MESOAMERICA: CHARACTERISTICS, CLIMATE, ECONOMY, RELIEF - HISTORY - 2025

Mesoamerica is a cultural and geographic area that extends from the southern half of Mexico to Central America; Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, and western Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. The term Mesoamerica is derived from the Greek (meso, half), and means "half of America." It was first used by German-Mexican archaeologist Paul Kirchoff, who coined the term in 1943.

Some of the most important ancient civilizations lived in this area: Aztecs, Olmecs, Mayans, Zapotecs, and Teotihuacanos. They developed complex societies, with art and technologies developed. Each culture had its peculiarities, although they had some characteristics in common: a diet based on corn, beans and squash, myths of their similar origins, a calendar, writing system, human sacrifices, among others.

The history of Mesoamerica can be divided into three major periods: Pre-Classic Period (1500 BC - 200 AD), Classic Period (200-900) and Postclassic Period (900-Conquest of America).

Characteristics of Mesoamerica

Location

Map of Mesoamerican cultures

Mesoamerica extends from the southern part of Mexico to Central America, occupying present-day Guatemala, El Salvador, Belize, and western Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

Sciences

The sciences found a particular development in the civilizations of Mesoamerica.

Medicine, for example, developed in two ways: magical (shamanic) and pragmatic (naturalistic).

The shaman was the priest and healer of the communities. Their treatments included tobacco or beans, and incantations or offerings, to attend to "diseases of the soul."

On the other hand, other healers who did not have the hierarchy of the shaman, also healed but with more practical methods to treat wounds, fractures and even childbirth. They used plants for the preparation of the "medicines" that they applied.

Polytheistic religion

Mesoamerican cultures had many gods, all associated with the nature that surrounded them and that they knew about.

Their first gods were related to the natural elements: fire, earth, water and animals. Then they incorporated astral divinities: sun, moon, constellations and other planets.

The qualities of those gods changed with time and the cultural influence of other groups. The hallmark of their religion was the dualism between the divinities.

Human sacrifices

Another characteristic feature of the Mesoamerican peoples was the act of sacrificing people as an offering to the gods.

This was an act with religious significance, but also political, because it was believed that with them the cosmic energy is renewed and at the same time the established divine order is maintained.

The vital power that they attributed to the blood, made them believe that by spilling it they revitalized the gods, the earth, the flora and the fauna.

Writing

Writing also flourished in these civilizations and was studied in 1566 by a Spanish bishop, Diego de Landa, who described the Mayan calendar with drawings included.

In fact, scholars consider dates to be the easiest glyphs to identify in stone inscriptions, because of the "bars and dots" used as numerical symbols.

In the early days of these studies, it was believed that glyphs that did not refer to dates were simply literal descriptions of gods or animals, for example.

But this gave such a mystical hue to these writings that it was difficult to study them until in 1960 a Harvard University professor, Tatiana Proskouriakoff, discovered the biographical character of some inscriptions at the Mayan site of Piedras Negras.

Later, the incorporation of new scientists and new findings gave rise to a strong movement to decipher the Mayan hieroglyphs that was later classified as ideographic.

That rating meant that they drew symbols to represent ideas. Later they also discovered the Zapotec script, which turned out to be older than the Mayan, by at least three centuries.

Likewise, an Olmec writing system with glyphs dating from 650 BC was found.

The characteristics common to these writing systems in Mesoamerica were:

• Combination of pictography and phonetic elements
• Using a 260-day calendar
• Connection of writing, calendar and reigns.

Using calendars

In Mesoamerica two calendars were used:

• A 365-day solar calendar
• A 260-day ritual or prophecy calendar

These calendars were used to decipher and indicate divine prophecies and to record historical dates. They were also used to commemorate births, marriages, deaths, and anniversaries.

The 260-day calendar began to be used in 1200 BC and also indicated the best dates for cultivation.

Social division

The prevailing social division in Mesoamerica placed priests and warriors at the top of the social pyramid. The artisans and peasants were in a lower stratum.

The fixed settlements became more complex and showed the prevailing social division:

• Priests
• Warriors
• Nobles
• Craftsmen
• Merchants
• Farmers

Architecture

In Mesoamerica, the development of medicine and agriculture favored the increase in population and this made the need to take advantage of water urgent, so they began to build ingenious ways of doing it.

Religion also led them to build huge and complex buildings in honor of their gods. Cities were also shaped in ways comparable to other great civilizations in the world.

Nahualism

Nahualism was a common practice in these towns and consisted of covering themselves with an animal aspect.

This act represented the capacity of incarnation in animal of man, and vice versa. But they also wanted to express their belief that you can be man and animal at the same time.

There are many samples of Nahualism in pre-Hispanic art, but in all of them a sample of the man-animal relationship predominates.

Economy

Due to the diversity and richness of the lands that make up this area, agriculture was the main engine of its development. A very distinctive feature was the creation (domestication), cultivation and marketing of corn.

In fact, corn was the basis of the diet of the inhabitants of this territory during pre-Hispanic times.

The discovery that corn had its origin in Mesoamerica is due to the research work of Richard MacNeish. The cultivation of this cereal brought with it the development of technologies related to sowing techniques and the nixtamalization process.

