The First Americans

1. The First Americans

2. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

3. Themes • Origins of Native Americans in Western Hemisphere • Diversity of lifestyle • Changing nature of Indian societies before European contact

4. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Southwest • Eastern Woodlands • Mississippian • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

6. Native Americans and Origins • Many anthropologists and historians agree humans lived in North American about 35,000 BC • How did they arrive…? • Bering Land Bridge

7. Map of Bering Land Bridge

8. Locations of Selected Native American Peoples, 1500 AD

9. Farming • Access to food = key • Agricultural Origins • 8000 B.C. Middle East • 5000 B.C. Western Hemisphere

10. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

11. Major Mesoamerican Cultures Aztecs Mayans Incas

12. Major Mesoamerican Cultures (Aztecs) • Became dominant power by 1400s • Capitals = Tenochtitlan • Pop: 300,000 (bigger than a city in Europe)

13. Religion • Polytheistic (The worship of many gods) • Aztec honored over 200 deities

14. Aztecs • Became dominant power by 1400s • Capitals = Tenochtitlan • Pop: 300,000 (bigger than an city in Europe) • Still expanding their empire in early 1500s

15. Aztec Agriculture • Farming - Irrigation network created fertile cropland and access to fresh water

16. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

17. Major SouthwestCultures Anasazi Hohokam Mogollon

18. Southwest Civilization • Know for its dry climate but farming was important • Chaco Canyon was a center for trade • Constructed mud block structure and cities

19. Southwest Cultures • Anasazi culture declined by 12th and 13th centuries as rain levels dropped. • Large communities most likely dissolved into smaller tribes and bands • Hohokam and Mogollon cultures persist to this day

20. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

21. Pacific Northwest

22. Pacific Northwest • Bark: used for clothing, baskets, etc. • When softened it could be fashioned into diapers for babies • Lumber: Canoes, homes (longhouses), etc. • Longhouses were very large: 100 x 40 ft

23. Pacific Northwest - Seafood/Salmon • Hunter/gatherers • Seafood was the foundation of their diet • Fish could be caught in many way • Fish were preserved by drying and smoking • Key = Abundance • Clams, crabs, and other shellfish were eaten • Whales were hunted in some areas

24. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

25. Mississippian

26. Mississippian • Mississippian culture emerged about 700 AD • Cahokia was located near present-day St. Louis

27. Cahokia Mounds • Covered about 125 sq miles • 20,000 residents • Built platform mounds • Served as temples and homes for chiefs

28. Mississippian • Mississippian culture emerged about 700 AD • Cahokia was located near present-day St. Louis • After 1200 it entered a period of decline

29. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

30. Iroquois

31. Iroquois: A Confederation of Five Separate Tribes • Confederation of tribes that number around 10,000 total • Mohawks • Oneidas • Onondagas • Cayugas • Senecas

32. Political Structure • Council Government • Each tribe in confederacy sent delegates/representatives to council meetings

33. Iroquois Society • Homes = Longhouses • 25 ft wide • Up to 200 ft in length • Several families would live in each longhouse • Property was owned communally • Division of labor between men/women: • Men: hunted/fished; warriors • Women: farmed and gathered • A significant portion of their diet came from farmed products

34. Iroquois Society • Homes = Longhouses • 25 ft wide • Up to 200 ft in length • Several families would live in each longhouse • Property was owned communally • Division of labor between men/women: • Men: hunted/fished; warriors • Women: farmed and gathered • A significant portion of their diet came from farmed products

35. Women in Iroquois Society • Descent was matrilineal; • Husband moved into home of wife’s family • houses were headed by women • Women could divorce their husbands • Women selected all delegates to the Iroquois Council and influenced policy

36. New England

37. New England • Northern New England • Hunter-gathers: Very Mobile • Spring and summer lived near coasts; moved inland for fall and winter to hunt game animals • 15,000-20,000 population in 1600 • Southern New England • Hunted and Farmed (at times up to 2/3 of diet) • 55,000-80,000 population in 1600

38. Farming Methods • Fields were cleared by girdling and with fire • “Three Sisters” of agriculture • Corn, beans, and squash were planted together • Corn drew Nitrogen • Beans added Nitrogen • Farming had a major impact on the environment

39. Introduction • Origins • Regional Diversity • Mesoamerica • Western • Southwest • Pacific Northwest • Mississippian • Eastern Woodlands • Iroquois • New England • Conclusion • Key Terms: • Bering Land Bridge • Teotihuacan • Aztec • Anasazi • Cahokia • Iroquois • Hiawatha

40. Review • Origins of Native Americans • Tremendous differences among Indian Peoples • Compare and contrast life; what ere some important traits of people living in different regions?

41. Source • http://college.cengage.com/history/lecturepoints/part01_lecture01/part01_lecture01.html