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US history
Course: US history > Unit 1
Lesson 2: Before contact- Native American societies before contact
- Native American culture of the Southwest
- Native American culture of the West
- Native American culture of the Northeast
- Native American culture of the Southeast
- Native American culture of the Plains
- Lesson summary: Native American societies before contact
- Native American societies before contact
- Native American societies before European contact
- Pre-colonization European society
- African societies and the beginning of the Atlantic slave trade
- European and African societies before contact
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Lesson summary: Native American societies before contact
Summary of key events and concepts in North America prior to European contact.
Before Europeans arrived in North America, Native American groups developed into distinct and complex societies in response to the unique environments they inhabited.
Key terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Three sisters | "Three sisters" refers to corn, squash, and beans. Farming all three plants together helped to establish more permanent and larger settlements. |
| Corn (Maize) | A major crop in the Americas that contributed to the development of large and complex settlements for Native Americans. |
| Irrigation | The process of redirecting bodies of water through channels to supply farmland. |
| Pueblos | A tribe of Native Americans who settled in the present-day American Southwest. |
| Mississippians | Native American peoples who lived in modern-day Missouri and Illinois. |
| Algonquians | Native American peoples of the east coast who spoke related languages. |
| Hunter-gatherer | A person who obtains most or all of their food by hunting, fishing, and foraging. |
Native North America
Native societies in North America developed strong regional distinctions based on their environments.
Core historical theme
Impact of environment on Native settlement patterns: Geographical and environmental factors shaped the development of Native American societies, including their migration and settlement patterns throughout the United States. Some Native societies created innovations in agriculture, like irrigation, to help sustain permanent settlements.
Review question
- How did environment and geography determine migration and hunting patterns for pre-Columbian societies?
Want to join the conversation?
How did the Europeans over throw strong societies like the native american tribes?(14 votes)
Actually it was one thing - disease. Natives didn't have immunity to the diseases that the Europeans brought through their animals (ex: pigs), so historians estimate 50-90% natives died because of lack of immunity, and knowledge about how to deal with epidemics.(20 votes)
Why so many articles(10 votes)
The topic is important, and deserves so much more than articles. It deserves books, doctoral dissertations and movies.(8 votes)
Am I the only one that feels that these don't give us all the answers to the questions following? Or am I missing things in the docs, and I should read slower?(10 votes)- Probably you are not the only one. The questions are for you to ponder, they are not "did you get the facts that were shared above" things. You may well be missing things. Many times, I need to read the articles more than once.(5 votes)
Which native american societies used a form of primitive communism?(6 votes)- completamente! al parecer la inclemencia del clima fue el factor determinante para la cultura americana, dado los canstantes cambios de agricola a nomada(0 votes)
How did beans benefit corn and squash other than the fact that beans used the cornstalk as a trellis to grow on?(2 votes)- Beans are legumes, which take nitrogen from the air and leave it in the soil, where it benefits the other stuff that is later grown there.(5 votes)
Is Paleo-Indian a part of the pre-Columbian societies?(3 votes)
How did the N.Americans interact with the S.Americans.What did they trade with each other. Did some S.Americans settle in the north and vice versa?(3 votes)- why so many articles(2 votes)
- Native Americans and their heritage are important topics. If Khan Academy were to skimp on the lessons, learners might get the idea that the Americas were empty before, and improved by, European invaders arrived.(3 votes)
What is all the towns in North American?(3 votes)- I don't understand your question. Before "contact" there were no "towns" in North America. Is that what you're asking?(0 votes)
- Why did they decide to settle on one place?(2 votes)
because you needed many people to farm an area(2 votes)
