USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Because the heritage of these Olmec innovations can be traced in later Mesoamerican art and material culture, Mesoamericanists have referred since the 1940s to the Olmec as Mesoamerica’s “mother culture” (Bernal 1969; Covarrubias 1942, 1957).

Detailed explanation-2: -The Olmec civilization is called the mother civilization of Mesoamerica because the Olmecs laid the foundation that future Mesoamerican civilizations would follow. Specifically, the Olmecs grew maize, and were highly successful at it. This allowed them to sustain their growing population.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Olmec were the first major civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands on the Gulf of Mexico in the present-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco. The name Olmec is a Nahuatl-the Aztec language-word; it means the rubber people.

Detailed explanation-4: -The Olmec are considered to be the “mother” civilization in Mesoamerica. Civilizations that followed such as the Mayan and Aztec were heavily influenced by the Olmec’s characteristics. The Zapotec civilization came nearly 100 years after the Olmec and thrived from about 500 BCE to 900 CE.