Editing Belize (section)

===Maya civilization===

{{Main|Pre-Columbian Belize}}
The [[Maya civilization]] spread across the territory of present-day Belize around 1500{{nbsp}}BCE, and flourished until around 900 CE. The recorded history of the middle and southern regions focuses on [[Caracol]], an urban political centre that may have supported over 140,000 people.<ref>{{cite journal |author= Houston, Stephen D. |author-link= Stephen D. Houston |year= 2000 |title= The Language of Classic Maya Inscriptions |journal= [[Current Anthropology]] |volume= 41 |issue= 3 |pages= 321–356 |issn= 0011-3204 |pmid= 10768879 |last2= Robertson |first2= J |last3= Stuart |first3= D |doi= 10.1086/300142|s2cid= 741601 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title= History: Site Overview|url= http://www.caracol.org/about/history/|work= Caracol Archaeological Project|publisher= Department of Anthropology, University of Central Florida|access-date= 19 February 2014|archive-date= 3 May 2014|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140503090209/http://www.caracol.org/about/history/|url-status= live}}</ref> North of the [[Maya Mountains]], the most important political centre was [[Lamanai]].<ref>{{cite book|last= Scarborough|first= Vernon L.|title= The Political Economy of Ancient Mesoamerica: Transformations During the Formative and Classic Periods|year= 2007|publisher= University of New Mexico Press|location= Albuquerque|isbn= 978-0826342980|page= 160|author2= Clark, John E.}}</ref> In the late [[Mesoamerican chronology|Classic Era]] of Maya Civilization (600–1000{{nbsp}}CE), an estimated 400,000 to 1,000,000 people inhabited the area of present-day Belize.<ref name=cs/><ref>{{cite book|last= Shoman|first= Assad|title= Thirteen chapters of a history of Belize|year= 1995|publisher= Angelus Press|location= Belize City, Belize|isbn= 978-9768052193|page= 4}}</ref>

When Spanish explorers arrived in the 16th century, the area of present-day Belize included at least three distinct Maya territories:<ref>
{{cite book
|last= Shoman|first= Assad
|title= Thirteen chapters of a history of Belize
|year= 1995|publisher= Angelus Press
|location= Belize City, Belize
|isbn= 978-9768052193|pages= 5–6
}}
</ref>

* [[Chetumal Province|Chetumal province]], which encompassed the area around [[Corozal Bay]]
* [[Dzuluinicob]] province, which encompassed the area between the lower [[New River (Belize)|New River]] and the [[Sibun River]], west to [[Tipu, Belize|Tipu]]<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.belizeanstudies.com/early-maya-resistance.html |title=Belizean studies maya resistance |access-date=21 November 2021 |archive-date=21 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211121192209/http://www.belizeanstudies.com/early-maya-resistance.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last1 = Jones| first1 = Grant D.| title = Maya Resistance to Spanish Rule: Time and History on a Colonial Frontier| date = 1989| publisher = University of New Mexico Press| location = Albuquerque, New Mexico| oclc = 20012099| hdl = 2027/mdp.39015015491791| isbn = 9780826311610| page = 98}}</ref>
* a southern territory controlled by the [[Manche Ch'ol]] Maya, encompassing the area between the [[Monkey River]] and the [[Sarstoon River]].