History and Culture

The Big Idea

Native American cultures and Spanish colonization shaped Mexican history and culture.

Main Ideas

• Early cultures of Mexico included the Olmec, the Maya, and the Aztec.

• Mexico’s period as a Spanish colony and its struggles since independence have shaped its culture.

• Spanish and native cultures have influenced Mexico’s customs and traditions today.

Main Idea 1:Early cultures of Mexico included the Olmec,

the Maya, and the Aztec.

• People came to Mexico many thousands of years ago.

• As early as 5,000 years ago, they were growing beans, peppers, squash, and domesticated corn.

• Farming allowed people to build the first settlements in America.

Three Civilizations

Olmec

• Lived in small villages by about 1500 BC

• Settled in the southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico

• Built temples and giant statues

Maya

• Built big cities in Mexico and Central America between AD 250 and 900

• Built stone temples

• Developed a calendar

• Kept written records that do not reveal the reason for their collapse

Aztec

• Moved in from the north

• Built a great capital on an island in 1325

• Established an empire, a land with different territories and peoples under one ruler

• Obtained new lands, taxes, and captives to sacrifice through war

Main Idea 2: Mexico’s period as a Spanish colony and its struggles since independence have shaped

its culture.

• Despite great size and power, the Aztec empire did not last long after Hernán Cortés arrived with 600 Spanish soldiers.

• The Spanish had better weapons and horses.

• The Spanish brought new diseases, such as smallpox, which killed many Aztecs.

• Cortés conquered the empire by 1521.

Colonial Times

Culture

• After the conquest, the separate peoples and cultures mixed.

• Mestizos are people of mixed European and American Indian ancestry.

• Mulattoes are people of mixed European and African descent.

• Africans and American Indians also intermarried.

Colonial Times

Religion

• The Roman Catholic Church had great influence.

• The church ruled over large areas of northern Mexico.

• The church established missions, or church outposts.

• Priests learned native languages and converted the American Indians to Catholicism.

Colonial Times Economy

• The Spaniards searched for gold and silver.

• The American Indians and the enslaved Africans labored in the mines.

• As a result, many died from overwork and disease.

• The Spanish monarch granted haciendas, or huge expanses of farm or ranch land, to some Spanish people who became wealthy.

• Peasants, usually Indians, lived and worked on haciendas.

Independence• Spain ruled Mexico for 300

years.

• Miguel Hidalgo, a Catholic priest, led the revolt against Spain.

• Hidalgo was killed in 1811, but Mexico won independence in 1821.

Independence and Later Struggles

Later Struggles• Texas broke away from Mexico

fifteen years after independence.

• During the resulting Mexican-American War, Mexico lost nearly half of its territory.

• In the mid-1800s, Benito Juárez helped Mexico survive a French invasion and reduced the privileges of the church and army.

• In the early 1900s, hacienda owners and foreign companies had much influence.

• The Mexican Revolution, 1910-1920, resulted in land reform.

Independence and Later Struggles

Later Struggles• Texas broke away from Mexico

fifteen years after independence.

• During the resulting Mexican-American War, Mexico lost nearly half of its territory.

• In the mid-1800s, Benito Juárez helped Mexico survive a French invasion and reduced the privileges of the church and army.

• In the early 1900s, hacienda owners and foreign companies had much influence.

• The Mexican Revolution, 1910-1920, resulted in land reform.

Independence and Later Struggles

Later Struggles• Texas broke away from Mexico

fifteen years after independence.

• During the resulting Mexican-American War, Mexico lost nearly half of its territory.

• In the mid-1800s, Benito Juárez helped Mexico survive a French invasion and reduced the privileges of the church and army.

• In the early 1900s, hacienda owners and foreign companies had much influence.

• The Mexican Revolution, 1910-1920, resulted in land reform.

Independence and Later Struggles

Main Idea 3:Spanish and native cultures have influenced

Mexico’s customs and traditions today.

• Many people speak an American Indian language that ties them to their ethnic group.

• These languages identify a person as Indian.

Spanish• Most Mexicans speak Spanish.

• About 90 percent of Mexicans are Roman Catholic.

AmericanIndian

• Mexicans have unique practices that result from the mixing of cultures.

• For example, Mexicans celebrate the Day of the Dead to remember dead ancestors.

• This holiday is held on All Souls’ Day, but reflects native customs and beliefs.

Spanishand

AmericanIndian