![]() Uxmal is one of the last big Mayan cities. ![]() The golden age of the Maya goes from AD 250 until AD 900. The total population is estimated at 7 to 11 million people. For comparison, in the Mediterranean, the Egyptian were building pyramids from 3000 BC.Īt the 8 th century, the Mayan civilization had an area of around 324 000 km² (125 000 sq mi) and had impressive cities, like Tikal with its 50 000 inhabitants. Indeed, the Olmecs were building pyramids as early as 1000 BC. This is much later than the first pyramid of Mesoamerica. The first Mayan pyramid only appears at 300 BC. With settlements of the first cities, like Tikal in 600 BC. The Mayan civilization started around 600 BC. The Maya still speak today the language of their ancestors : the Mayan language (which is composed of 28 different dialects). They are mainly living in little villages relatively isolated from the main roads. The Maya peopleĪD 900 is the end of the Mayan civilization, but the Maya people still live. Then for an unknown reason their civilization collapsed and the Maya scattered. During their golden age, they have built big cities. The golden age of the Maya is located between AD 250 and AD 900. The beginning of the Mayan civilization is usually set at 600 BC and the end at AD 900. Their civilization lasted for a very long period of time of 15 centuries. When did the Mayan civilization begin and end? The most important of this independent cities were:īecause of this, the Mayan civilization cannot be considered as an empire because it had never been unified politically. Each of them had its own king and could dominate other, more little, cities. Indeed, the Mayan civilization was composed of several independent cities. ![]() It is important to note that Calakmul was not the capital city of the Maya. This ruins includes temples, pyramids, palaces, … Why is Mayan civilization not considered an empire? This area corresponds to the heart of the Mayan civilization. This area included the Yucatan Peninsula ( Mexico) and extended to the mountains of Guatemala and El Salvador and covered Belize and part of Honduras.Īn important quantity of Mayan ruins has been discovered at the border between Mexico and Guatemala. The ancient Mayan city of Calakmul, located in the middle of the Yucatan Peninsula, was also located in the middle of the Mayan territory. The Mayan civilization occupied a wide territory in the southeast of current Mexico and the north of Central America. For centuries, this civilization was remained forgotten before it was discovered again at the end of the 19 th century. They couldn’t believe that the indigenous of this region (Maya) were descendant of such a prestigious civilization. So when the Spanish conquistadors discovered this part of the word in the 16 th century, the Mayan civilization had already disappeared and they found the ruins of huge cities with pyramids. For unknown reasons their civilization collapsed, but the Mayan people haven’t disappeared and are still living region today. The Mayan civilization covered 15 centuries, from 600 BC until AD 900. This Mesoamerican civilization is nowadays well known for its pyramids, its big cities, its calendar… But for centuries it had totally disappeared under the vegetation, before it was discovered again at the end of the 19th century.
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