5 Steps to a 5 AP World History, 2014-2015 Edition

KEY IDEA

140 i

CHAPTER

15 Empires in the Americas

IN THIS CHAPTER

Summary:Before the voyages of Columbus and the conquests of the Spanish, the

civilizations and societies of the Americas developed in isolation from the remain-

der of the world. Within the Western Hemisphere, many of the peoples of the

Americas engaged in long-distance as well as regional trade. When the Europeans

arrived in the Americas, they encountered not only societies with their own rich

traditions but also mighty empires that dazzled their conquerors.

Key Terms

Anasazi Mississippians

ayllus* mita*

calpulli* Moundbuilders

Chimor parallel descent*

chinampas* Quechua*

Inca* quipus*

Mexica* Toltecs

Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica

After the decline of Teotihuacán and of the Mayan civilization, nomadic peoples such as the

Tolt e c s moved into central Mexico. Establishing a capital at Tula in the mid-tenth century,

the Toltecs created an empire in central Mexico. Their empire included the city of Chichén

Itzá in the Yucatán peninsula. The Toltecs carried on long-distance trade, exchanging obsidian

from northern Mexico for turquoise obtained from the Anasazi people in present-day south-

western United States. Another legacy of the Toltecs was the legend of the god Quetzal cóatl,

a tradition that would circulate among the various inhabitants of Mesoamerica.