Maya

The word “Maya” means a member of the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica whose civilisation flourished in what is now Mexico and Central America, known for its cities, writing system, and calendar. In plain terms, either the Mesoamerican people/civilisation, or (in Hindu/Buddhist philosophy) the illusion of the physical world.

“Maya” is pronounced MEYE-uh (/ˈmaɪə/ in IPA).

Here is “Maya” used in a sentence: “Archaeologists have uncovered a huge Maya city hidden under the jungle canopy.”

“Maya” is a noun.

The word “Maya” comes from Sanskrit. The Mesoamerican sense comes from the Maya people's own name for themselves; the philosophical sense is from Sanskrit māyā, meaning "illusion" or the power that creates it.

“Maya” is a fairly common word in modern English.

“Maya” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a member of the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica whose civilisation flourished in what is now Mexico and Central America, known for its cities, writing system, and calendar.

Maya generally refers to the Mesoamerican people and their civilization, and is often used as the adjective too. Many scholars reserve 'Mayan' specifically for the family of languages the Maya speak.

The Maya were a civilization centered in what is now southern Mexico and Central America, known for their cities, writing system, and calendar. The Aztecs were a separate, later empire based in central Mexico.

In Hindu and Buddhist thought, maya is the idea that the everyday physical world is an illusion masking a deeper spiritual reality. The Maya civilization is an unrelated people who happen to share the spelling.

Yes. Millions of Maya people still live in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, and neighboring countries, where many continue to speak Mayan languages and maintain cultural traditions.