REORG - Globalizing Cultures and Language - Western Hemisphere (Lesson)

Globalizing Cultures and Language - Western Hemisphere

Western Hemisphere

Map of Western HemisphereSpeaking of culture, trade or conquest uniting a people—lets hop over the ocean to see what was happening in the Western Hemisphere during the early Common Era. Once again, we see culture as a universalizing force rather than government and we see new civilizations emerging based on the lessons of the past. Lets start by looking at modern-day Peru. One of the first major cultures located in the Peruvian Andes Mountains region was the Chavin Culture—they existed roughly from 900 to 250 BCE.

They were the forerunners for the Paracas, the Moche and the Nazca peoples that followed and flourished in smaller coastal societies up to about 400-800 CE. Each of these peoples left behind evidence of their cultures that united them.

For the Paracas, we know that they were talented weavers and embroiderers as the cloaks they wrapped around mummified bodies preserved their artwork for archeologists to uncover. For the Nazca, we know that they created irrigation systems for vast grain production. But both left behind mysterious geoglyphs (a large design or drawing created on the surface of the earth) of which archaeologists and historians still do not understand the purpose.

The Candelabro de Paracas This is the Paracas Candelabra still located on the Paracas Peninsula in modern-day Peru. While archaeologists are still not sure wheter or not the Paracas people created this geoglyph, they have found pottery nearby that dates to when the Paracas people lived which suggests they are the creators. However, archaeologists still do not know why the Paracas Candelabra exists - was it to guide sailors to shore? was it an icongraphy of the Mesoamerican World tree (which implies contact with that region?) - or is it a trident used by their god Viracocha? We may never know the answer to thisNazca Lines and Spider Over an area of 170 square miles, the Nazca people "drew" lines in the desert by removing the pebbles on the surface to expose a different colored clay layer beneath. In some places depictions of animals and people are drawn within geometric lines. The lines weren't discovered until the early 20th century by hikers in the nearby hills and pilots flying over the region found them. Once again, the purpose for these lines remains a mystery

Of these civilizations, though, the one that developed the most was the Moche in northern Peru. Once again, though, we see a group of people uniting—not under one government or empire—but under a common culture exemplified in their religion and architecture. The Moche peoples built their cities as administrative and religious centers, but they were separate societies or political entities. What united them was their culture. They made some of the most unique ceramics found anywhere in the world for that time period—they practiced polytheism with a particular emphasis on the spider god and human sacrifice—and they were particularly sophisticated with a social structure that shared the concept of elitism. Below is a picture of an example of mummified remains from a royal tomb located in Sipán (one of the Moche's main cities) that illustrates the importance of the elite for the Moche both in their world and in the afterworld. While the people of South America were more advanced in their metallurgy and did leave behind some great mysteries to argue over- the most powerful of the civilizations at this time in the Western Hemisphere was the Mayan Civilization to the north in Mesoamerica.

Recreation of the Tomb of Lord Sipan

As mentioned in the previous module, the Mayans appeared as a culture in 300 BCE, but it took hundreds of years for them to reach civilization status. The Mayans really flourished as a civilization from 250 CE to the 8th Century CE. Unlike the Moche to the south, the Mayans did not live in great cities though—their climate was a rougher one to live in and susceptible to hurricanes. Instead, they built thousands of villages (better suited for the climate) Collage of Palenquethat spanned from modern-day southern Mexico to western El Salvador. These villages shared a common language and political/social structure. While the climate wasn't suitable to host a large population within one center, the Mayans did construct political and religious centers. These sites weren't huge but were extraordinary in their construction- as seen in this collage of Palenque showing the palace, temple and other buildings. In these small cities, like Palenque, the political and religious elite lived—sustained by tributes from the outer villages. Mayan rulers claimed their thrones through their family lineages that reached back to their gods. As such, these rulers were tasked with performing the religious rituals required to prove their lineage and appease the gods as well as ruling their kingdoms.  

As the Mayans shared a common language, they also shared a writing system. It was the duty of the scribes to record histories and narratives of the Mayans and their rulers as a means of uniting the people. The Mayans also had skilled mathematicians who worked out a calendar that guided agricultural planning and religious rituals. Their architects and engineers built grand monuments as a sign of the Mayan rulers' power and favor with the gods—one such temple in Tikal is actually forty feet higher than the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. But, perhaps, what the Mayans were most obsessed with was spilling blood—seen through their frequent warfare and bloodletting rituals. Both commoners and elites practiced these bloodletting rituals as testament of their loyalty to their rulers and their gods. Often the kingdoms of the Mayans would go to war with each other to capture future sacrifices for these rituals as well.

Perhaps it was this culture of violence that led to the demise of the Mayan Civilization. Beginning in the 4th Century CE, internal warfare between the kingdoms led to devastating collisions between the Mayan kingdoms. With each new conflict, the different groups of Mayans would gather together larger armies with deadlier results and costlier neglect of crops and culture. Or perhaps the demise of their civilization came from disease or natural disasters. Either way, after centuries of misery, the Mayans began to abandon their villages and cultural hearths—by the 9th Century CE, the Mayan Civilization was gone.

Photograph of TeotihuacanWhile the Mayans did not build great cities, other Mesoamericans did. One such example is the city of Teotihuacán located in a valley of the central plateau in modern-day Mexico. Unlike the homeland of the Mayans, this region was fertile and hospitable and invited thousands to settle together there. The city-state of Teotihuacán began in the area where the Olmecs once lived and by 300 CE controlled the entire Valley of Mexico (where modern-day Mexico City is located.) Teotihuacán was approximately the sixth largest city in the world during this era—but its power was contained within the Valley of Mexico. However, for those it dominated, Teotihuacán was supreme with demands for tributes, gifts and humans for sacrificial rites.

The name of Teotihuacán came from later Aztecs, who rediscovered the city well after its collapse in the mid-6th Century CE, and mean birthplace of the gods. Indeed, its grand temples and wide avenues suggest a highly religious purpose to its construction—but it also served as a hub for residences and work as can be seen in this layout of the city.

Based on these examples from Mesoamerica, South America, Africa and the Indian Subcontinent, you can now see how influential social institutions were in bringing people together around the world and helping them to reorganize their societies at the start of the Common Era. While none of these places had a globalizing empire between 0 and 600 CE, they were developing the groundwork for the future.

But there is still one more social institution that we need to examine before we leave the subject of the Reorganization of Human Societies—we'll tackle that in the next lesson.

 

 

Recap Section

Watch the video below to review.

Western Hemisphere Societies South America - Paracas, Chavin -Nazca Moche Coastal Societies (modern day Peru) Paracas & Nazca - geoglyphs Moche - cities Mesoamerica - Mayans - climate influenced settlement size, some cities with elaborate monuments, divided into kingdoms, common language, flourished 3rd-8th centuries ce (modern day Mexico to El Salvador) Teotihuacan - perhaps the 6th largest city-state in the world at that time (near modern day Mexico City)

RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.