In Mayan culture, “ chia” means “strength”. Chia seeds are reported to date back to 3500 B.C. when they served as an essential nutritional component to the Aztecs. The Aztecs held the belief that the seeds were able to deliver supernatural abilities to those that consumed. This concept may be partially true if one were to consider the amount of energy offered by the Chia seeds as “supernatural abilities”. Later on, between 1500 and 900 B.C., the Teotihuacan and Toltec people of Mexico began growing the seed in their homelands. Currently, the seeds are grown mostly in South America from the plant Salvia Hispanica. Chia Seeds boast a number of health benefits. In two tablespoons (one ounce), 4 grams of protein and 9 grams of fat (5 of which
are Omega-3’s) are a total of 137 calories. There are 12 grams of carbohydrates in one ounce, however 11 of those grams of carbohydrates are grams of fibers, which are known to not raise blood sugar levels. Chia seeds also contain a significant amount of antioxidants, which serve to protect the fats in the seed from going rancid, but also antioxidants fight free radicals, which are responsible for preventing cancers and premature aging. Chia seeds are typically grown organically and naturally free of Gluten. This can serve as a great benefit to those with Celiac disease or any individual looking to add additional omega 3’s to their diet. The seeds may be topped onto whole meals or taken with snacks, such as topped onto greek yogurt. Some consumers enjoy adding chia seeds to a glass of water and slurping like a smoothie, which has been reported to help aid weight loss. The seeds should be stored in a tightly sealed container in a cool, dry setting. They may be stored for 2 years after the best by date before going rancid.
I newly found out that every “One ounce of chile contains as much as 20,000 units of Vitamin A, which is twice the minimum daily requirement” (19). Which is surprising for me because ever since I was a child, my thoughts about chiles is that it only gives spiciness to a food. I didn’t know that a chile has something more to give. I also discovered about the jalapeño that “One hundred grams of Texas green chile contains 235 mg. of vitamin C while a California orange has but 49 mg” (19). Its an astounding and shocking because of the revealing information that jalapeños gives more vitamins than the oranges. Now, I know that not only oranges are good supplier of vitamins, but jalapeños also are a good source of vitamin C and also vitamin A which essential part of our body. In addition to that, Burciaga mentioned that “Calcium content in chiles is also high”(19) which gives me an additional information that chiles are also rich in minerals that is very important for our bone
One of the most well known figures of the twentieth century pottery world is Maria Martinez. Maria Martinez is a Pueblo Indian part of the San Ildefondo tribe. Pueblo pottery from the American Southwest holds a unique place in ceramic art forms of American art. It is full of age-old tradition and culture handed down form family members and potters of the past. The old Pueblo ways of creating it still hold true today and have not been changed or influenced like so many other styles in modern times.
In the article "Sacred Sustenance: Maize, Storytelling, and a Mayan Sense of Place," the author, Leah Alexandra Huff, is arguing that Ethnographers should pay more attention to stories because they allow for a deeper understanding of cultures. To support her argument, she uses the example of the significance of maize in the Mayan civilization as well as their sense of place. Huff first describes the importance of place in building and maintaining a community and developing it identity. She explains that place was important for indigenous communities such as the Mayans because land was part of their cultural and spiritual systems. Huff then goes on to detail the importance of storytelling. She argues that storytelling helps create identity,
August 13th, 1521 marked the end of a diabolical, yet genius group of leaders. They were referred to as the Aztecs. They were an extremely advanced ancient civilization. The Aztec’s were overthrown by the Spanish, yet we still haven’t forgotten the Aztecs. But since their culture was so complex it’s hard to know what is the most necessary thing to study when it comes to them, especially when their were so many things that defined their culture. The Aztecs were highly religious and believed in human sacrifice. They also had a complex method of farming called chinampas. This grew an extremely large amount of food per year by using canals. This was extremely successful because of how complex it was. When asked if historians should emphasize agriculture
Cumbia serves as a unifier of Mexican people, especially families, and serves as a sociocultural outlet for celebration and upholds cultural traditions. A main theme of Mexican culture is togetherness of the family, and many celebrations create a community and place for family involvement. Celebrating together creates and maintains bonds and is an outlet for expression sharing commonalities such as cultural thoughts and ideas. Solidifying a connection in the community with people that listen to cumbia strengthens the culture and forms unity. Mexican cumbia is a significant aspect of Mexican identity and produces a gateway environment for embracing heritage and reflects a highly family and community oriented culture.
