Mesoamerican
The Aztecs would build their houses similar to mountains. They did this because they believed the mountains protected the rain from coming in and hitting their buildings. The great city Tenochtitlan is a great example of Aztec Architecture.
The Aztecs also ate the corn right off the cob and used the kernels in soup, called pozole. The corn meal dough was often combined with beans and vegetables, wrapped in corn husks and steamed to prepare what the Aztecs called tamales.
It came in varieties that differed in color, texture, size and prestige, and was eaten as corn tortillas, tamales or ātōlli, maize gruel. The other constants of Aztec food were salt and chili peppers and the basic definition of Aztec fasting was to abstain from these two flavors.
Common Aztec homes were made of adobe (sun dried brick made from adobe clay). The main area of the Aztec shelter was one room split up equally into four areas.
Materials included in common house construction included wood, straw, stone, sand, lime, and clay. Straw would often be used for roofs. Adobe bricks, very common in the construction of houses in the Aztec empire, would be made from water, sand, clay, and a material such as straw.
Civilizations like the Olmec, Maya, Aztec and Inca all built pyramids to house their deities, as well as to bury their kings. In many of their great city-states, temple-pyramids formed the center of public life and were the site of much holy ritual, including human sacrifice.