CHAPTER 6—THE AMERICAS
1. How and when do scholars now think that the first people came to the New World? To what degree are places, times and peoples now firmly determined? Cite evidence to support your conclusions.
2. "Olmec civilization was the prototype for all later Mesoamerican civilizations." Discuss, pro and con.
3. Why, and why then, were the Aztecs able to create and rule an empire where they did? What were the most important factors helping them to do so?
4. What environmental effects contributed to the decline of ancient American civilizations? Discuss.
5. Compare and contrast the development of the Aztec empire with that of the Roman Empire. What are the similarities and what are the differences?
6. Discuss the political, social, and cultural structures of the Inka. How did these factors help or hinder them when they encountered the Spanish invaders?
7. What were the strengths and what were the weaknesses of the Aztec and Inkan civilizations on the eve of their encounter with European societies?
8. Give examples of some of the New World societies that had not reached the state-building stage by the 1500s. How likely were they to have done so if outside peoples had not taken over their territories? Why or why not?
9. "Geography determines history." Discuss, giving examples from the societies of the Western Hemisphere.
10. What were some of the elements that the Western Hemisphere lacked that would have made state building quicker and more complete? Why?
11. "The lack of extensive written records has seriously inhibited extensive knowledge of New World societies." Discuss, pro and con, with examples.
12. What role did the concept of virginity play in Inka society and what can it tell us about the status of women among the Inka?
13. What was the purpose of pyramids in Mesoamerican cultures and how does this compare to other societies known for pyramid construction?
SHORT ANSWER
Instructions: Identify the following term(s).
14. Bering Strait
15. Tehuacan Valley
16. Yucatan Peninsula
17. Carthaginians, Lost Tribes of Israel, and Atlantis
18. Mesoamerica
19. San Lorenzo and La Venta
20. Monte Alban
21. Olmec
22. rubber
23. Zapotec
24. Teotihuacán
25. Pyramid of the Sun
26. obsidian
27. pulque
28. cacao
29. Valley of Mexico
30. chinampas
31. Itzamna
32. ball courts/game
33. Mayan hieroglyphs
34. Mayan Long Count
35. Tikal, Palenque, Uxmal and Chichen Itza
36. Toltecs
37. Mexica
38. Aztlan and Aztec
39. Lake Texcoco
40. Tenochtitlán
41. calpulli
42. Quetzalcoatl and Huitzilopochtli
43. Monte Verde
44. Caral
45. Chavin de Huantar
46. Andes Mountains
47. Moche
48. kingdom of Chimor
49. El Nino
50. Cuzco and Machu Picchu
51. Pachakuti/Pachacutec
52. the Inka
53. Pachakuti, Topa Inka, and Huayna Inka
54. quipu
55. Mesoamerican Pyramids
56. Blood-letting rituals
57. Virgins with red cheeks
58. Amazon River
59. Amerindians
60. Hopewell Culture and Cahokia
61. the Anasazi peoples
62. Pueblo Bonito/Chaco Canyon
63. Mesa Verde
64. Apache and Navajo
65. Arawak
66. Amazonia
MULTIPLE CHOICE
67. In the aftermath of Columbus and voyages of encounter, Europeans believed the first humans in the Americas might have been
a.
Chinese pirates.
b.
the lost tribes of Axum.
c.
Phoenician seafarers from Carthage.
d.
Mongol tribesmen.
e.
ancient Sumerians.
ANS: C REF: p. 145
68. Currently available evidence has shown the first humans in the Americas
a.
arrived at least 15,000 years ago.
b.
came at least 725,000 years ago.
c.
arrived, according to genetic evidence, from Antarctica in 7219 B.C.E.
d.
came from the island of Honshu during the Egyptian Middle Kingdom.
e.
came from Polynesia approximately 1000 C.E.
ANS: A REF: p. 145
69. The first civilization in Mesoamerica was the
a.
Toltec.
b.
Olmec.
c.
Maya.
d.
Aztec.
e.
Moche.
ANS: B REF: p. 145
70. Archeologists call the region in which the first New World civilizations began
a.
Mexico.
b.
Central America.
c.
Mesoamerica.
d.
South America.
e.
the Amazon basin.
ANS: C REF: p. 145
71. Which of the following is not true of the Olmec culture?
a.
Its La Venta pyramid was the largest structure of it type for its era.
b.
It created a writing system of some sort.
c.
It developed in the high, mountainous areas of central Mexico.
d.
