Mayan Civilizations: Cultural Diffusion On African Civilizations
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Unfortunately, we do not know that much about the Olmec as a whole. However, information about the Mayan civilization is far more extensive. Both civilizations appear to have had a ruling class, with the Mayans having a specific social structure composed of royalty and the nobility, commoners, and slaves. Based on the Olmec's use of large stone head sculptures, many scholars believe this represents their respect for those of a higher class. Both civilizations are also known to have Jaguar Gods which may represent each civilization's admiration for the local wildlife of their Mesoamerican region.
However, since we have more information about the Maya, we know that they featured calendars that kept track of 52 year cycles. We are unclear whether…show more content… Cultural Diffusion on African Civilizations revolved around the areas of North Africa and the south bank of the Red Sea. Cultural Diffusion in those regions is mostly demonstrated through the spread of religion. Near the Horn of Africa, on the south banks of the Red Sea, there lied the Kingdom of Axum.
This civilization was particularly notable for adopting Christianity after encountering Christians from neighboring regions such as the Arabian Peninsula (most notably the areas to its northwest that make up modern day Israel). The Kingdom of Axum, eventually called Ethiopia, became a key center for
Christianity in Africa: the modern descendant of which is The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.
Through trade with places like Rome, Egypt, and India, the Kingdom of Axum gained new ideas like
Christianity, which helped enhance their cultural understanding and religious diversity.
North African civilizations were also greatly influenced and modified by Cultural Diffusion. Earlier in the Classical Era, they were conquered by Rome, and gradually adopted Roman customs as Roman provinces. However, as Rome fell they did not become abandoned, instead, the North African settlements and peoples encountered more and more traders of the Islamic faith. As such, many of…show more content… The major world religions were also developed around this time, with the exchange of ideas and culture through trade, migration, and conquest allowing faiths like Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, and
Islam to spread much further than their places of origin. This exchange of ideas allowed concepts like
Christianity to travel and appear thousands of miles away from where they began.
Early River Valley Civilizations, on the other hand, developed earlier, focused around rivers and reliable sources of water. Those civilizations focused more on growth and development after achieving the Neolithic Revolution. While they would also go to war, and trade, the extent of both would be far less than the Classical Civilizations, simply because river valley civilizations tended to be smaller, with a greater reliance on specific sources of water due to overall smaller territory and influence. The cultures of river valley civilizations were also more localized and less influential, with civilizations like the Indus River Valley Civilization and Olmec disappearing entirely with little information about