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More than 80 different theories or variations of theories attempting to explain the Classic Maya collapse have been identified. [9] From climate change to deforestation to lack of action by Maya kings, there is no universally accepted collapse theory, although drought has gained momentum in the first quarter of the 21st century as the leading explanation, as more scientific studies are conducted.
Maya states did not maintain standing armies; warriors were mustered by local officials who reported back to appointed warleaders. There were also units of full-time mercenaries who followed permanent leaders. [150] Most warriors were not full-time, however, and were primarily farmers; the needs of their crops usually came before warfare. [151]
The history of Maya civilization is divided into three principal periods: the Preclassic, Classic and Postclassic periods; [1] these were preceded by the Archaic Period, which saw the first settled villages and early developments in agriculture. [2]
The "Preclassic collapse" refers to the systematic decline and abandoning of the major Preclassic cities such as El Mirador around 100 AD. [6] A number of theories have been proposed to explain this collapse, but there is as little consensus here as there is for the causes of the more famous collapse leading to the Postclassic period.
Review: Ancient Maya: The Rise and Fall of a Rainforest Civilization by Arthur Demarest. Latin American Antiquity 18 (2): 223–225 JSTOR 25063107 doi:10.2307/25063107; Anna C. L. Pineda (2016). Review: Ancient Maya: The Rise and Fall of a Rainforest Civilization Hukay: Journal for Archaeological Research in Asia and the Pacific 9: 109–110
Map of the Maya region showing locations of some of the principal cities. Click to enlarge. Until the 1960s, scholarly opinion was that the ruins of Maya centres were not true cities but were rather empty ceremonial centres where the priesthood performed religious rituals for the peasant farmers, who lived dispersed in the middle of the jungle. [11]
Copán: The History of an Ancient Maya Kingdom. Santa Fe and Oxford: School of American Research Press and James Currey Ltd. pp. 3– 32. ISBN 978-0-85255-981-9. OCLC 56194789. Gill, Richardson B. (2000). The Great Maya Droughts: Water, Life, and Death. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press. ISBN 978-0-8263-2194-7. OCLC 43567384.
Maya architecture can be identified, depending on the region and the corresponding period, into different styles. The regional architectural styles have unique characteristics, features and elements that show diverse social and political aspects of the different regions and history periods of the Maya civilization.