Mesoamerican cultures were among the most developed of ancient civilizations( see History of Mesoamericans); they created a calendar to measure time, numerals to calculate finances and astronomy, glyphs to chronicle the lives of rulers, tables charting the movement of planets, and architecture that rival other ancient cultures in Africa, Asia and Europe.

Geographical boundaries of the ancient Maya empire spread through the countries of Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, western Honduras and the five Mexican states of Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Campeche and Chiapas (see map), a total area is around 500,000 square kilometers. The ancient Maya civilization lasted for 4,000 years, yet it is often dismissed because, even though the Mayas built huge stone temples and pyramids, they lacked metal tools and didn't use the wheel or beasts of burden. But the early Mesoamericans fashioned tools harder than steel, and discovered the concept of zero (something that escaped the Greeks and Romans). One of the Maya's unique contributions to architecture is the Korbel Arch, also called the Maya Arch, which was formed by projecting stone blocks out from each side of a wall until they met forming a peak. This technique was a handy substitute for a true arch. The Maya also invented the wheel but, dismissing its usefulness, only used it for children's toys.

  Mesoamerican cultures and histories overlap and influenced each other through trade and commerce, architecture, astronomy, mythology, and so on.  Mesoamericans had and wanted different resources, which led to the development of extensive trade networks that knit together regional economies. People in the highlands wanted salt, honey and cacao beans from the lowlands, and bird feathers and jaguar skins from the forests. People in the lowlands wanted jade, obsidian, basalt and grinding stones from the mountains, to carve monuments, figurines, masks, and jewelry.

Europeans arrived in 1519, and within a short period of time, much of Mesoamerica’s great cities and ceremonial centers were left in ruins as Spaniards scoured the land for gold. Native peoples were enslaved and Christianized, and the Aztec Empire, the last great indigenous civilization, dissolved. Life in Mesoamerica changed forever as military clashes, forced labor, and European diseases such as smallpox, measles, and typhus devastated the population who had no immunity.

By 1521, most of the region was subdued and Spanish colonization was without effective opposition. Converted to Christianity by their conquerors, native laborers and artisans erected Roman Catholic shrines and churches. During 300 years of Spanish rule, indigeous peoples and meztizos - people of mixed Spanish and native ancestry - struggled for freedom. Rebellions met with little success until 1821, when New Spain, or Mexico, became the first territory in the region to win independence.

Powerless and poor through 500 years of colonization, neocolonization, dictatorship, and revolution, over 30 million indigenous Mesoamerican survivors still retain their languages, folkways, and the desire for freedom, self-determination, social and economic opportunities enjoyed by the decendants of the conquistadores.

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Last modified: July 09, 2000