The Cultural Tapestry of Mesoamerica

Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica was populated by scores of distinctive cultural groups. Such groups are identified archaeologically by their stylistically unique material cultures, from small, portable ceramic objects to large-scale monumental architecture, as well as through distinctive artistic, religious, and linguistic evidence. Significant interaction took place between these distinctive peoples and cultures, and some major metropolitan areas were home to different ethnic groups. This paper offers a brief glimpse at some of the cultures that inhabited the major geographical regions of Mesoamerica throughout its three thousand-year history and explores the cultural diversity that existed within and between regions.