Pre-Columbian Native American Societies and European Perceptions

Vocabulary flashcards covering migration routes, major Native societies, cultural patterns, religious outlooks, and contrasting European perceptions.

Bering Strait Migration

The route by which bands of hunters and fishers crossed from Asia into the Americas tens of thousands of years ago.

Pacific Island Seafaring Migrants

Groups who reached the Americas by traveling across the Pacific Ocean in boats, supplementing over-land migration.

Cahokia

A large Mississippian city north of present-day Mexico, located near the Mississippi River, noted for its massive population, manufacturing hub, and extensive trade network.

Mississippian Civilizations

A network of Cahokia and its dependent provinces characterized by mound-building, complex politics, and large urban centers.

Puebloan Societies

Native peoples of the arid Southwest who built planned towns, engineered elaborate irrigation systems, and engaged in long-distance trade.

Little Ice Age (Impact on Native Societies)

A period of climatic cooling that undermined large-scale agriculture, eroded trust in leaders, and pushed Cahokia and Puebloans toward smaller, more dispersed settlements.

Native Land Usage

Land was viewed as a communal resource rather than a commodity to be permanently owned or sold.

Native Material Culture

Status and generosity were prized over accumulation of wealth; possessions served social and ceremonial purposes more than private gain.

Native Social Equality

Societies strove to prevent hunger and sharp class divisions, fostering broad access to community resources.

Gender Roles in Native Societies

Responsibilities were relatively balanced; women enjoyed authority over household decisions, agriculture, and sometimes lineage (matrilineal descent).

Kinship and Community over Individualism

Collective ties, spiritual bonds, and communal councils outweighed notions of individual autonomy prized by Europeans.

Native Religious Worldview

No strict divide between the natural and supernatural; spiritual power infused daily life, and ceremonies sought to harness it for community welfare.

Inclusivist Religious Outlook

A willingness to incorporate multiple deities, rituals, and spiritual practices rather than insisting on exclusivity.

Native Conception of Freedom

Absence of rigid laws and coercive authority; personal conduct guided by kinship, custom, and consensus—viewed by Europeans as ‘barbaric.’