NATIVE NATIVE AMERICAAMERICA
Northwest
Coast
Plateau
California & Basin Plains Northeast
Southeast
Southwest
FAST FACTSFAST FACTS• Native Americans or First Nations are the
official terms for the peoples that are considered the first to live in the Americas
• The term “American Indian” was started by Christopher Columbus, who was looking for & thought he had found India when he crossed the ocean from Europe
• Some tribes were hunter-gatherers while others were mostly farmers
• There were over 2000 Native American tribes before Europeans came
• There are 561 recognized tribes in the U.S. today
• Only about 2% of the U.S. population is considered Native American
RESERVATIONSRESERVATIONS• Land managed by a Native American tribe
under the United States Department of Interior’s Bureau of Indian Affairs
• After the Native Americans lost wars with the white settlers, they also lost most of their land
• Treaties between the Native Americans & the U.S. government established land that only the Native Americans could own
• At first, the U.S. government made the Native Americans move onto the reservations & wouldn’t allow them to leave. Several wars were started because of this & today the Native Americans are free to live on the reservation or leave
• There are 300 Indian Reservations in the U.S. today
• Each Native American tribe living on a reservation is considered a nation & has some rights to make their own laws, similar to the way a state can make some of their own laws
• Some people who live on reservations are considered among of the poorest people in the world. They may lack electricity, running water & adequate health care. The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is the poorest place in the U.S.
• Gambling has become the biggest industry for the Native Americans ever since the government allowed casinos to be built on reservations
TRAIL OF TEARSTRAIL OF TEARS• In 1830, President Andrew Jackson signed the
Indian Removal Act
• This law forced the Native Americans living east of the Mississippi River to move to the West
• Over 100,000 Native Americans were forced to move
• The Trail of Tears was what the Cherokee people called this forced move because over 4000 Cherokee people died or were killed during the move
END OF THE TRAILEND OF THE TRAIL
ANIMALSANIMALS
• American bison
• Mustang horse
• Gray wolf
• Porcupine
AMERICAN BISONAMERICAN BISON
Photo credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services
• Although also called the American buffalo, the bison is not a true buffalo
• The largest land animal in America. It is about 6 feet tall & can weigh 2000 pounds
• Lives about 20 years
• Grazes like a cow
• There were once around 60 million bison in the West
• Were hunted nearly to extinction & by 1893 there were only about 300 left, but they are doing better now
• Today, most bison live on ranches & are raised for meat, but there are a few wild herds in the West
• Were the center of life for the Plains Tribes of Native Americans
• Provided the Native Americans with meat & their skins were used for clothing & shelter (teepees)
• No part of the animal was wasted
• Because the bison gave up its life to help the Native Americans survive, it was greatly honored as part of their religion
MUSTANG HORSEMUSTANG HORSE
GRAY WOLF
PORCUPINEPORCUPINE
PLAINS PLAINS PEOPLESPEOPLES• 2 basic types of Native Americans lived in the
Plains region: mostly nomadic & mostly stationary• Examples of the nomadic tribes: Blackfoot,
Comanche, Cheyenne, Apache• Examples of the stationary tribes: Pawnee,
Omaha, Wichita, Mandan• The nomadic tribes were mostly hunters, following
the migration of the herds of bison. They sometimes grew crops like maize & tobacco
• The stationary tribes lived in villages, grew crops & hunted bison
• The bison were hunted any time during the year, except during winter
• Sometimes, several tribes gathered together to hunt the bison
• Even when guns were introduced, they preferred to use the bow & arrow because it took too long to reload a gun
• The people would gain extra weight during hunting season so that they could survive through the winter when they couldn’t hunt & food was scarce
FOODFOOD
• Maize
• Beans
• Squash
• Maple syrup
MAIZMAIZEE
• Native to the Americas
• Requires the help of humans to reproduce itself because the seeds are covered with a thick husk & are not able to scatter on their own
• Grows well under a wide variety of conditions
• The seed may be eaten whole, after it is cooked, or made into corn meal
CORN HUSK MOCCASSINS - CORN HUSK MOCCASSINS - IROQOUISIROQOUIS
The husk of the corn was woven into masks, rugs, baskets, bed mats & dolls by Native Americans
BEANBEANSS
SQUASSQUASHH
THREE SISTERSTHREE SISTERS• Maize, beans & squash
• The 3 crops were planted together
• The tall maize plant supported the climbing bean plants & the beans gave a valuable nutrient to the maize
• The squash grew between the hills so that the leaves from the maize & bean plants could prevent weeds from growing
MUSICMUSIC• Was a very important part of Native American
history & education
• Used in ceremonies & to tell stories in order to pass ancient customs along to each new generation
• Mostly involved singing with drums & rattles as the only instruments
• Ritual dances often accompanied the music
The Native American flute was used in courtship, healing, meditation & spiritual rituals
RELIGIONRELIGION• Believed in a creator, called the Great
Spirit, who controlled everything
• Believed that everyone & everything has a spirit & that spirits control the weather, interact with humans, or live in the underworld
• Religious beliefs were very influenced by their method of obtaining food, whether hunting or farming
• Most Native Americans had some type of shaman or Medicine Man (although the shaman could also be a woman)
• A Medicine Man was a human that was believed to be able to create a link between humans & spirits
• A substance that affects the mind might be used during ceremonies, believed to enable a person to connect with the spirits. Peyote is one example
TEPEETEPEE• The word tepee comes from the Lakota
language for “dwelling”• A cone-shaped tent, usually made of
animal skin• Was a movable home, warm in winter, cool
in summer & dry during the rain• The opening at the top was like a chimney
& allowed an open fire to be used in the middle of the tepee
• A flap over the door allowed for fresh air when open, privacy & warmth when closed
• Most tepees were decorated with dyed porcupine quills, bison horns & tails, horse hair or bear claws. Only a few tepees were painted, using designs of animals, hunts or things seen in the night sky
POWWOWPOWWOW• Powwow is a Native American word meaning “spiritual leader” and is a gathering of Native American people
• Could involve one tribe or several tribes
• Was generally a yearly occurrence, but could occur on special occasions when the tribe(s) needed to discuss something like a treaty
© Katherine Keith, Healthy on Purpose
• During a powwow, the people dance, sing & socialize
CitationsDemas, Antonia. Food is Elementary: A Hands-On
Curriculum for Young Students. 119-21. New York: Food Studies, Inc., 2001.
www.mrdonn.org, 2006.www.religioustolerance.org/nataspir.htm, 1995-2008www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalowww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_reservationswww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maizewww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_american_musicwww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_americanswww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plains_indianswww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powwowwww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shamanismwww.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tipis
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