Early Canadian Exploration and Aboriginal Peoples

Twelve question-and-answer flashcards covering Aboriginal lifestyles, early European exploration, and the origins of Canada’s

Who was John Cabot and what did he achieve in 1497?

An Italian immigrant to England, John Cabot was the first to map Canada’s Atlantic shore, landing on Newfoundland or Cape Breton Island and claiming the “New Founde Land” for England.

In what year did sustained English settlement in Canada begin?

1610.

Why did the first European explorers call Indigenous peoples “Indians”?

Because they mistakenly believed they had reached the East Indies.

Which Great Lakes Aboriginal nation were farmers and hunters similar to the Iroquois?

The Huron-Wendat.

What subsistence pattern distinguished the Cree and Dene of the Northwest?

They were hunter-gatherers.

Which Aboriginal group was nomadic and followed the bison herds?

The Sioux.

How did West Coast Indigenous peoples traditionally preserve fish?

By drying and smoking it.

Name two major impacts of European contact on Aboriginal peoples during the first 200 years of coexistence.

Large numbers died from European diseases, and Aboriginals formed strong economic, religious, and military bonds with Europeans.

Which Europeans reached Labrador and Newfoundland around 1000 AD, and where are the remains of their settlement found?

Vikings from Iceland; their settlement remains are at l’Anse aux Meadows.

Which river did Jacques Cartier explore, and which present-day cities did he first see?

The St. Lawrence River; he first saw the sites of present-day Québec City and Montreal.

Between which years did Jacques Cartier make his three voyages, and for which monarch did he claim the land?

Between 1534 and 1542, claiming the land for King Francis I of France.

From which Iroquoian word does the name “Canada” originate, and what does it mean?

It comes from "kanata," meaning “village.”