Inca Empire

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/inca-empire

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the imperial period?Roughly 1438 to 1533 CE
2. What is the imperial administrative structure?Divided into four suyus (regions) centered on Cusco
3. What was the Inca Empire and where did it grow?The Inca Empire, called Tawantinsuyu, grew from a small kingdom in the Cusco Valley in the early 13th century and became the largest empire in pre‑Columbian America.
4. How did the Inca build big stone cities without wheels or iron?They used polygonal masonry, cutting and fitting massive stones precisely without mortar, and moved the blocks by human labor and simple tools.

Ayllu: The fundamental social unit in the Inca Empire, typically a kinship-based community.
Quipu: A complex system of knotted cords used by the Inca for record-keeping and communication.
Sapa Inca: The supreme ruler of the Inca Empire, considered divine and the son of the sun god Inti.