[ 1.1 ] The Early Americas
[ 1.1 ] The Early Americas
Learning Objectives
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Explain how people first reached the Americas.
Describe early civilizations and cultures of the Americas.
Identify the human and physical characteristics of regions.
Analyze how physical characteristics influenced population distribution and
settlement patterns.
[ 1.1 ] The Early Americas
Key Terms
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glaciers
settlements
surplus
civilization
city-state
causeways
quipu
terraces
culture
adobe
pueblos
Mound Builders
culture region
tribe
diffusion
pit houses
potlatch
Kachinas
clan
The First Americans
Like other early people around the world, the first Americans left no written records to
tell us where they came from or when they arrived. However, scientists have found
evidence to suggest that the first people reached the Americas sometime during the last
ice age.
The First Americans
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Populations Spread
Adapting to and Modifying Environments
The First Americans
This map depicts both the land-bridge and coastal-route theories of North American migration.
Analyze Maps Why do some scientists disagree with the land-bridge migration theory?
The First Americans
Native Americans adapted their way of life to different environments. This illustration shows a group
living along a lake.
Olmecs Develop a Civilization
Farming was a key advance for early societies in the Americas. In time, some farming
communities in the Americas grew enough surplus, or extra, food to support large
populations, and the first cities emerged.
Olmecs Develop a Civilization
The Olmecs, a tropical civilization, left behind many carvings of giant stone heads. They are generally
thought to be portraits of Olmec rulers.
Mayan Civilization
The Olmecs influenced many later peoples, including the Mayas. The early Mayas lived in
the rain forests of what are today Honduras, Belize, Guatemala, and southern Mexico.
About 3,000 years ago, they began clearing the rain forest and draining swamps to create
farmland.
Mayan Civilization
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Mayan Social Classes
Achievements in Mathematics and Astronomy
Mayan Civilization
Farming techniques developed in ancient times by the Mayas are still used by Maya farmers today.
Aztec Civilization
Long after the Maya cities were abandoned, a new civilization arose to the northwest. Its
builders were the Aztecs. The early Aztecs were nomads, people who moved from place
to place in search of food. In the 1300s, the Aztecs settled around Lake Texcoco (tays KOH
koh) in central Mexico. From there, they built a powerful empire.
Aztec Civilization
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Tenochtitlán
Religion
A Powerful Empire
Aztec Civilization
Aztecs adapted to life on an island in the middle of a lake with limited land area by using chinampas for
agriculture, even planting trees to better anchor them to the lake bed.
Aztec Civilization
Analyze Charts What does the organization of Aztec society tell us about the Aztecs’ values?
Aztec Civilization
This illustration shows Aztec warriors in battle. The Aztecs conquered many people as they built a
powerful empire.
Inca Civilization
Far to the south of the Aztecs, the Incas built one of the largest empires in the Americas.
By 1500, their empire stretched for almost 2,500 miles along the west coast of South
America.
Inca Civilization
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An Impressive Capital
Inca Achievements
Inca Civilization
This ancient Inca stone wall remains standing today.
Early North American Societies
Scholars have found evidence of complex societies among some groups of people farther
north. Traders and migrating people carried foods, goods, arts, and beliefs from Central
America and Mexico to early peoples of North America. These peoples developed many
distinct cultures in North America. A culture is the entire way of life of a people. It
includes their homes, clothing, economy, arts, and government.
Early North American Societies
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Land and People of the Southwest
Anasazi Houses
Mound Builders
Early North American Societies
Analyze Maps What modern-day states correspond to the region settled by Native Americans in the
Southwest?
Early North American Societies
The Anasazi made use of their environment by building dwellings along sheer cliffs as protection
against intruders.
Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North America
Native Americans did not belong to just one group. Instead, Native Americans included
many different people with many distinct cultures. In North America alone, there were
hundreds of Native American languages spoken. Native American cultures, too, varied
greatly, much like the cultures of the people of Europe.
Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North America
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Hunting, Gathering, and Fishing
Farming
Trade
Adapting to and Modifying Environments
Cultures of the Arctic and Subarctic Regions
Cultures of the California, Great Basin, and Plateau Regions
Cultures of the Northwest Coastal Region
Cultures of the Southwest Region
Cultures of the Southeast Region
Cultures of the Great Plains Region
Cultures of the Eastern Woodlands Region
Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North America
Groups of Native American tribes formed shared cultures in different geographic regions. Analyze
Maps Which tribes listed on this map do you know about?
Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North America
Analyze Charts How did the foods Native Americans ate influence their way of life?
Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North America
This Inuit sculpture of a bear is carved from soapstone, a type of rock mostly made up of the mineral
talc.
Religion
The many Native American groups had a wide variety of beliefs. Yet, they shared some
basic ideas.
Religion
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Close Ties to Nature
Special Ceremonies
Religion
Native Americans, such as the Kwakiutls, used nets to fish for salmon, an important food source.
The Iroquois League
The Iroquois (IHR uh kwoi) people of present-day New York State called themselves “The
People of the Long House.” They took great pride in their sturdy dwellings, called long
houses. A typical long house was about 150 feet long and 20 feet wide. Twelve or more
families lived in a long house.
The Iroquois League
The Iroquois lived in wooden long houses that were built clustered together. The long houses were
built of posts and poles covered with tree bark.
Quiz: The First Americans
What was the main reason that early settlers gradually spread across the Americas?
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They were constantly under attack from neighboring tribes.
They often relocated to find more favorable farming conditions.
They traveled far and wide to trade their goods with other tribes.
They were nomadic hunters and had to keep moving in search of food.
Quiz: Olmecs Develop a Civilization
The first cities developed because
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builders learned how to make permanent dwellings out of stone.
the social caste system made for a more effective division of labor.
farmers were able to grow more food than they needed to survive.
the invention of the calendar made it possible to predict the seasons.
Quiz: Mayan Civilization
Which group of people had the highest power in Maya society?
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farmers
laborers
nobles
warriors
Quiz: Aztec Civilization
Which represents an Aztec adaptation to their environment?
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B.
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farming in terraces
a system of causeways
a surplus of farmed crops
an accurate 365-day calendar
Quiz: Inca Civilization
What was the purpose of a quipu?
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to measure length
to indicate the season
to communicate quantities
to determine the population
Quiz: Early North American Societies
How did the Anasazi adapt to escape threats from neighboring tribes?
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by creating deep canals to serve as moats
by building sturdy stone walls
by building homes along steep cliffs
by maintaining their capital on an island
Quiz: Culture and the Physical Characteristics of North
America
Which physical feature most affected what people of a region ate?
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the region’s patterns of settlement
whether a region was flat or mountainous
the region’s climate
the region’s languages and cultures
Quiz: Religion
What was a common belief among Native American tribes?
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B.
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They could survive only by adapting to nature.
Kachinas had the power to bring good harvests.
No part of a hunted animal should ever be wasted.
The sun god was the most powerful of all the gods.
Quiz: The Iroquois League
What role did women have in the Iroquois tribe?
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They oversaw trade.
They built long houses.
They had all of the power.
They chose clan leaders.