It produced many stone carvings, tools, and monuments.
e.
It did not develop the wheel or have horses.
ANS: C REF: p. 145
72. Which civilization lived in terraces cut out of a mountainside located in the central Mexican highlands?
a.
Chavin
b.
Olmec
c.
Zapotec
d.
Inka
e.
Maya
ANS: C REF: p. 146
73. Which of the following was true about Teotihuacán?
a.
It did not engage in trade because of its infertile lands.
b.
It produced great industrial structures.
c.
It met its demise due to unexplained reasons.
d.
It was conquered by the Maya.
e.
It left no historical records.
ANS: C REF: p. 147
74. Pyramids symbolizing a link between the natural and supernatural realms were characteristic of
a.
Egypt.
b.
Central Mexico.
c.
Parts of Asia.
d.
Africa.
e.
A, B, and C.
ANS: E REF: p. 147
75. Mayan civilization
a.
had such a sophisticated religious system that it was adopted by the Spanish invaders.
b.
may have been composed of approximately thirty million people at its height.
c.
was located in the northern part of the Valley of Mexico.
d.
was never wealthy.
e.
declined in the eighth or ninth centuries C.E.
ANS: E REF: p. 152
76. The chinampas
a.
were agricultural plots built on swampy islands.
b.
were built to maintain industrial production.
c.
provided farmers with a means of growing waterfowl for export to South America.
d.
were to be found only in the semi-arid areas of northern Mesoamerica.
e.
were part of Inka religious culture.
ANS: A REF: p. 147
77. The civilization of the Maya developed in
a.
the Valley of Mexico.
b.
Pacific coastal region of northern Mexico.
c.
mountainous areas of Nicaragua and Honduras.
d.
Guatemala and the Yucatan Peninsula.
e.
the Montenegran Plateau.
ANS: D REF: p. 148
78. The two commodities that enabled the Maya to develop trade relations with other civilizations in its region were
a.
cotton and silver.
b.
yams and manioc.
c.
obsidian and cacao trees.
d.
gold and silver.
e.
manioc and turpentine.
ANS: C REF: p. 148
79. The famous Mesoamerican ball games
a.
have been found to have had no religious significance.
b.
resulted in sacrificing the losing team to the gods.
c.
are no longer played today.
d.
were played in octagonal stadiums.
e.
were played mostly by women.
ANS: B REF: p. 149
80. In which areas were the Mayan and Aztec civilizations similar?
a.
They both practiced human sacrifice.
b.
Both had religious practices and beliefs brought from Asia in the eleventh century.
c.
Both used sophisticated alphabets with thirty-nine letters.
d.
They were both seafaring societies.
e.
Volcanic eruptions destroyed both civilizations.
ANS: A REF: p. 149 | p. 155
81. What was the language of the ancient Maya called?
a.
Yaxchilian
b.
Popul Vuh
c.
Quiche
d.
Khoisan
e.
Moche
ANS: C REF: p. 150
82. Who were the only Mesoamerican people to devise a complete written language?
a.
Olmec
b.
Aztec
c.
Maya
d.
Toltec
e.
Moche
ANS: C REF: p. 151
83. Mayan pyramids
a.
contained the bodies of rulers.
b.
were the seats of political power.
c.
housed a sequestered priest cast.
d.
did not exist.
e.
had no significant.
ANS: A REF: p. 152
84. The ancient Aztec capital
a.
was built on the ruins of Teotihuacan.
b.
occupied the same site as modern-day Mexico City.
c.
was a coastal city and a significant port.
d.
was situated on the Yucatan Peninsula.
e.
None of the above.
ANS: B REF: p. 153
85. Which of the following statements is the most accurate depiction of the Aztec Empire?
a.
It was a highly centralized, tightly administered monarchy developed through military conquest.
b.
It was a confederation of localities linked by a feudal allegiance system in which a central ruler controlled an empire developed through military conquest.
c.
It was a highly centralized maritime society that had evolved from a foundation of intense religious piety.
d.
It was followed by the Mayan civilization.
e.
Human sacrifice was abolished by Montezuma.
ANS: B REF: p. 153-154
86. The Aztec capital was
a.
Tenochtitlán.
b.
Huitzilopochtli.
c.
Texcoco.
d.
Mexica.
e.
Zapotec.
ANS: A REF: p. 143
87. As the guiding deity of the entire population, the supreme Aztec god was
a.
Huitzilopochtli.
b.
Tlaloc.
c.
