Chapter 2: Early Cultures in Our Land
Section 1: The Earliest People
prehistory: the time before writing was developed
archaeologists: scientist who study the remains of ancient cultures
- "middens" are prehistoric garbage dumps
- Hiram Bingham, who discovered Machu Picchu, was the model for
Indiana Jones
I. Searching for Clues
A. artifacts: any item made or used by people in the past
1. pottery, tools, bone, jewelry, paintings
2. petroglyphs: pictures or symbols that convey an idea
B. fossils: the remains of living things
1. age measured by elements like carbon and fluorine
2. dendrochronology: counting the rings of a tree
C. anthropology: the study of the cultural development of human beings
II. Prehistoric Cultures / Paleo Indians
A. land bridge between Siberia and Alaska called Beringia
1. nomads: people without permanent shelters
a. followed herds of animals
b. settled in temperate climates
B. animal life was abundant / gigantic mammals
C. Clovis People / New Mexico
1. short spears
2. skilled at flint knapping (shaping into weapons)
3. may have hunted some animals to extinction
D. Folsom People / New Mexico and Great Plains
1. more advanced technology and hunting skills
2. primitive art
3. fire
E. Archaic Foragers / Great Plains
1. with fewer large animals, they became dependent on crops
2. domesticated dogs
3. less nomadic
4. atlatl: hooked, wooden shaft for dart-throwing
F. Woodland Culture
1. first true farmers; lived in fertile valleys
2. permanent shelters and villages
3. first to use bow and arrow
G. Plains Village Farmers: similar to Woodlands, but on the prairie
H. Mound Builders: constructed earthen temples, houses, and storage
I. 1500 A.D. - climate change: many Indians abandon farming
1. protohistoric: between prehistoric and recorded history
2. nomadic way of life / buffalo hunters / tipis
3. travois: sled pulled by dogs
Section 2: Historic Indian Cultures
Viceroy Antonio de Mendoza authorizes exploration of southwestern parts
of North America
I. First Encounters
A. Apache: "a gentle people"; lived a nomadic life; built wickiups
B. Wichita: barterers, people who trade one item for another
1. traded maize (corn) for meat
C. Caddo: farmers in Arkansas and Texas
1. wattle and daub: woven materials covered with mud
D. Quapaw: farmers from the north
II. Indian Culture
A. different languages, religions, and customs
B. Great Spirit and Mother Earth
1. afterlife of reward and punishment
C. totems: animal or bird Spirit Guide
D. shaman: wise medicine man
1. used herbs and prayers
2. oral histories
E. all life is connected and equal
F. polygamy: more than one wife
G. gender roles: men were hunters, women were gatherers
H. food eaten raw, roasted, boiled, or dried
1. fish, turtle, squirrel, duck
2. squash, pumpkin, corn
3. medicines: willow bark, mint, root of Black-eyed Susan