Mesoamérica

Mesoamerica is a cultural and historical region of the Americas that extends roughly from central Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras to parts of El Salvador and Nicaragua. The term, coined by the German-Mexican anthropologist Paul Kirchhoff in 1943, marks a zone where a set of shared cultural traits and historical processes developed before the arrival of Europeans.

Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica saw the rise of major civilizations such as the Olmec (c. 1200–400 BCE), the Maya (c. 2000 BCE–900 CE in the Classic period), Teotihuacan (c. 100 BCE–550 CE), and later the Aztec in central Mexico (c. 14th–16th centuries). The Zapotec and Mixtec in Oaxaca also contributed to regional developments. Common features included intensive maize agriculture, religious and calendrical systems, and in some areas writing and monumental architecture.

Cultural practices such as the ritual ballgame, codified calendars (the 365-day xiuhpohualli and the 260-day tonalpohualli) and, in the Maya, a hieroglyphic writing tradition, helped organize ritual and political life. Cities built monumental structures, plazas, and extensive urban networks; trade linked distant regions through obsidian, jade, ceramics, and exotic feathers. Unlike some other worlds, the wheel and large draft animals were not adopted widely for transport.

The Spanish conquest in the 16th century brought dramatic changes, but many indigenous communities preserved customs, languages, and knowledge that continue to influence modern Mesoamerican identities. The term remains a framework for studying shared features such as agriculture, religion, art, and social organization across the region.