Likewise, it was related to the religious beliefs of these peoples and their mythology. In Mesoamerican legends, human beings were made of corn. There were also corn gods.

Yucca is another protagonist of the diet of these cultures, especially of the Mayan groups and the settlers of southern Mesoamerica in towns with a high concentration of people such as Tikal, Copán and Calakmul, for example.

Cocoa also fed these towns, along with squash, chili, and beans.

The intensification of agriculture allowed them to produce food surpluses that helped them survive periods of drought and also motivated their sedentary lifestyle.

Weather

The climate of Mesoamerica is characterized by being quite varied, as a consequence of its also varied relief.

In this region of the planet the tropical climate predominates; however, in the central and northern areas a warmer and more temperate climate with some humidity can be observed. Likewise, towards the Yucatan peninsula there is a much hotter climate.

An example of this diversity of climates in Mesoamerica is in the highest areas, made up of mountain formations that exceed 1000 meters above sea level.

In these areas it is possible to find spaces in which there is constant rain and the climate is considered pleasant, as is the case on the eastern side of the Citlaltépetl volcano. In contrast, on the west side of the same volcano is a much more arid area, with very little rainfall.

Variation according to the area

The north of Mesoamerica has a greater tendency to the aridity of the territory. On the other hand, the highest altitude area in Mexico (the Toluca Valley) has rains and a fairly cold climate.

Likewise, the central highlands of the territory are characterized by having a temperate climate and the Gulf and Mayan areas have the particularity of having a tropical climate. In these last two areas the rains appear at a certain time of the year.

In relation to the Mayan area, its great extension makes it possible for various types of climates to occur there. That is why, in addition to the typical tropical climate of the region (especially in the lowlands), the highlands can be found rather between temperate and cold.

The area located at the height of the Oaxaca region is quite wide, so its climate is also varied and includes temperate areas (where there are usually more rainy scenarios), semi-arid and warm. Despite these rains that can be found in this region, it can be said that in general there is very little precipitation.

Towards the west of Mexico the climate is more tropical, especially near the coasts. In the areas furthest from the coast the climate changes and is characterized by being more semi-arid and temperate, where it rains especially during the summer.

Relief

Like its climatic characteristics, the relief of Mesoamerica is extremely varied. This region presents many different types of relief, ranging from the great mountain systems located in the highlands, to the valleys and plains that are characterized rather by the so-called low forests.

High areas

In the upper part of Mesoamerica, the mountain ranges are emblematic, which make up a fundamental part of the landscape of this region. Among these formations, the Sierra Madre Occidental stands out, which ranges from Sonora to the state of Jalisco.

For its part, the Sierra Madre Oriental ranges from the Rio Grande (in northern Mexico), coinciding with the Gulf of Mexico, until it meets the Neovolcanic Axis, another great formation of volcanoes that is also characteristic of Mesoamerica.

The Sierra Madre del Sur is also part of this region, which can be found along the coast adjacent to the Pacific Ocean.

Towards the east of Mesoamerica it is possible to find several representative formations. One of these is the Central American mountain range, which is a continuation of the Sierra Madre del Sur.

The Sierra Madre de Chiapas is the highest elevation of this mountain range, and covers the southeastern zone of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and a portion of the territory of Honduras.

In Belize you can find another characteristic formation of Mesoamerica: it is the Mayan mountains or the Mayan mountains. Despite its small size compared to the other mountain formations, this area is home to great cultural value due to the fact that countless very important archaeological sites have been found.

In Nicaragua begins the volcanic mountain range, another important elevation, which extends to Costa Rica.

Low areas

Within this category are included those foothills that are below 1000 meters above sea level. Likewise, the plains found in the coastal area are also considered.

One of the most representative formations in this area is the Tabasco plain, where the most important hydrological basin in Mexico is located. This basin is made up of two rivers: the Usumacinta and the Grijalva.

This line includes the Sierra de Santa Martha, also known as Sierra de Los Tuxtlas, which is a volcanic mountain range located in Veracruz.

The popular Yucatan peninsula is part of this area and is characterized by being a plain located a few meters above sea level.

Mesoamerican cultures

See main article: The 6 Most Important Mesoamerican Cultures.

Cultural regions of Mesoamerica

See main article: The 6 Most Important Mesoamerican Cultural Regions.

Fauna and Flora

See main article: Fauna and flora of Mesoamerica.

References

1. Mexican archeology. Mesoamerica. Recovered from: arqueologiamexicana.mx
2. Encyclopedia Britannica (s / f). Mesoamerican civilization. Recovered from: britannica.com
3. Gascoigne, Bamber. History of Mesoamerica. HistoryWorld from 2001, ongoing. Recovered from: net
4. Pohl, John (s / f). Art and Writing in Ancient Mesoamerica Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies Inc. Retrieved from: famsi.org
5. Autonomous University of Mexico. Cultural zones: Mesoamerica. Recovered from: portalacademico.cch.unam.mx
6. Webster, David and others (s / f). Mesoamerican. Recovered from: anth.la.psu.edu.