How many levels are in the Mayan heavens?

Maya cosmology traditionally describes thirteen levels in the heavens.

The heavens formed the upper part of a layered universe, with the earthly or mortal realm between the sky and the underworld. This three-part structure is often summarized as Skyworld, Middleworld, and Underworld. A great world tree—frequently represented as a ceiba—connected these realms, allowing communication among gods, ancestors, spirits, and humans.

The number thirteen was especially important in Maya timekeeping and religious thought. The sacred 260-day calendar combined thirteen recurring day numbers with twenty day names, producing 260 unique combinations. The thirteen heavenly levels therefore belong to the same broader symbolic world as the calendar’s repeating number cycle.

The familiar answer is thirteen, but descriptions of Maya cosmology are not identical in every source or period. The nine-level underworld is often paired with the thirteen heavens, although scholars note that evidence for a fixed ninefold underworld varies by tradition. These differences do not change the conventional answer to this quiz question: the Maya heavens are commonly said to have thirteen levels.