The Population peak in Mexico Pre-Hispanic History was at the Most of 5 Million people concentrated in nine major Ethnic Groups. Today Mexico has a Population of over 105 Million People with 35 Major cities in the one Million or more inhabitant category. In the nation’s capital, on the country’s Highlands, 2,200 meters above sea level, you presently find in the Valley of Mexico, a population exceeding 22 million people, plus another 5 million in a radius of 70 kilometers. Development of such a megalopolis contains a path full of historic and physical factors that permitted the City and the country to reach such size. All over, as well as nearby, you find the heritage of the Mexico Pre-Hispanic History societies that populated or influenced the configuration of such colossal urban settlements. But the Valley of Mexico in the Pre-Hispanic History was not the only valley. During the Mexico Pre-Hispanic History period, the Highlands framed by 2 opposite and parallel Sierra Mountain formations, flowed enormous quantities of water in to numerous valleys, supplying rivers and lakes, which made life possible and comfortable, with relatively temperate climates. During the Mexico Pre-Hispanic History period, In the Highlands we find the Teotihuacan, Toltec, Aztec (Mexica), Zapotec, Mixtec, Huastec, Purepecha Civilizations. The last ones mentioned, overflowing towards the coast on the other side of the Sierra Mountains. The first three, although nestled in and around the valley of Mexico, where the most dominant and warrior groups. The other very important ethnics in Mexico Pre-Hispanic History, where the Olmec, the pioneer contributors to knowledge and science, as well as the Mayas, consolidators of all Mexico Pre-Hispanic History findings, such as the most perfect pyramids, engineering, water preservation, mathematics, the use of the zero, the Mayan Abacus, astronomy, today’s universal calendar, medicine, fine arts, intensive agriculture, animal domestication, the use of copper and gold…..
Mexico Pre-Hispanic History
Evolution of Mesoamerican Aborigine Cultures
When people think about the Incas, they also have on their mind the Aztec and Mayan Empires. History of World Civilization changed its pace with the discovery of the American Continent and its contribution to the Middle Age Society and Economy of the XVI and XVII Century. Incas and Mexico Pre-Hispanic History Ethnics, with Aztecs and Mayas, proved people could evolve, create and produce, with different ways of life. Between 1800BC and 300 BC, Mexico Pre-Hispanic History shows how these multifaceted cultures began to develop in Mesoamerica. Nine cultures matured into advanced pre-Columbian Mesoamerican civilizations such as the Olmec, Teotihuacan, Maya, Zapotec, Mixtec, Huastec, Purepecha, Toltec and Aztec (Mexica). These American Aborigine Societies stand in the History of Mankind as amazingly developed cultures, comparable to the ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, China and India. Incas, Mayas and Aztecs in the Mexico Pre-Hispanic History period, were Civilizations with there own Political, Social, Religious and Economic structures, all of which evolved and flourished during almost 4000 years. These Mexico Pre-Hispanic History Cultures still amaze us at present, by their grate contributions to our today’s Global Society. Although written documents, such as the Mayan Codices of the POPOL VUH were destroyed by the European conquerors, archeologist findings on buildings, inscriptions, stalls, tombs, pottery, utensils…., permitted these experts to convey different periods of evolution in order to compare and classify parallelism among these Mexico Pre-Hispanic History Civilizations. The Mexico Pre-Hispanic History periods are “Pre-Classic” 2500BC to 400BC ; “Classic” 150AD to 650AD and “Post-Classic 900AD to 1400AD.
Mexico Pre-Hispanic History,
1500 BC Olmecs, Teotihuacan and Totelcs
The Olmec civilization appeared 1500 BC. It is well known for the monumental “Olmec heads”, stone sculptures, and conceived as the mother civilization of Mexico Pre-Hispanic History Cultures. Olmecs, as other Mesoamerican groups vanished slowly around the second century BC in the region that was its crib, but lived a longer time somewhere else merging and sharing the legacy of the original produced knowledge. The inscriptions carved on the monuments indicate the existence of a calendar and a primitive script that will develop later in the cultures of the neighboring regions. The snake, the birds, the monkeys and the fish, as well as the jaguar, are the other familiar designs of animals frequently used by religious leaders who seem to believe in life after life.
In parallel with the Olmec civilization, other groups developed in different regions of Mexico Pre-Hispanic History. In the highlands, close to the Valley of Mexico City, Teotihuacan shows the first constructions, built in the second or third century BC, which reveal a talented and powerful society. The Teotihuacan urban compound is oriented North-South, located between the superb pyramid of the Sun and the imposing Pyramid of the Moon. Teotihuacán was dedicated to Tlaloc, God of rain and to Quetzalcóatl, the Feathered Serpent, later replaced in the 9TH Century by the Toltec patron.
Toltec headquarters were in Tula, one of Mexico Pre-Hispanic History most impressive cities, located northwest of Teotihuacan and famous for the Giant Atlantis Statues. Toltecs are believed to have developed the art of melting metals like silver and copper The Toltecs were forceful warriors who occupied the northern edges of the Valley of Mexico from around 950-1300 a.d. Wherever the Toltecs went, you will see the Architectural influence of the Toltec building technique. The Toltecs went to war with the Mayans and eventually defeated them, creating a cross Toltec-Mayan religion and society present in the architectonical influence of Maya Archeological Sites. Tula was later conquered by the Chichimecs in the twelfth century and later by the Aztecs around 1300AD.
At the beginning of our era, Teotihuacan experienced a very fast expansion of the city due to the growth of population and visitors, which pushed and favored the development of agricultural activities. Irrigation facilities covered soon the whole valley. The construction of so many sanctuaries could be explained by the multitude of merchant-pilgrims visiting regularly the city. Growth continued and Teotihuacan performs an imperialistic expansion, covering not only the whole valley of Teotihuacan, but also those of Mexico City, Puebla and the north side the state of Hidalgo. The influence of Teotihuacan is found today in the remains of many remote cultures in areas such as Huastec in Veracruz, Mixtec in Oaxaca, and Maya country in the Highlands of Chiapas Belize and Guatemala.