Examples of Mayan calendar in the following topics:
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Dates and Calendars
- Some of the more prominent regional Hindu calendars include the Nepali calendar, Assamese calendar, Bengali calendar, Malayalam calendar, Tamil calendar, the Vikrama Samvat (used in Northern India), and Shalivahana calendar.
- Of all the ancient calendar systems, the Mayan and other Mesoamerican systems are the most complex.
- The Mayan calendar had two years, the 260-day Sacred Round, or tzolkin, and the 365-day Vague Year, or haab.
- The essentials of the Mayan calendar are based upon a system that was in common use throughout the region, dating back to at least the fifth century BCE.
- The Mayan calendar is still used in many modern communities in the Guatemalan highlands, Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas, Mexico.
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The Preclassic Period of the Maya
- Many of the distinctive elements of Mesoamerican civilization can be traced back to this period, including the dominance of corn, the building of pyramids, human sacrifice, jaguar worship, the complex calendar, and many of the gods.
- Though the exact starting date of Mayan civilization is unclear, there were Mayan language speakers in the Southern Maya Area by 2000 BCE.
- However, it was likely ruled by the first true Mayan city-state, Kaminaljuyu.
- Several words entered Mayan from a Mixe–Zoquean language, presumably due to Olmec influence.
- By 2000 BCE, there were speakers of Mayan languages in the Southern Maya Area.
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The Decline of the Maya
- Today, in remote parts of Guatemala and Chiapas, similar familial configurations, uses of the 260-day Maya calendar, and agricultural practices continue to shape families of descendants.
- Millions of Mayan-language speakers inhabit their ancestral lands and keep these languages and traditions alive.
- One of three surviving examples of Mayan writing, the Paris Codex offers keen insights into religious and patrilineal traditions before the Spanish invasion.
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The Classic Period of the Maya
- A 260-day calendar (Tzolkin) was combined with the 365-day solar calendar (Haab') to create a calendar round.
- The Tzolkin calendar was used to calculate exact religious festival days.
- The solar calendar (Haab') is very similar to the modern solar calendar year that uses Earth's orbit around the Sun to measure time.
- Each symbol represents a specific day within the calendar.
- When the Tzolkin and Haab' calendar's are combined they create a fifty-two-year solar calendar.
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Shang Religion
- The Shang also established a lunar calendar that was used to predict and record events, such as harvests, births, and deaths (of rulers and peasants alike).
- Because the calendar was used to time both crop planting and the harvest, the king had to employ skilled astronomers to predict dates (and successes) of annual harvests; this would help him maintain support from the people.
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Aztec Religion
- The Aztecs based their calendar on the sun and utilized a 365-day religious calendar.
- This calendar shows the eighteen months circling around a representation of the sun.
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Art and Culture in 20th-Century Mexico
- A strong Aztec influence was present in his works, and a lot of his art aimed to tell stories in a similar fashion to the Mayan steles of the classical era.
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The Toltecs
- Another controversy relating to the Toltecs remains how best to understand the reasons behind the perceived similarities in architecture and iconography between the archaeological site of Tula and the Mayan site of Chichén Itzá.
- These same Atlantean figures, as they are called, also appear at the Mayan sites of Chichén Itzá and Potrero Nuevo.
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The Five Emperors
- Zhuanxu is credited with the creation of the Chinese calendar as well as the introduction of religion and astrology.
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The Mythical Period
- Next came Zhuanxu, who was credited with the invention of the Chinese calendar and the introduction of religion and astrology.