The Maya
Comparison of Maya and Nightkeeper timelines
To understand the world of the Nightkeepers, it helps to know a bit about their history, and how it dovetails with that of the Maya. This is a timeline I put together as part of my background research for the series. **Some of this information is not addressed directly in Nightkeepers, and as such could be considered a mild spoiler for future books.**
In addition, I am not an expert in this field- it would take a lifetime or more to learn all that there is to know about this proud civilization. Any and all errors below are my own, and I will update and correct this information as needed. For more information and a list of citations, please see the References section of this website.
Mayan/Nightkeeper Timeline
Mayan History
Nightkeeper History
- 1350 B.C.-The first stone temples are erected by the Olmec, predecessors of the Maya.
Fleeing Akhenaten’s religious persecution, the First Father brings the surviving Nightkeepers and their servants, the winikin, to the New World.
- 800 B.C.-The first villages are built in the lowland Maya region
The Nightkeepers guide their hosts in learning astronomy, science, and farming.
- 600 B.C.-The first known writing in the New World begins to appear, though it is not yet formalized.
The magi continue their own studies, seeking to rediscover powers lost when the Egyptian pharaoh killed their
warrior-priests and burned their texts.
- 400 B.C.-100 B.C.-The Maya spread northward through present-day Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, El Salvador and the Yucatan Peninsula.
The Nightkeepers disperse, acting as spiritual leader for the various villages. They protect the Maya from the creatures of the night, while the Mayan Daykeepers are charged with overseeing the prophecies and foretellings.
- 36 B.C.-The first inscription of the Long Count Calendar
Fulfilling their vow to continue their culture until the end-time, the Nightkeepers teach their hosts about the cycle of
time and the Great Conjunction.
- A.D. 199 -The first known carving is done in the formal Mayan writing system
The Nightkeepers teach their hosts to write, encouraging them to record their history in stone because they have learned
firsthand that paper can be destroyed too easily.
- A.D. 300-800 -The height of the Classic Maya; many cities and pyramids are built, civilization and art flourishes, and
life is good.
The magi have returned to full power and are revered throughout the land, but with knowledge and wealth comes
greed.
- A.D. 850-1000.-Cities and villages are abandoned, warfare increases, human sacrifice increases, drought wipes out the
crops and the Mayan population crashes abruptly.
In 985, renegade magi and shaman-priests team up to form the Order of Xibalba and seek to overthrow the
Nightkeepers. The Banol Kax are loosed upon the land, bringing wholesale slaughter. The Nightkeepers manage to push the
demons back behind the barrier, but a weak spot remains, deep within a subterranean cave system. The Nightkeepers call
this spot the intersection, and built a great temple around it.
- A.D. 1000-1500-The Maya persist as a centralized kingdom, though they are overshadowed and influenced by the
bloodthirsty Aztec and Toltec. Warfare and human sacrifice are common.
The Nightkeepers, who practice autosacrifice (self-bloodletting) and loving rites in their magic, struggle
against the teachings of the Order of Xibalba, whose members practice ritual sacrifice, forced sex, and dark magic. The
Nightkeepers remain with the weakening Maya, while the members of the order take power beside the Aztec, Inca and Toltec
kings.
- A.D. 1519-The Spanish Conquistadors arrive.
The Nightkeepers warn that the white man from the east brings death, but nobody listens.
- A.D. 1520-1550-The Conquistadors slaughter the polytheistic priests of the Pre-Columbian civilizations, destroy their
temples and burn their books.
Both Nightkeepers and the members of the Order of Xibalba are slaughtered en masse and their spell books are
destroyed. A few Nightkeepers survive and flee northward. It is believed that no order members remain alive.
- A.D. 1600-1880-The writing system of the Maya is lost. Their spoken language and culture persist in isolated pockets of Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala, and predominate in Belize. The modern Maya often follow a pantheistic version of
Christianity that includes the old gods. Some Daykeepers remain, and still practice the ancient rituals.
The Nightkeepers live among the Hopi, and suffer with them as European settlers take their lands.
- A.D. 1890-The Dresden Codex, one of four known examples of Maya writing in book form, is partially deciphered.
The jaguar king of the Nightkeepers has a vision and leads his people back to the Mayan lands, where he finds a cache of
vital artifacts he can use to fund the Nightkeepers’ expansion and training.
- A.D. 1900-present-Many of the modern Maya suffer as minorities in most of the countries in which they live. Over time,
they regain knowledge of their culture and writing system, and begin to reconnect with their history. Some visionary Maya
speak out about the end of the Long Count Calendar and what it will mean for mankind in 2012… and potentially beyond.
In the final century before the Great Conjunction, the Nightkeepers study and train, looking towards the great
battle that will be fought with the Banol Kax. In 1984, the jaguar king’s misplaced faith calls the Banol Kax to earth
briefly, and all but a few Nightkeepers are killed. As the years tick down to 2012, the survivors are hidden and raised in
secret by their winikin. In 2008, when the barrier reactivates and the final countdown begins, the last jaguar king of
the Nightkeepers must reunite his scattered warriors and face the demons. . . or all will be lost. (Nightkeepers,
6/08)
- To learn a little about ancient Maya history and culture as it pertains to the stories, click
here.
