Corn, cotton and chocolate: how the Mayans changed the world

No civilization in the history of our planet existed longer than the ancient Mayans. The historical period they were at the forefront of lasted 3,500 years. This is an unprecedented figure and possibly one that will never be surpassed. This civilization reigned from about 2500 BC. C. until 900 AD. C. However, most of what they achieved went unnoticed. There was no written or oral news that crossed the globe to describe their exploits and the impact they had on the planet and the rest of humanity. In essence, they were the ‘ghosts of history’.

CORN, COTTON AND CHOCOLATE: HOW THE MAYA CHANGED THE WORLD looks like a textbook, something you might want to buy for your Social Studies class. It could also be an oft-cited text to help with your thesis paper or research. Sounds like a pretty dry thing, huh? I’m pleased to say that, in the hands of author James O’Kon, this eye-opening work was never short on surprises and could gladly hold the interest of any intelligent person looking to learn more about perhaps the most influential civilization of all time. .

Instead of a straightforward chapter-by-chapter review, I thought I’d make things more interesting.

10 things the world can thank the Mayans
1. The Mayans were cosmic philosophers. They always considered themselves sky watchers and this need to understand the universe above and around us made them the first known astronomers. They were able to gain amazing insight into the harmonious composition of the cosmos. Yes, long before Carl Sagan!
2. They were the best agronomists in world history. They made the term cultivar famous. Not just a collection of plants or flowers, but a natural process perfected through careful cultivation. You can thank Columbus for spreading the word on his voyages around the world about the original “flower power” people.
3. The invention of the number zero. This is nothing to laugh at (no pun intended). Mathematicians have proclaimed that one of the singular achievements of the human age, and the greatest intellectual feat of the Maya, was the number zero. This was a culture that was so introspective and intelligent that they were actually able to grasp the concept of something worthless, but still made it the starting point for number sequences!
4. Corn. Long thought to be a Native American find, maize, or as we more commonly call it, maize, was produced due to the sophisticated cultivation of high-yielding grains. Some have called it the greatest invention of the Mayans. They were eons ahead of the trend of genetic manipulation in the creation of food products, in particular one where people today cannot go to the movies without enjoying the ‘hot air blasted’ version of Corn.
5. The avocado. The fruit botanically known as Persea americana has gained popularity in recent years due to its health benefits. This tropical delight is the central ingredient in the beloved Guacamole Dip. The Mayans cultivated avocado trees whose origins can be traced back to the Cenozoic Era.
6. Cassava and how it changed the way the world eats. Cassava root was also mass-cultivated by the Mayans and “bread of the tropics” took off in many different cultures around the world. This great source of carbohydrates is behind sugar cane and sugar beets in that category.
7. Chewing gum. O’Kon talks about the mass-produced sticks of hard gum that used to accompany every pack of baseball cards (long before collectors derided the practice for reducing their value). We can thank the Mayans who took the gum or sapodilla tree sap and turned it into a substance to chew and enjoy. I’m not sure if they actually made bubbles with it or not…
8. Chocolate/cocoa. Many of us, especially women, have a very personal relationship with chocolate. Can you imagine Valentine’s Day or Easter without it? It was the love affair of the Mayans with chocolate and cacao in general, four millennia ago, that made this the pleasure of choice. Yes, they even made a hot, foamy drink out of it!
9. Cotton. This has long been attributed to the large cotton plantations of the southern United States. However, it was once again the expert cultivation of the wild cotton plant that made it the most valuable and productive plant fiber in the world. It is also a very soft and breathable fabric for clothing.
10. Tobacco. Smoking cigarettes and cigars, along with the secondhand smoke they produce, may be taboo in recent years due to the adverse health conditions they can cause. That said, it’s impossible not to recognize how every civilization has been touched by tobacco, from Native American peace pipes to the Marlboro Man. Once again, the Mayan cultivation of Nicotiana paved the way for a vice that has been enjoyed by all the civilizations that followed them.

This only scratches the surface of all the excellent research that James O’Kon applied to this text. A fun and interesting read. More importantly, you can feel O’Kon’s enthusiasm for the topic in every paragraph and that also lifts it far above your average textbook.