The Olmec were the first major civilization in Mexico. They lived in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, in the present-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco, and had their centre in the city of La Venta.

The Olmec flourished roughly from as early as 1500 BCE to about 400 BCE. They were the first Mesoamerican civilization and laid many of the foundations for the civilizations that followed, such as the Maya.

Look at the map below to get a sense of where the Olmec lived. If you are not familiar with the geography of Mexico and Central America, look at an atlas or globe now to put this into context. Also, take note of the materials that they were trading. What does this tell us about them?

map from Latin American Studies http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/olmec/Olmec_Trade_Routes.gif

The Gulf of Mexico's lowlands is generally considered the birthplace of the Olmec culture, and remained the heartland of this civilization during its existence. This area has swampy lowlands and low hills, ridges, and volcanoes. The Tuxtlas Mountains rise sharply in the north, along the Gulf of Mexico's Bay of Campeche. Here the Olmec constructed permanent city-temple complexes at San Lorenzo Tenochtitlán, La Venta, Tres Zapotes, and Laguna de los Cerros.

San Lorenzo remained the Olmec capital up until about 900 BCE, when the central city became La Venta, which remained in use until the fall of the Olmec around 400 BCE. Possible river or weather changes caused this movement to occur.

Text in this section adapted from Boundless - The Olmec