Can anyone tell me about Mayan due to colonization?

Question

i.e. life before and after colonization, the positive and negative influences of colonialism... etc.

Answer 1

The Maya, probably the oldest and most advanced Native American society could trace its history back to 1000BC and was most likely considerably older. Reaching its golden age about 250AD this society based in some of the most inhospitable territory in the world created an empire covering some 125,000 square miles in what is today the entire Yucatan Peninsula, parts of the Mexican regions of Tobascoand Chiapas, all of Guatemala and Belize, and the western parts of Honduras and El Salvadore. At its peak there may have been between 10 and 20 million inhabitants of the empire (compare this to the 43 million of the entire area of China during the T'ang dynasty or with the 60 million who currently inhabit the British Isles).

The Maya learnt early the value of trade; traffic in goods with other South American and Caribbean societies was commonplace. It was with one of the Mayan trade boats that
Columbus made contact with in 1502. In 1517 three Spanish ships in search of slaves stopped on one island where they looted temples. Attacked by masses of warriors (which they beat off with the ship's guns) they returned to their base in Cuba with masses of ornaments made of cheap gold. There was obviously great treasure to be gained for the Spanish Crown on the mainland. The conquest was to begin.

By the time of the Spanish arrival however the Mayan civilisation had been in decline for some time, probably as a result of warfare and overpopulation. Spanish arms coupled with European diseases such as measles, smallpox and influenza against which the natives had no immunity took the lives of millions of the Maya over this period.

The European invaders were also intent on destroying the Indian's religion. Temples were torn down, Friars tortured and killed suspected idolaters; Whipping, Pulling limbs apart on the rack, and boiling in scolding water being particularly nasty ways of converting the 'pagans'. The leading Friar, Diego de Landa however did take the time to learn and write down some of the Indian's culture and also to begin to decipher the Mayan hieroglyphics, and from this and later research we have learnt a lot about this lost civilization.

Answer 2

I just finished a great book called 1491, by Charles Mann.
It's about the history of the Americas before Columbus.
Actually, the Maya had pretty well vanished (at least as a significant empire) by the time the Spanish came along
-- its still a mystery why. Their descendants are still around in southern Mexico and Guatemala.
http://www.amazon.com/1491-Revelations-Americas-Before-Columbus/dp/1400032059/

Wiki on the Mayans: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayans
Crystallinks: http://www.crystalinks.com/mayanhistory.html