Mesoamerica refers to a broad geographical area in the southern part of North America, consisting of parts of modern-day Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and northern Costa Rica.

The cultures historically present in these areas include:

• Aztec, 1325–1521 CE, central Mexico
• Formative Period, 2500 BC–200 CE, La Blanca, Ujuxte, Monte Alto Culture, Mokaya Culture
• Huastec, 1000 BC–1500 CE, Hidalgo, Veracruz, San Luis Potosi and Tamaulipas
• Maya, 2600 BC–1697 CE, Mexican Southern states: Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche and Yucatan Peninsula; Central America: Belize; Guatemala; El Salvador; Honduras
• Mixe, 400–present
• Mixtec, unknown–1600 CE, western Oaxaca
• Olmec, 1500–400 BC, Veracruz and Tabasco
• Purepecha Empire or Tarascan state, 1300–1530 CE, Michoacan
• Teotihuacan, 200 BC–800 CE, near Mexico City
• Teuchitlan tradition, 300 BC – 500 CE, north-central Jalisco
• Toltec, 900–1100 CE – may be mythical
• Totonac, unknown–1500 CE, eastern Mexico
• Western Mexico shaft tomb tradition, 1500–300 CE, Michoacan, Colima, Jalisco, Nayarit
• Western Mexico shaft tomb tradition, 300 BC–400 CE, Jalisco, Nayarit, and, to a lesser extent, Colima
• Zapotec, 500 BC–1500 CE, Oaxaca

The geographical zones of Mesoamerica are extremely diverse. There are mountains, lowlands, deserts, rainforests, and coastal areas, the climate conditions varying across each.

The Colonial Period lasted from 1521 to 1821 CE.