Table of Contents
What was the environment like where the Incas lived?
Undaunted by the often harsh Andean environment, the Incas conquered people and exploited landscapes in such diverse settings as plains, mountains, deserts, and tropical jungle.
How did the Inca adapt to living high up in the mountains?
They developed resilient breeds of crops such as potatoes, quinoa and corn. They built cisterns and irrigation canals that snaked and angled down and around the mountains. And they cut terraces into the hillsides, progressively steeper, from the valleys up the slopes.
How did the Incas survive in the Andes Mountains?
To solve this problem, the Inca used a system known as terrace farming. They built walls on hillsides and filled them with soil to make terraces. Terraces are wide steps on the side of mountains. Without the terraces, the mountainous landscape would have been too steep for farmers to water, plow, and harvest.
How was the Inca civilization affected by climate change?
With the tree line moving steadily higher up the mountains, the Incas carved terraces into the mountainside to grow potatoes and maize, and developed a system of canals to irrigate the land. …
How did the physical environment affect the Incas?
The stepped agricultural terraces created more space to grow crops than was available in the valleys. Additionally, the large surrounding mountains blocked sunlight from the valleys; the terraces insured more direct sunlight for more of the day. The terraces also allowed for better control of water for irrigation.
How did geography impact the Incas?
The mountains dominated Inca society. The mountain peaks were worshiped as gods. The Andes created a natural barrier between the coastal desert on one side and the jungle on the other. The Inca built bridges across the gorges so that they could reach all parts of their empire quickly and easily.
How did the climate affect Inca agriculture?
The higher temperatures, starting around 1150, ended thousands of years of cold aridity, and enabled Incan farmers to build mountainside terraces for growing crops at altitudes previously too cold to support agriculture.
How did the step terraces impact the environment of the Inca?
How did step terraces impact the environment of the Inca? They increased soil erosion. They created more farmable land.
How did the Incan civilization adapt to its environment?
The sophisticated roads were were constructed with very limited resources, and rope suspension bridges were built to impressively cross ravines. The impressive aqueduct system of the Incan empire functioned to irrigate agricultural terraces and bring fresh drinking water into the cities.
How did the Incas make their land fertile?
The Inca people also found ways to make the barren soil in South America more fertile and suitable for farming. According to All Empires, they used bat guano and bird excrement as fertilizers. They also built aqueducts to carry water to dryer lands.
Why was religion so important to the Incas?
As religion is spurred by a harsh environment, it becomes even more central to the culture. In the case of the Incas, religion played a huge role in their culture, likely due to the environment.
How did the Maya adapt to their environment?
The Maya adapted to their environment by using the reeds and mud on the swampy island they live on to build houses. The Maya also built chinampas, or “floating gardens,” so that they could plant food to eat.