30 Interesting And Magnificent Maya Civilization Facts

The Earth is old and it witnessed many civilizations upon it. Maya civilization is one of them. The Maya people appeared almost around 2500 BC. The civilization reached its peak point by 500 bc. They were advanced than many civilizations of their time. Maya civilization is one of the oldest societies to have numerical systems, cultivations, and large monuments. They built large and complex structures. Maya civilization even had a writing system of their own. Maya civilization developed many languages and some around 70 of them are still in the mouth of people. They also had several religious ideas.

Maya civilization appeared in the place of modern-day Central America. Many archeological pieces are found on many Maya civilization sites. The more is discovered about the Mayas, the more we are fascinated by the facts and discoveries of the civilization. How they built such advanced systems of trade networks, large-scale sculptures and humongous temples is still a mystery to us. Tikal was one of the major cities of the civilization where around 10,000 people lived. The largest of the Maya pyramids are found here.

Mayas lived in a vast area of Central America. From the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico to the lowlands of Guatemala and western Honduras. These areas have different natural traits and needed different pieces of knowledge of living. The earliest found Maya Maya settlements date back to 1800 bc. Early Mayas were cultivators who cultivated maze, beans, squashes, and chili peppers. Many historians believe Mayans practiced human sacrifices. While most of the civilization grew in drylands, Mayans are different in the sense that they flourished in a tropical rainforest climate.

In many ways, Mayans are a very different and diverse civilization. Mayans have their own style of architecture, numerical system, languages, and knowledge of boat building. The Maya civilization is divided into three principal periods. These are Preclassic, Classic, and Postclassic periods. These periods lasted from 8000 BC- 1697 AD. But by A.D. 900 most of the Mayan cities were left abandoned and the Maya population declined dramatically. The exact reason for this sudden collapse is still foggy.

These are some cool Maya civilization facts:

Fact: In their numeric system, Mayas had the number Zero. They are the only civilization in South America to have zero in the counting system. Only two of the old civilizations have the number zero.

Fact: The knowledge of astronomy the Mayans achieved was fascinating. They recorded the movements of the Sun, Moon, and other planets. Mayan astronomers measured the Venus cycle 584-day with an error of just two hours.

Fact: Mayans played team sports. The ball game was called ulama, even Maya lords too part in the games.

Fact: Many sources suggest that Mayans are the oldest users of chocolates.

Fact: Though the Maya civilization collapsed not all Mayan people vanished. Half of the Guatemalan people are in fact, Mayan descents.

Fact: Mayans are one of the earliest users of rubber.

Fact: Mayans had a god of maize. They worshiped the god of maize to get a good crop.

Fact: Mayans built some of the largest temples of the ancient world. Aguada Fénix is the largest Mayan temple.

Fact: Mayan calendar had 365 days like the gregorian calendar.

Fact: At the peak the population of Mayans was almost 2 million.

Fact: Mayan calendar was designed to count 5000 years. They believed the world will destroy after that.

Fact: At least 7 million people still talk in Mayan languages today in many parts of Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

Fact: Itzamna was the supreme god of the Mayans. Itzamna also represented the sun.

Fact: Mayans used cocoa as currency. They used to remove the flesh from the pod, stuff it with dirt or avocado rind.

Fact: Mayans build pyramids. Most Mayan pyramids are smaller in size than Egyptian pyramids. But some pyramids like the Great Pyramid of Cholula is as big as the great pyramid of Gija.

Fact: Mayan people domesticated dogs. Even they are one of the oldest civilizations to do so. They also used dogs to hunt.

Fact: Mayans used boats for transportations. Canoes and Rafts both are used as Vessels.

Fact: Mayan people produced paper and made books out of them. These books are called codices and one of the oldest of their kind. Four codices are found over the years.

Fact: Mayans had sophisticated ports. Xcaret, Uaymil, Moho Cay, Cerros are some of the ports of the Maya civilization.

Fact: Caves were an important part of Maya culture and religion. They believed the roots of hell are under the earth. They called the place Xibalba. Many rituals were performed inside caves.

Fact: The ceiba tree was considered sacred. The tree is believed to represent heaven, earth, and hell and the communication between them.

Fact: The social status of Mayan priests were sacred and powerful. They were believed to have a connection with the gods.

The Maya civilization is one of the most astonishing civilizations we have ever come to know about. They were people who discovered zero, used boats, and built great pyramids like the Egyptians. Their languages are told to date. These are all we have on the Maya civilization today.