pre-classical world. An Egyptian narrative of about 1080 BC, the Story of Wen-Amen, provides an insight into the scale of this activity. The most prosperous period for Phoenicia is the 10th century BC, when the surrounding region is stable. For Solomon's great Temple in Jerusalem Hiram provides skilled craftsmen and materials - particularly timber, including cedar from the forests of Lebanon. Phoenicia is famous for its luxury goods. These are only the products which the Phoenicians export. The phonetic alphabet: from the 2nd millennium BC The extensive trade of Phoenicia requires much book-keeping and correspondence, and it is in the field of writing that the Phoenicians make their most lasting contribution to world history. Dido's city: 814 BC
Unearthing the Mayan Creation Myth Archaeologists who have uncovered two massive carved stucco panels in the Mirador Basin of Guatemala’s northern rain forest say they are the earliest known representation of the Mayan creation myth, predating other such artifacts by a millennium. According to the researchers, the panels—26 feet long and 20 feet high, with images of monsters, gods, and swimming heroes—date to 300 B.C. They formed the sides of a channel that carried rainwater into a complex system of stepped pools, where it was stored for drinking and agriculture. Idaho State University archaeologist Richard Hansen, who is directing the ongoing excavation, says that the panels’ carved images depict an important scene from the Popol Vuh, a text of the Mayan myth that was first recorded in the 16th century. Some historians dismiss the Popol Vuh as a contaminated document, containing not only ancient Mayan mythology but also contemporary Spanish Catholic influences.
Mayan Family The five subfamilies of Mayan languages are: There are numerous ruins of the ancient Mayan civilization in the states of Chiapas and Yucatan, as well as in Guatemala. These archeological sites and the artifacts discovered in them display a highly developed aesthetic sense—in stone sculpture, ceramic work, the casting of precious metals, mosaics, and the carving of crystal and jade—all of these produced without metal tools. The Mayas had invented the abstract symbol of zero to simplify mathematics long before it was in use in Europe, and the Mayan calendar was older and more efficient than the Julian calendar that was in use by the Spaniards who conquered Mexico. In the 1950s one could distinguish what area people came from by the distinctive clothing of both men and women. Now many are buying clothing in stores, especially the men. Typical Mayan diet consists of corn (maize), beans and squash. One distinctive characteristic of Mayan languages is their use of glottalized consonants.
Phoenicia Phoenicia was an ancient civilization composed of independent city-states which lay along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea stretching through what is now Syria, Lebannon and northern Israel. The Phoenicians were a great maritime people, known for their mighty ships adorned with horses’ heads in honor of their god of the sea, Yamm, the brother of Mot, the god of death. The island city of Tyre and the city of Sidon were the most powerful states in Phoenicia with Gebal/Byblos and Baalbek as the most important spiritual/religious centers. Phoenician city-states began to take form c. 3200 BCE and were firmly established by c. 2750 BCE. The Purple People The city-states of Phoenicia flourished through maritime trade between c. 1500-322 BCE. Middlemen of the Ancient World The Phoenicians were primarily known as sailors who had developed a high level of skill in ship-building and were able to navigate the often turbulent waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Sidon & Tyre
History - Ancient History in depth: The Fall of the Mayan Civilisation Intense droughts blamed for Mayan collapse - 13 March 2003 The Mayan civilisation of Central America collapsed following a series of intense droughts, suggests the most detailed climatic study to date. The sophisticated society of the Maya centred on large cities on the Yucatán peninsula, now part of Mexico. Their population peaked at 15 million in the 8th century, but the civilisation largely collapsed during the 9th century for reasons that have remained unclear to this day. Now, researchers studying sediment cores drilled from the Cariaco Basin, off northern Venezuela, have identified three periods of intense drought that occurred at 810, 860 and 910AD. These dates correspond to the three phases of Mayan collapse, the scientists say. Furthermore, the entire 9th century suffered below average rainfall, "so it was a dry period with three intense droughts", says Gerald Haug, from ETH in Zurich, Switzerland, who led the research. Experts on the Maya have greeted the new data cautiously. Wet and dry Latest and greatest More From New Scientist
The Phoenicians (1500–300 B.C.) According to ancient classical authors, the Phoenicians were a people who occupied the coast of the Levant (eastern Mediterranean). Their major cities were Tyre, Sidon, Byblos, and Arwad. All were fiercely independent, rival cities and, unlike the neighboring inland states, the Phoenicians represented a confederation of maritime traders rather than a defined country. With the exception of Byblos, which had been a flourishing center from at least the third millennium B.C., the Phoenician cities first emerged as urban entities around 1500 B.C. By the late eighth century B.C., the Phoenicians, alongside the Greeks, had founded trading posts around the entire Mediterranean and excavations of many of these centers have added significantly to our understanding of Phoenician culture. The main natural resources of the Phoenician cities in the eastern Mediterranean were the prized cedars of Lebanon and murex shells used to make the purple dye.
Climate Change Killed off Maya Civilization, Study Says The drought theory is still controversial among some archeologists who believe a combination of overpopulation, an internecine struggle for control among the nobles, a weak economic base, and a political system that didn't foster power-sharing led to the Maya's collapse. One hypothesis suggests the Maya people themselves were responsible for their downfall as a result of environmental degradation, including deforestation. Defenders of the climate change theory, however, say the droughts sparked a chain of events that led to the demise of the Maya. Living on the Edge In their twilight days, the Maya were a society in deep trouble, according to the authors of the new study. While the Maya had learned to live with shorter droughts, the study indicates that a more subtle, long-term drying trend was ongoing during the collapse. "Not only did the Maya have to face an intense climatic catastrophe, but the duration was something that they had never experienced before," said Hoag.
Mayan Civilization City of Copan, Honduras Copán, called Xukpi by its residents, rises out of the mist of western Honduras, in a pocket of alluvial soil amid rugged topography. It is arguably one of the most important royal sites of the Maya civilization. Occupied between AD 400 and 800, Copán covers over 50 acres of temples, altars, stelae, ball courts, several plazas and the magnificent Hieroglyphic Stairway. The culture of Copán was rich in written documentation, today including detailed sculptural inscriptions, which is very rare in precolumbian sites. Sadly, many of the books--and there were books written by the Maya, called codices--were destroyed by the priests of the Spanish invasion. Explorers of Copán The reason we know so much of the inhabitants of the site of Copán is the result of five hundred years of exploration and study, beginning with Diego García de Palacio who visited the site in 1576. Translating Copan Daily Life at Copan Copán and the Maya Collapse Sources
Phoenicians The Phoenicians were the direct descendents of the Canaanites of the south Syrian and Lebanese coast who, at the end of the second millennium BC, became isolated by population and political changes in the regions surrounding them. The name derives from the Greek, Phoinikes, referring to the purple coloured dye which the Phoenicians extracted from the murex shell, and with which they produced highly prized textiles. The major Phoenician cities were Tyre, Sidon, Byblos and Arwad. These cities represented a confederation of fiercely independent maritime traders. Phoenician craftsmen and artists perpetuated the purest ideals of their Canaanite ancestors into the first millennium and transmitted them throughout the Mediterranean world. Image caption: Ivory plaque depicting a winged sphinx Phoenician, 9th-8th century BC.