MAYAN

- The Ancient Mayans were a culture based in what is now Mexico, known for its written language, art, architecture, and
astronomy.

Why is it called Mayans?

- The Mayans, or Maya, got their name from a major capital city in the Yucatan peninsula called Mayapan that was
prominent from the 13th to 15th centuries CE.

Contributions to the World

-The Ancient Mayans developed the science of astronomy, calendar systems, and hieroglyphic writing. They were also
known for creating elaborate ceremonial architecture, such as pyramids, temples, palaces, and observatories. These
structures were all built without metal tools.

To understand how knowledge of the Mayan people reached us, we must consider Diego de Landa a Spanish Franciscan
priest and bishop of Yucatán who is best known for his classic account of Mayan culture and language, most of which he
was also responsible for destroying.

-Diego de Landa was a Catholic priest who ordered the mass burning of several
Maya codices because he believed they were the work of the devil.

-Landa wrote a book, "Relación de las cosas de Yucatán," which

described the hieroglyphics, customs, temples, religious practices,
and history of the Mayans that his actions had done so much to
eradicate. The book was lost for many years but was rediscovered
in Madrid three hundred years later in 1869.

Relación de las cosas de Yucatán

-A small number of Mayan documents survived destruction by Landa,

(The most important are: the Dresden Codex now kept in the
Sächsische Landesbibliothek Dresden; the Madrid Codex now kept in
the American Museum in Madrid; and the Paris Codex now in the
Bibliothèque nationale in Paris.) (Grolier codex)

Dresden Codex

-Three of the codices are named after the places they are kept in today, Madrid, Paris and Dresden.
- The word codex comes from the Latin word caudex, meaning "trunk of a tree", "block of wood" or "book".

- The Dresden codex provides a comprehensive understanding of the Mayan civilisation, spanning from 250 AD to 900
AD. This period, built on top of a civilization that had lived in the region since 2000 BC, is particularly significant.
- The Dresden Maya Codex essentially consists of almanacs (divination calendars) in the form of tables based on a 260-
day ritual calendar (Tzolk'in) and astronomical tables with absolute time indications according to the so-called Long
Count, which began in 3114 BC Gregorian calendar.

-The Madrid Codex is the longest of the surviving Maya codices. Its
content mainly consists of almanacs and horoscopes used to help Maya
priests in the performance of their ceremonies and divinatory rituals.

Madrid Codex
 -The Paris Codex The content of the codex is mainly ritual in nature, and
one side of the codex contains the patron deities and associated rituals
for a cycle of thirteen kʼatuns (a 20-year Maya calendrical cycle).

Paris Codex

Contributions to Mathematics

-The first ancient cultures used the concept of zero which allowed them to write and calculate large sums.

Mayan Numerals

• 3 signs to write numbers, shell for zero, dot for 1 and bar for 5.
• Modified Vigesimal system, which means base 20.
Vigesimal- each place is equal to power of 20.
Decimal- each place is equal to a power of 10.
• Pure Vigesimal system for counting objects.

MAYAN NUMERALS FROM 1-19

How do you calculate Mayan numerals?

The Maya used powers of twenty, just as the Hindu-Arabic numeral

system uses powers of ten. For example, thirty-three would be written
as one dot above three dots atop two bars. The first dot represents
"one twenty" or "1×20", which is added to three dots and two bars, or
thirteen. Therefore, (1×20) + 13 = 33. Upon reaching 20²or 400,
another row is started (20³ or 8000, then 20⁴ or 160,000, and so on).
The number 429 would be written as one dot above one dot above
four dots and a bar, or (1×202) + (1×201) + 9 = 429.

Converting Mayan numerals to the base 10 system

•Mayan Numeral Symbols:

They use a combination of dots and bars to represent numbers. Dots represent 1, while bars represent 5.

•Understanding Mayan Positions:

Mayan numerals are read vertically, from bottom to top.
Each position holds a value: the bottom position represents units, the middle position represents multiples of 20, and
the top position represents multiples of 400.
•Conversion:

Think of place values as floors. Count the number of dots and bars on each floor and multiply according to their value.
For example, if there are 3 dots on the fourth floor, it means that the value of the Mayan number is 8000. Where did we
get the 8000? Note that dots are equivalent to 1, and the fourth floor has a place value of 20³ or 8000. On the given
example, there are three dots. So, 3x1x8000 is equal to 24000.

The sum of values from all positions gives the base-10 equivalent.

Example:

Converting Mayan Numerals to the Base 10 Number

• On the first floor, there are two bars and one dot, which is equivalent to 11.
• On the second floor, there is a shell or a symbol of zero, which means zero times twenty, which is equal to zero.
• On the 3rd floor, there are 3 bars and 3 dots, which is equivalent to 18 and then multiplied by 20². 18x400, which is
equal to 7200.

After determining the values of the symbols on each floor, we add all the values to get the base-10 number of the given
Mayan Numerals symbol. So, 11+0+ 7200 = 7211

Now, let's try to convert another example.

• On the first floor, there are two bars and four dots, which is equivalent to
14.

• On the second floor, there is one shell, so 0x20, which is equal to 0.

• On the third floor, there are 4 dots. So 4x20² is equal to 4x400, and that is
equal to 1600.

Now, we all add the three values we got from each floor. 14+0+1600=
1614.

At this point, what about vice versa?

How do we convert base-10 numbers to Mayan numerals?

Converting a base-10 number to Mayan numerals involves understanding the Mayan numeral system, which uses a
combination of dots and bars to represent different values. Here's a step-by-step guide:

•Understand Mayan Numerals:

Mayan numerals are based on a system that uses dots for units (representing 1 to 4) and bars for fives. The bars are
written horizontally and represent 5, 10, 15, etc.
•Assign Mayan symbols:

The basic symbols are a dot (.) for 1 and a horizontal bar (-) for 5. These symbols are combined to represent different
values.

•Conversion Process:

Start by breaking down the base 10 number into its place values (e.g., thousands, hundreds, tens, and units).
For each place value, convert it into its corresponding Mayan numeral representation using dots and bars.
Combine the Mayan symbols to represent the entire number.

Here are the Mayan symbols used for different values.

A dot represents one.
A horizontal bar represents five.
Two horizontal bars represent 10.
Three horizontal bars represent 15.

In the given picture above, there is an involvement of division. In converting Mayan numerals to Base 10 numbers, we
used addition, but in this case, we are going to use division to determine the symbol on each floor. So we have the
number 3755.

• First, determine the floor where 3575 is divisible by. On the 3rd floor, it's applicable since 20² is 400 and 3575 is
divisible by 400. If you ask, why didn't we put it on the 4th floor? As you can see, on the 4th floor, the value is 20³, which
is equal to 8000. It is not allowed because it exceeds the number we are going to convert.
• Divide the 3575 by 400, and that equals 8 with a remainder of 375.
• Divide the remainder of 375 by 20, since it's the positional value of the second floor. It gives a result of 18, with a
remainder of 15.
• Now, we will not divide the 15 anymore since it doesn't exceed 19 and is already fit for the 1st floor.

So, our symbols would be:

Checking:

Third floor: 8x20² = 3200

Second floor: 18x20 = 360

First floor: 15x1=15

Total: 3575

GROUP 1 MEMBERS:

Geonzon, Jessa Mae

Dacayana, Christory Jon
Tabla, Zenette