Civilzations of the Americas

Before the Europeans reached meso-america, there were three great empires. They are the Mayans, the Aztecs, and the Incas. These early civilizations took up most of Central America and part of South America. Although, through the perspective of the Europeans the meso-americans were described as weak and uncivilized because of their appearance compared to them. However, the meso-americans were advanced in their own ways such as adapting to their geography, astronomy, and agriculture.

Meso-american civilizations were advanced prior to European contact in ways such as adapting to their geography. One example includes the Incas terrace farming. The purpose for this method is to collect rainwater because the Incas lived in mountainous regions such as the Andes Mountains. Terrace farming is when there are ridges cut into a mountain that resemble steps. It was a type of irrigation system that helped grow crops as well. Another example of how these early civilizations adapted to their environment is the Aztecs way of expanding land. When the Aztecs had run out of space to plant crops, they created artificial islands called chinampas, or Aztec gardens. Chinampas are large islands that are made up of matted weds, covered with mud, brought up from the lake floor, and then anchored to the bottom of the lake by growing weeds. Their purpose was to create more useable space for planting crops. The Mayans adapted to their environment through their slash and burn technique, terrace farming, and raised field farming. The Mayans carried out this technique by cutting down and burning trees, but this method exhausted the soil within two to three years. However, adapting to geography isn’t the only thing the meso-american civilizations were adv...

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...able land was being used up. The Incas agricultural advancement was terrace farming. Farmers expanded these step terraces that were built by earlier people. On steep hills, strips of land were carved out so it could be held in place by stone walls. The terraces that were created prevented the rain from washing away the soil as well as the crops that were planted. It made possible for farming to be done in area where there was little to no flat land at all. The Inca government took control over these harvests, spreading it to people evenly storing the rest for later purposes.

To conclude, the Mayan, Aztec, and Inca civilizations were greatly advanced in their own way before coming into contact with the Europeans. They were advanced in astronomy, agriculture, and adaptation to their geography. Such that they were equally knowledgeable in astronomy with the Europeans.