Discuss three important achievements of the ancient Maya. Write your answer in English. Use some of this information:
The Mayan Number System
Long before the Spanish arrived on American shores, a Native American people known as Maya had set up a very advanced civilization in parts of what is now México and Central America. Their empire, made up of city-states, had an economy based on agriculture and trade. It makes sense then, that they would have to develop some type of number system to keep track of their commercial transactions.
And that's just what they did. The Maya people had a number system with three symbols for numbers, which roughly resemble a stone, a stick, and a shell. In addition, there was a symbol for 0, which served as a placeholder, just as 0 does in our system. The Maya is the first world civilization known to have a 0 and the system of placeholders.
Unlike our system, though, the Maya system was based on 20, instead of 10. The symbols could be combined in different ways to form numbers from 0 to 19. (This is also different from our decimal system, which has numbers from 0 to 9.) With these combinations, they were able to make any positive integer and do arithmetical operations, such as addition, well into the millions.
Mayan Math
I said that the Maya people could do math operations into the millions. Let's see if we can do some, too. The Maya number system is a base 20 system. Here's how it works.
A pebble is worth one, and a stick is worth five. So, five pebbles make up one stick. Pebbles and sticks are put together in different combinations to make any number through 19. A shell is the symbol for 0 and serves as the placeholder. Look at the following examples:
Maya number Decimal number
o 1
ooo 3 (1+1+1)
\ 5
ooo \ 8 (1+1+1+5)
\\ 10 (5 + 5)
oooo\\\ 19 (1+1+1+1 + 5+5+5)
The ancient Maya civilization had several important achievements. One of their most significant accomplishments was the development of a complex and sophisticated number system based on 20. This system included the use of symbols for zero and placeholders, making it possible to perform advanced mathematical operations. The Maya's number system was the first in the world to use zero and placeholders, and they were able to perform calculations into the millions.
In addition to their advanced mathematics, the Maya made significant achievements in the area of agriculture. They developed innovative farming techniques such as terraced fields, which allowed them to farm in difficult terrain. They also made use of irrigation systems and fertilizers to increase crop yields, enabling their civilization to sustain a large population.
The Maya are also known for their impressive architectural and engineering abilities. They built monumental structures such as pyramids and temples, many of which still stand today. Their buildings were constructed with precise measurements and alignment to astronomical events, indicating a sophisticated understanding of mathematics and astronomy. Overall, the Maya civilization made significant contributions to human knowledge and achievement in several fields, including mathematics, agriculture, and architecture.