Ometeotl.
d.
Quetzalcoatl.
e.
Machu Pirado.
ANS: A REF: p. 153
88. Most of the Aztec population belonged to large kinship groups called
a.
texcocos.
b.
chinampas.
c.
calpulli.
d.
quipu.
e.
jatis.
ANS: C REF: p. 154
89. Which of the following best describes social and gender roles in the Aztec culture?
a.
The majority of the population were slaves.
b.
There were clear-cut differences between the responsibilities and duties of males and females.
c.
Women had fewer rights and freedoms than their Chinese counterparts.
d.
Opportunities for rising in social status were nonexistent.
e.
All men were freemen but most women were only slaves.
ANS: B REF: p. 154
90. What was an important item sold in Aztec markets that would not have been found for sale in European or Asian markets?
a.
human skin
b.
human hair
c.
human bones
d.
human excrement
ANS: D REF: p. 155
91. Which of the following gods retained a higher level of cognizance in the Aztec psyche than most of their other gods, due primarily to its tenth-century departure from the Valley of Mexico and promised future victorious return?
a.
Siva
b.
Tlaloc
c.
Quetzalcoatl
d.
Huitzilopochtli
e.
Ometeotl
ANS: C REF: p. 155-156
92. Aztec cosmology
a.
reveals a totally unique approach to religious belief.
b.
provides the basic format for all monotheistic practices.
c.
assumed the existence of divine and material worlds.
d.
was copied from that of the Anasazi.
e.
Held that the ultimate reality was the destruction of the individual soul.
ANS: C REF: p. 155-156
93. Aztec religion
a.
preached the ideas of sexual equality and social apathy.
b.
was monotheistic after the departure of Isoldia.
c.
employed human ritual sacrifices, often involving large numbers of victims.
d.
stressed the importance of free will.
e.
influenced Spanish Christianity.
ANS: C REF: p. 155
94. Aztec writing
a.
was phonetic.
b.
may have been the result of contact with traders from the Aleutians.
c.
resembled ancient Greek in its organization.
d.
was copied from Egyptian hieroglyphics.
e.
was based upon hieroglyphs that represented an object or concept.
ANS: E REF: p. 156
95. What was the purpose of the human sacrifices practiced by the Aztecs?
a.
To obtain the atman of the victim.
b.
To appease Huitzilopochtli, and thus delay the ultimate destruction of their world.
c.
To insure an abundant harvest.
d.
To insure long life for the emperor.
e.
To provide victims for the ball court games.
ANS: B REF: p. 156
96. Aztec society
a.
focused its religious interest on "the holy one," Huitzilopochtli, the only god in the monotheistic Aztec system of religious belief.
b.
did not possess a writing system, although it did develop hieroglyphs.
c.
dedicated the sacred precinct in central Tenochtitlán to the rain god, Shiva, and to Huitzilopochtli.
d.
did not sharply delineate gender roles.
e.
was egalitarian in theory but hierarchical in practice.
ANS: B REF: p. 156
97. The reason for the decline of Mayan civilization was
a.
due to the arrival of hostile Viking adventurers in the ninth century C.E.
b.
a volcanic eruption.
c.
an internal revolt.
d.
an external invasion.
e.
probably the result of multiple causes.
ANS: E REF: p. 152-153
98. All of the following statements are true about Mayan religion except
a.
its views about reincarnation resembled those of Buddhism.
b.
it engaged in human sacrifice.
c.
its deities shared traits with the gods of neighboring peoples.
d.
some of its gods had negative, rather than positive, aspects.
e.
like the Aztec religion, it was polytheistic.
ANS: A REF: p. 149
99. South America
a.
was the original home of the Maya.
b.
contained societies practicing irrigated farming approximately eleven thousand years ago.
c.
has had human inhabitants for more than twelve thousand years.
d.
was populated only as recently as 500 C.E.
e.
was colonized from Africa rather than Asia.
ANS: C REF: p. 157
100. The Moche culture
a.
was ended by a devastating pandemic of the Black Death.
b.
was located in a rain forest.
c.
may have been ended by environmental changes.
d.
was pacifistic, perhaps the major cause of its long existence.
e.
was destroyed by the Aztecs.
ANS: C REF: p. 158
101. Which of the following lesser-known peoples created the most extensive land empire yet seen in South America?
a.
Moche
b.
Wari
c.
Chan Chan
d.
Olmec
e.
Toltec
ANS: B REF: p. 159