history of people & the 1 st americans oldest human relative found: “ardi” 4.4 million yrs...
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History of People & the 1st Americans
• Oldest human relative found: “Ardi” 4.4 million yrs ago in Ethiopia.
People began to migrate…
• Reasons for migration:1. Search for food, shelter, and water 2. Avoid conflicts with neighboring tribes3. Curiosity
The 1st Americans!
• Where: Across the Bering Straight • How: Walked- People were nomads and relied
on hunting and gathering. • Why: Probably following the food source• When: Archaeologists believe during the last
ice age: 12,000 yrs ago or 10,000 B.C.E.
The Bering Straight- as sea levels dropped…land appeared
The Bering Straight Today…
The 1st Americans or Native Americans
• The 1st people into North and South America are Native Americans
• Native = Original inhabitant • American = Person of North or South America• “Indians” is NOT correct! The only Indians on this
planet are people from the country, India.• We often call NA (Native Americans) “Indians”
b/c Christopher Columbus made a mistake!
Remember the difference!
Indians Native Americans
How do we know about Native Americans?
*The 1st Americans lived during pre-history (before written records), so they didn’t leave us any written records like books or articles.
*We do use things like, artifacts, fossils, and hieroglyphics.
Native American Hieroglyphics
NA Culture Areas of North America
Major NA Tribes of North Carolina
• Lumbee - many were part of the famous/infamous “Lowery Gang”- retaliated against racist hate groups and oppressive (to hold one down; not give full freedoms, etc) government.
• Cherokee • Tuscarora• Catawba• Hatteras• Cape Fear• Waxhaw
Town Creek NA Mound North Carolina
NA Life-Styles
• Nomadic/ Hunted and Gathered • Fished and whaled • Slash and Burn farming (once learned)- slash
and burn down forests. Provides 2 things:1. Clear area for a small village2. Excellent soil for farming
PROBLEM: Not sustainable- could only do it once, then they had to move on.
• No paper money, so they used a barter system (trading)
NA Housing1. Tepees: tent-like homes made from wood
and animal hides (often buffalo).* Tepees were common w/ the PLAINS (central part) NA.
2. Wigwams Wigwam means house in the Abenaki tribe. They are small houses.
3.) Longhouses – were used by the Iroquois tribes (EASTERN WOODLAND PEOPLE). As many as 60 people could live in one.
4. Igloos: used by the Inuit tribes (PACIFIC NORTHWEST) or “real people.” We often call them Eskimos. The word Eskimo translates to “eater of raw meat.”
5.) Pueblos: “small towns” in Spanish. Made out of sundried mud bricks called “adobe.”
People of the SOUTHWEST were famous for these.
A more modern pueblo:
NA Families & Political Structure:
• Clan- Members of the same family• Tribe- Many clans joining together• Chief- Head of the tribe How did Native Americans get along w/out court systems, police, jails, etc? Do we, in 2010, rely on our community &
family as much as NAs did?
NA Clothing & Survival Tools:*Remember… everything the NA made came
from the land. NOTHING was wasted! • Moccasins- made from tanned hides of deer,
moose, elk, or buffalo.
• Clothing- made from animal skins
• Canoes
• Kayaks
• Weapons – Were made out of WOOD and STONE. Knowledge of how to work w/ metal came much later!
a. Spears & Arrowheads
B. Bows and Arrows
C. Tomahawks
• Snowshoes
• Headresses: worn for various reasons: 1.) show one’s prestige, 2.) ceremonies, 3.) during battle, etc.
• Totem Poles – thought to tell stories, celebrate important events, show change in leadership, etc.
• Toboggan- Basically a sled that was used to carry game across snow or rough terrain.
The Inuit (Eskimos) would often use sled dogs to pull them, the sleds, game, and supplies!
Mr. Meyer- Modern Day Mushing!Montana, USA
*Native Americans lived on the North & South American continents for THOUSANDS of years before the “white man” ever stepped foot on to their soil.
• That all changed in 1492…