Mythology of the Mayas

Visit the links below to learn about Mayan myths related to objects in the sky, and aspects of their world.

Back to the World Map
Maya astronomers had a remarkably accurate knowledge of the apparent motion of <a href="/venus/venus.html&edu=elem&dev=">Venus</a>. They knew on what day Venus would appear again in the east after it had disappeared in the west. Venus, the morning star, was the patron planet of warfare.<p><small><em>Image courtesy of Windows to the Universe</em></small></p>

Explore Mythology of the Mayas

The Earth: Bacabs

The Maya believed the Earth was flat with four corners. Each corner was a direction shown by ...Read more

The Rain: Xib Chac

Xib Chac was the Mayan rain god. He was a fair god, and was shown by many colors. He was often ...Read more

The Moon: Ix Chel

Ix Chel, the "Lady Rainbow," was the Moon goddess in Mayan mythology. The Mayans associated ...Read more

Venus: Kukulcan

The ancient Mayans used the doorways and windows of their buildings to look at things in space. ...Read more

The Planet Mars

Mayans were sophisticated observers of the sky. Mayans used their astronomical knowledge to ...Read more

The Milky Way

Mayans seem to have thought of the Milky Way as the road along which souls walk into the underworld. ...Read more

Historical Events

Full Earth and Space Science    History Calendar (Members only)

Teacher Opportunities

Full Teacher Events Calendar (Educator Members only)

Did you know?

Did you know that the atmosphere gets thinner as you go up in altitude?

Did you know that the Earth’s magnetic field protects us from radiation from space?

 

Earth and Space Science Concept of the Day

Do you know what this word or phrase means?

Loess
xLoess : An aeolian sediment formed by the accumulation of wind-blown silt and lesser and variable amounts of sand and clay that are loosely cemented by calcium carbonate. Loess is usually homogeneous, highly porous, and is traversed by vertical capillaries t

Click on the word to find out!

Research Highlights

A Star Is Born... But How?

Daniel Wolf Savin, a scientist at Columbia University, has published a paper on the research he and his colleagues have done on how stars began. In their research, the scientists built an apparatus to...Read more


Windows to the Universe, a project of the National Earth Science Teachers Association, is sponsored in part is sponsored in part through grants from federal agencies (NASA and NOAA), and partnerships with affiliated organizations, including the American Geophysical Union, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the Earth System Information Partnership, the American Meteorological Society, the National Center for Science Education, and TERC. The American Geophysical Union and the American Geosciences Institute are Windows to the Universe Founding Partners. NESTA welcomes new Institutional Affiliates in support of our ongoing programs, as well as collaborations on new projects. Contact NESTA for more information. NASA ESIP NCSE HHMI AGU AGI AMS NOAA