When most people think of the word ‘pet’, the first words that come to mind are usually dogs, cats, parrots, etc. When the Mayans thought of pets, the first animal they had in mind was the turkey. You might ask yourself what possible use could these advanced ancient people have had with an annoying bird whose main claim to fame is being a relative of the T-Rex. Apparently, Mayans have been using these big birds a long time before they became America’s favorite Thanksgiving meal.
While the Mayans most likely ate turkeys like most other people, they also found many other uses for the birds that were quite unique to them. Mayans would often pick their bones and feathers to create various tools, from fans to musical instruments. Archaeologists have found many turkey bones in Guatemala where the Mayans lived, which makes it very likely that they have domesticated them for their wonderful benefits. Raising turkeys as pets isn’t the only weird thing that the Mayans did. They also gave their children names based on the calendar. Here’s the reason why…
They Had Their Own Ball Game
Every civilization in history has had some form of at least one sports game that they either invented or adopted from other cultures. Athletic games are an important part of every civilization and are a perfect way for males to let out aggression in a non-violent way while competing to rise to the top of their status hierarchy (at least in a historical sense). These games would often also feature some form of group play, which helps the development of social skills and a sense of belonging. If you visit cities like Chichen-Itza, where the Mayans were once a dominant force, you’ll find many ancient ball courts like the one in the picture above.
One of the most famous games played by the Mayans was a ball game called “pitz”. It was a unique mix of soccer and basketball, where players would kick a heavy rubber ball roughly as big as a soccer ball, with the goal of shooting it through very tall stone hoops. Players weren’t allowed to use their hands to play, and would often wear protective gear around their ribs, knees, and arms, to avoid potential harm coming to them. It sounds like fun! Despite how awesome this game may sound, it wasn’t just a fun way to pass the time. Pitz was a serious game with strong religious roots, and the Mayans believed their survival depended on it.
Pitz Was A Very Serious Religious Game
It's not every day that a civilization’s entire mythology rests on a playful ball game. This is exactly the case with the Mayans and pitz, a game that is part and parcel of their entire creation myth. You see, the Mayans believed that life on earth began after two godly brothers challenged the lords of the underworld to a game of pitz and won. It's almost as if the Christians believed that the world would end because God played a game of football with the devil and scored a touchdown.
This legacy means the game of pitz is absolutely sacred for the Mayans, which makes every game both a spiritual experience and also a literal matter of life and death. The former is because of the religious background behind the story, symbolizing the devoted fight between good and evil. The latter is because losing the game might just result in your death through an act of human sacrifice. This is one game you definitely don't want to play while drunk or high as the Mayans after were.
How Mayans Chose Their Children's Names
Most people today take a great deal of time to name their babies. Mayans had a much simpler way to go about these things, they would choose their child's name from a short and predefined list that was based on the current day in their Mayan calendar.
For the Mayans, names were an important part of their culture and a way for them to pay honor to their gods. We've already explained in depth why their calendar had a very spiritual and important element to it that supersedes any other consideration. For Mayans, failure to follow the calendar meant the probability of death. That's why they chose to base their newborn children's names on the day in the calendar that the birth took place. The Mayans also engaged in some excruciating and dangerous tattoo work over their bodies. Here's why…
Some Mayans Got Painful, And Sometimes Deadly, Tattoos
After hearing about everything from mind-altering enemas to the world's first dental grills, you'd expect tattoos to be one of their more normal routines. Almost everyone gets tattoos nowadays, it's safe, cheap and a creative outlet. Back in the Mayan days though, these body arts were quite rare.
Most Mayan men would get tattooed after getting married, females would also get them, although at a lower rate. The main reason for the considerably lower popularity of tattoos in the Mayan culture was because they were extremely painful. They were done using scalpels that would literally cut into the flesh. This would often cause disease and infections. So if one Mayans who got tattoos and survived, they were looked upon as heroes.