Olmec institutional forms, monuments, arts, and artifacts appears to have influenced other cultures in Mesoamerica.

The Olmecs are the oldest known civilization of Mesoamerica. Their period extend from the year 1200 BCE to the year 400 BCE. They are seen as ancestors of the following peoples that settled in vast zones of present-day Mexico and Central America. That includes the two greatest Indian civilizations of the region in the pre-Columbian era: the Mayas and the Aztecs.