1. Chapter 9 lesson 1
The First Americans

2. Mesoamerica

3. I Farming Begins in Mesoamerica
Scientists believe that an area of dry land called Beringia, connected Asia and Alaska during the Ice Ages.
Scientists think people from Asia (hunters) followed animals across Beringia.
After the ice age ended, the climate grew warm and people discovered they could grow crops for food. Farming began in a region called Mesoamerica (Mexico today).
Early Americans grew corn or maize and this became an important crop for survival.

4. Beringia

5. Path taken by the ancestors to the Native Americans and their Asian origins

6. II. Early American Civilizations
Farming allowed people to establish permanent settlements and develop more complex societies.
Beginning around 1200 B.C., the Olmec built a large trading empire.
Other groups took control over the trade and built the settlement of Teotihuacan.
The Maya built a civilization on the Yucatan Peninsula.

7. E. The Mayan civilization eventually declined
E. The Mayan civilization eventually declined. The Maya deserted their cities by A.D. 900s.
F. The Aztec built an empire and had about five million people when the Europeans arrived.
G. The Inca people lived in the Andes mountains in present-day Peru. Their empire centered around the capital Cuzco, and this became the largest in ancient America.

8. Aztec ruins