The Mayan Civilization History Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

In the 17th century, the kingdom dubbed the Mayan society comprised of influential cities that covered both north of Honduras and south of Mexico. The states housed several inhabitants governed by powerful leaders who controlled the mighty militaries. The influential leaders proclaimed to have come from the heavenly bodies such as the planets and stars (Holm, 2012).

The beliefs of the Mayan society reached its apex in 800 AD before finally collapsing and disappearing. The apex was marked by successful long-distance trade, the celebration of influential leaders’ achievements through making stone curves and lining up of huge temples. Besides, given that the Mayan emerged from Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula’s rainforest, the civilization was densely populated and proved to be a sophisticated society in that era (Fash, 2014).

According to Peterson and Haug (2005), in 950 AD, the society was reported to have mysteriously disappeared. The famous states appeared to be ruined and were reclaimed by the rainforests. The abrupt disappearance of this civilization remains a mystery, but most scholars have constructed theories to explain what could have occurred to the once flourishing Mayan society.

Theories explaining the Mayan disappearance

The starvation theory

The Mayan society comprised of agriculturalists who produced food to feed the population (Peterson & Haug, 2005). The agricultural land was made ready for cultivation via a technique called cut and burn. Through this technique, the agriculturalists had to bring down the vegetation and trees in the region as well as burn down everything that remained.

After that, crops such as squash, beans, and cornflakes were planted while simple fishing took place in the lakes and coastlines. Since the land in the rainforests hardly had any nutrients, the technique used by farmers just produced crops that could sustain the population for only five years. The cultivated areas were depleted and eroded due to continuous cultivation thus resulting in less annual food production. In the end, the Mayan farmers could hardly generate sufficient crops to feed the entire civilization.

The weather change concept

The ancient Mayan society was bound to be affected by changes in the climatic conditions. For instance, scholars in their studies show that the drought, which affected the production capacity of farmers, could have resulted from the farming technique (cut and burn) used. The technique led to the cutting down of more trees (deforestation) and the consequent rise in land temperature.

The effect was global warming and prolonged droughts that made farming difficult. However, efficient water management strategies were used by the Mayan to reduce food and water scarcities, but the prolonged droughts could hardly allow farmers to grow crops enough to feed the inhabitants (Simonian, 2010).

Plausible theory

Scholars researching on the abrupt disappearance of the Mayan did not offer sufficient evidence, specifically stating how this society collapsed. However, research studies indicate that the Mayan society collapsed due to a blend of factors explained in the theories (Scholl, 2009). Despite coming up with different theories explaining the end of the Mayan society, the weather change concept explains the events that led to the downfall of this civilization.

First, human activities such as the cutting down of rainforests (deforestation) to clear land for cultivating crops triggered the variation in weather conditions. For instance, logging reduced the number of water catchment areas and exposed the agricultural lands to erosion given that there were no vegetation covers. Hence, direct raindrops could cause floods that washed away vegetation and droughts that eventually reduced the supply of foodstuffs.

Second, deforestation reduced the level of water evaporation given that the uncovered lands hardly permitted cosmological emission. The effect was less precipitation and rising levels of seawaters that caused the Mayan seaside residents to move to the central areas. As a result, the Mayan society exhausted the available resources and lost foodstuffs accruing from fishing and seaside farming.

References

Fash, W. (2014). Changing perspectives on Maya civilization. Annual Review Anthropology, 23(4): 181-208.

Holm, K. (2012). Everyday life in the Maya civilization. New York, NY: The Rosen Publishing Group.

Peterson, L. & Haug, G. (2005). Climate and the collapse of the Mayan civilization. American Scientists, 93(14): 322-329.

Scholl, E. (2009). The Mayan civilization. Newark, US: Mitchell Lane Publishers, Incorporated.

Simonian, J. (2010). Defending the land of the jaguar: A history of conservation in Mexico. USA: University of Texas Press.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2020, March 23). The Mayan Civilization History. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-mayan-civilization-history/

Work Cited

"The Mayan Civilization History." IvyPanda, 23 Mar. 2020, ivypanda.com/essays/the-mayan-civilization-history/.

References

IvyPanda. (2020) 'The Mayan Civilization History'. 23 March.

References

IvyPanda. 2020. "The Mayan Civilization History." March 23, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-mayan-civilization-history/.

1. IvyPanda. "The Mayan Civilization History." March 23, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-mayan-civilization-history/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "The Mayan Civilization History." March 23, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-mayan-civilization-history/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1