Guatemala

Where is Guatemala?

Guatemala

Capital of Guatemala: Guatemala City

Capital of Guatemala: Guatemala City

Capital of Guatemala: Guatemala City

Mayan Civilization

• A.D. 250 and A.D. 900

• They built pyramids, palaces, temples, markets, and shrines

• They created the only fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas

• They also created art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems

Mayan Buildings

• Surprisingly massive Mayan structures were built without advanced technologies

• They didn’t have animals necessary for wheel-based modes of transportation, metal tools and even pulleys

• How did they do it? – People: It took a lot of people power – Materials: limestone from local quarries

Tikal: One of the largest

and oldest Mayan citiy

Q: How many days in Mayan year

Q: How long does it take the Earth to make one complete revolution around the sun?

Video of earth around the sunhttp://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es0408/es0408page01.cfm?chapter_no=04

A: 360 days

A: 365 1⁄4 solar days to make one

What is an aqueduct?

An aqueduct is a large pipe or channel for bringing water from one place to another.

The Mayan language was a picture language. What is the name for such a

language?

Hieroglyphics

Maya inscriptions were most often written in columns two glyphs wide, with each such column read left to right, top to bottom

Mayan Script

• In English, all of our words are formed from combinations of only 26 signs—that list of letters we call an Alphabet.

• All Maya words are formed from various combinations of nearly 800 signs, and each sign represents a full syllable—so that list of signs is called a Syllabary, not an Alphabet

Mayan Astronomers

• The Mayans were incredible astronomers even though they did not have telescopes

• They were able to:– predict solar and lunar eclipses– trace the path of planets

What is a lunar eclipse?

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Earth blocks the Sun’s light from the moon.

What is a solar eclipse?

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon blocks the sun’s light from some areas of the Earth.

Economy

• Guatemala’s economy is based on agriculture

• Agricultural exports include: coffee, bananas, and sugar.

Most rural houses do not have any electricity or running water

Are coffee and bananas native to Guatemala?

• No

• There was Coffee in Ethiopia before A.D. 1000; also in Arabia by the 15th century, and had reached Europe and then North America by the 17th century

• Bananas are native to tropical Asia

History of coffee

REVIEW

What is the capital of Canada?

a) Ottawa

b) Toronto

c) New York City

Quebec is the largest province in Canada. What is the official language in Quebec?

a) English

b) French

c) Spanish

What food plant was first cultivated in Mexico around 7000 BC?

a) Potatoes

b) Corn

c) Radishes

Find Mexico

Mexico

When as the United States Declarationof Independence (written mainly by

Thomas Jefferson) adopted?

a) July 4, 1776

b) July 4, 1876

c) July 14, 1776