During the Late Postclassic, the Maya established both a commercial center and
_______ on the island of Cozumel.
A. a military outpost
B. a pilgrimage center
C. cacao groves and processing centers
D. a canoe manufacturing factory
Chapultepec Hill in modern Mexico City holds great significance because:
A. it was where the Aztecs originated
B. it embodies the transformation of Mesoamerica
C. many ancient trees survived in this modern park
D. it was where Aztecs held out against the Spanish
Mesoamerica’s three major climatic regions are defined by:
A. the country in which they are present
B. latitude, altitude, rainfall, and temperature
C. how much coastline the region has
D. longitude
The Aztec ruler Axaycatl had a reputation as:
A. a great lover
B. a witty joke teller
C. an engaging conversationalist
D. an accomplished painter
During the Early Formative, Olmec subsistence:
A. was based on foraging
B. consisted of slash-and-burn agriculture
C. was intensive agriculture with complex irrigation networks
D. did not include maize
El Mirador in the Maya lowlands of Guatemala is:
A. the oldest-known Maya capital city
B. well known for the earliest Maya murals
C. best known for controlling highland obsidian sources
D. the only Maya city to build an “E-Group”
The culture area of Mesoamerica may be referred to as “maize-o-america” because:
A. its extent is based on where maize could produce reliable harvests
B. maize was the only domesticated crop in this area
C. the ancient civilizations that existed here were truly amazing
D. the outline of the area resembles a corn cob
Elite hypergamy is:
A. a form of marriage where a man legally has more than one wife at the same time
B. a form of marriage where a woman legally has more than one husband at the same
time
C. when a man marries a woman of higher status than his own
D. when a woman marries a man of higher status than her own
The region of Tehuantepec on the Pacific Coast flourished during the Middle
Postclassic with a large population at:
A. Saltillo
B. Quich
C. Tayasil
D. Man
The city of Tenochtitlan sat in the middle of a salty lake. Its citizens acquired potable
water:
A. from springs at Chapultepec
B. from the springs at Coyoacan that were channeled to the city
C. by collecting rain water
D. from slaves who carried water in ceramic vessels over long distances
Ahuitzotl ruled from:
A. 1469 to 1481
B. 1481 to 1486
C. 1486 to 1502
D. 1502 to 1520
The most widely traded ware in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica was plumbate pottery. It
was manufactured:
A. along the Pacific Coast
B. at Teotihuacan
C. in Tikal
D. at Calakmul
The settlement pattern of the Teuchitln region changed from the Early to Middle Classic
because the inhabitants:
A. practised chinampas agriculture
B. needed to secure more defensible locations
C. wished to take advantage of low-lying areas near water resources
D. moved from centralized sites to more dispersed settlements
After the Classic Maya site of Dos Pilas was attacked by its vassal Tamarandito:
A. the entire site was abandoned
B. elites constructed defensive walls to protect their palaces
C. the nobles fled while the farmers remained and fortified the center
D. both commoners and elite fled to the neighboring site of Aguateca
In the Basin of Mexico, the site of _____ served as a central place in the Middle/Late
Formative.
A. Teotihuacan
B. Tenochtitlan
C. Cuicuilco
D. Zacatenco
The name of the major chain of mountain ranges in Mesoamerica is the:
A. Rockies
B. Himalaya
C. Andes
D. Sierra Madres
During the Epiclassic period, the Yucatn may have had a type of shared ruler. The
Mayan word for such joint rulership is:
A. Chilam Balam
B. multepal
C. Puuc
D. Chenes
Classic Maya writing:
A. is largely logosyllabic
B. is most similar to English, being phonetic and based on an alphabet
C. still eludes decipherment
D. was taught to everyone in society thanks to an extensive school system
The important Totonac center of Zempoala in the Gulf lowlands was first conquered by:
A. Motecuzma I
B. Axaycatl
C. Tizoc
D. Motecuzma II
The Law of Biotic Potential:
A. states that species produce more offspring than necessary to replace each generation
B. applies to all species except humans since we are able to control our population
growth
C. can be directly found in the archaeological record
D. was in effect during human prehistory but has since become invalid
The site of the earliest ballcourt and elite residence is:
A. Paso de la Amada
B. Guil Naquitz
C. San Lorenzo
D. Monte Albn
Analysis of Mesoamerica’s “Feathered Serpent” motifs shows that they:
A. were invented by the Aztecs during the Postclassic
B. represent a being that transcends Mesoamerican culture through time and space
C. are identified early in Mesoamerican prehistory at Archaic Period sites where they
portray a war god
D. are confined to the Southern Maya Lowlands during the Classic Period when
population was at its peak
After the “collapse,” Classic Maya commoners living in the lowlands:
A. were able to survive, whereas the ruling elites suffered a dramatic loss of power
B. employed themselves in various craft activities to provide full-time support
C. rebuilt the temples
D. fertilized damaged soils to retain productivity so they could continue farming
The name “Olmecs”:
A. refers to the Aztec people
B. comes from the Spanish language
C. refers to rubber country
D. means “grinding stone”
Place the following units in order of increasing amount:
A. tun, baktun, katun
B. katun, baktun, tun
C. tun, katun, baktun
D. baktun, katun, tun
Motecuzma I is called the “founder of the Aztec empire” because:
A. he conquered the Tepanecas
B. he traced his descent to the royal line of Toltecs from Tula
C. during his reign he expanded the empire outside the Basin of Mexico
D. he conquered lands in North and South America
An unbalanced reciprocal relationship in which a person in need of a particular resource
requests it from a more powerful individual is called:
A. a patron”client relationship
B. usury
C. a feudal system
D. a market economy
You are digging part of a site in Mesoamerica and uncover sherds from basins, griddles,
and jars. It is most likely that this area was:
A. used for cooking
B. used for storage
C. a ceremonial building
D. where pottery was produced
The largest stratum in the Mexica social structure was the:
A. pipiltin
B. pochteca
C. macehualtin
D. mayeque
The Calendar Round:
A. was used by early cultures, such as the Olmecs, but not by later peoples of
Mesoamerica
B. refers to the meshing of the divinatory almanac with the solar calendar
C. consists of a 100-year cycle
D. is another name for the Long Count
The widespread Mesoamerican cult that thrived from ad 600 to 1000/1100 emphasized:
A. provincialism and reflection
B. militarism and human sacrifice
C. decadence and exploitation
D. isolation and religion
In the 1370s, it was important for the people of Tenochtitlan-Tlatelolco to choose a
tlatoani with Toltec heritage because:
A. such ancestry lent prestige to the office
B. this ensured that the tlatoani would be a patron of the arts and crafts
C. this would allow the tlatoani to travel north of the Basin of Mexico
D. this would enable Mexica to visit the revered site of Tula
The 1450s were a time of sorrow for inhabitants of the Basin of Mexico because:
A. the Aztecs were conquered by the Tarascans
B. the Aztecs lost the territory of eastern Morelos to the Tarascans
C. the Aztecs’ capital city was destroyed by a nearby volcano
D. the region suffered severe droughts that caused starvation
The bottle-shaped, subterranean, plastered chamber that was constructed as part of
residential house groups is known as a:
A. cenote
B. chultun
C. sinkhole
D. sacbe