Maya Lowlands

The Maya Lowlands are the largest cultural and geographic, first order subdivision of the Maya Region, located in eastern Mesoamerica.

The Maya Lowlands are restricted by the Gulf of Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Maya Highlands to the south and west. The precise northern and eastern limits of the Lowlands are widely agreed upon, being formed by conspicuous bodies of water. Their southern and western limits, however, are not precisely fixed, as these are restricted by 'subtle environmental changes or transitions from one zone [the Highlands] to another [the Lowlands],' rather than conspicuous geographic features.

The Lowlands fully encompass Belize, the Guatemalan department of Peten, and the Mexican states of Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo. They may further partially encompass a number of northerly Guatemalan departments, northwesterly Honduran departments, and southeasterly Mexican states.

The Lowlands are usually subdivided either into northern and southern regions, or into northern, central, and southern regions. As with the Lowlands–Highlands border, the boundaries of the Lowlands' internal subdivisions are not precisely fixed, being rather formed by gradual environmental or climatic transitions.

The Northern Lowlands are generally characterised by relatively low rainfall and high temperatures, typically ranging within 20–80 inches (510–2,030 mm) per annum and 77–95 °F (25–35 °C), respectively. Their rainy season typically lasts six or seven months during June–December, with a subsequent six- or five-month dry season. Their terrain is predominated by tropical forests in the south, gradually giving way to low bush-and-scrub forests in the north. Prominent bodies of water include Lake Bacalar and various cenotes. Prominent groupings of archaeological sites within the Northern Lowlands include the Northern Plains, the East Coast, the Puuc, and the Chenes sites.

The Northern Lowlands generally encompass portions of Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo in Mexico.

The Central Lowlands are generally characterised by relatively low rainfall and high temperatures, typically ranging about 80 inches (2,000 mm) per annum and 77–95 °F (25–35 °C), respectively. Their rainy season typically lasts eight-and-a-half months, from mid-May to January, with a subsequent dry season of three-and-a-half months, from February to mid-May. Their terrain is predominated by low east–west ridges of folded and faulted limestone, covered by tropical forests, grasslands, and wetlands. Prominent bodies of water include the Hondo, New, and Belize Rivers and their tributaries, and a roughly 910 square miles (2,400 km²) drainage basin in central Peten housing some fourteen lakes, the largest of which is Lake Peten Itza. Prominent groupings of archaeological sites within the Central Lowlands include the Belize River Valley and the Central Peten Lakes.

The Central Lowlands generally encompass portions of Peten in Guatemala, Campeche and Quintana Roo in Mexico, and Cayo, Belize [District], Orange Walk, and Corozal in Belize.