Chocolate or cacao was first discovered by the Europeans as a New World plant, as the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. In Latin, Theobroma literally means: “food of the Gods” (Bugbee, Cacao and Chocolate: A Short History of Their Production and Use). Originally found and cultivated in Mexico, Central America and Northern South America, its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC. The majority of the Mesoamerican people made chocolate beverages, including the Aztecs, who made it into a beverage known as xocolātl, a Nahuatl word meaning “bitter water” (Grivetti; Howard-Yana, Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage). It was also a beverage in Mayan tradition that served a function as a ceremonial item. The cacao plant is g...
The Aztec Empire was the most powerful Mesoamerican kingdom of all time. They dominated the valley of Mexico in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The Aztecs were an advanced and successful civilization that built beautiful, sophisticated cities, temples, and pyramids. They also created a culture full of creativity with mythological and religious traditions. Aztecs lead a structured and evocative life that let their society to become a very superior civilization. The Aztec’s communication skills were very well developed for their time; through religious beliefs, government involvement, and family life they lived a full and productive life. Until in 1519 when the Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mexico, and defeated the Aztecs.
The Popol Vuh doesn’t fall short in referencing and glorifying maize. One such reference in the Popol Vuh categorizes maize as a way to determine fate; if an ear of maize is planted and dries up, it indicates death. The article, “The Flowering of the Dead” concludes, “In Atiteco religion, ‘Flowering Mountain Earth’ is a place at the world’s centre whose primary manifestation is a maize plant or tree.” (Carlsen 27). A “Flowering Mountain Earth” is the center of the world that represents life, beauty, and the gods. Among this place, maize is an important object that animates and projects the qualities of a Flowering Mountain Earth. Maize is axis mundi, the center of the world. It is a staple crop in the Maya people; it is essential to the people and heavily relied on. The Maya saw maize as a fetish that truly gave them everything. Without it, everything that ties the Maya together falls apart. Successful growth of maize represents the life and well-being of the Maya, while a dying maize plant all but points to death and the failure of civilization. It is with the importance of maize in Maya culture, that it is omnipresent throughout the Popol
One of the methods to acquire food for the Cahuilla was through Gathering and Harvesting seasonal foods. One of the most notable food the Cahuilla’s enjoyed was the Pinion Nuts. Pinion Nuts derive from a pine tree that is local to the South Western California and upper Mexico. The pine tree contains a small edible s...
The Aztec Empire started out small, and became a ginormous empire with many advanced systems. The Aztec Empire was at its height at 1350 to 1519. The empire was an island located at the sight of present-day Mexico City. The Aztecs began to build their empire in the same spot where they saw an eagle sitting on a cactus devouring a serpent. In the Aztec Empire, the Aztec society revolved around agriculture, farming crops, and human sacrifice, the act of killing humans as a part of religion. Historians don’t know which topic to emphasize. Should historians emphasize agriculture or human sacrifice? Human sacrifice is a dark topic that happened in this empire, but their agriculture was also a big help in the Aztec’s everyday life.
Mayan, Inca, and Aztec Civilizations. The Mayan, Inca, and Aztec civilizations each originated in Latin America. The Mayans lived in southern and central Mexico, other Mayans lived in Central America in the present day countries of Belize, Guatemala, and ancient Honduras. The Incas lived along the long coastal strip, and in the high peaks and deep fertile valleys of the Andes Mountains, and along the edges of the tropical forest to the east; this would be the country of Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina in present days.
The special priests who did this wore hooded black robes that laid on there feet. The robes had skulls and bones used as belts and decorative statements, along with burnt powdered spiders and scorpions. There hair had the blood of past victims in it . When killing they would use a dagger. Other times they had a special stone called techeatle.
Corn had a very deep religious significance to the Mayan people. It was believed that the gods created man from corn flour and the blood of the gods, making them literally children of the
The Rise and fall of the Aztec Empire is possibly the most important area of study in the modern world. Of all of the nomadic tribes who migrated into Mexico, the Aztecs were one of the last. At first driven away by established tribes, the Aztecs slowly began to develop an empire of immense wealth and power by the late fifteenth century. Due in large part to the accomplishments of their ruler Itzcoatl, the empire expanded to include millions of people from a number of different tribes, including the Cempoala, who would later aid the Spanish in defeating the Aztecs. Because of the "melting pot" within the empire, the Aztecs had a very diverse culture. However, this immense Aztec Empire would soon be brought to its knees by the doings of one man and his army.
The story of maize domestication is not only an interesting topic to us today, but an impressive realization on how hard it was for people living thousands of years ago to find food for themselves. The people living in modern day Mexico eight thousand, seven hundred years ago found a crop that was not much more than a stick with small pods that could be pried off for a small reward of nutrients. However, with that plant they created one of the most useful foods today because of thousands of years of artificial breeding and domestication. Maize is an extremely useful crop that is easy to grow, and gives giant harvests thanks to the experimentation and instinct of our ancestors, and the act of artificial selection over the passage of time.