A NEW WORLD OF MANY CULTURES 1491-1607

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, peoples, and cultural regions from the notes.

Pre-Columbian land-bridge migration

Migrants from Asia crossed the Bering Land Bridge into North America about 40,000 years ago.

Pre-Columbian discovery and settlement

The original discovery, exploration, and settlement of North and South America occurred at least 10,000 years before Columbus.

Native population in 1490s

Estimated population ranged from 50 million to 100 million people.

Maya civilization

A major Mesoamerican civilization (AD 300–800) known for remarkable city-building in the rainforest and a stable food supply.

Aztec civilization

Dominated central Mexico and parts of Central America with a powerful, centralized state.

Inca civilization

South American empire with organized society, extensive trade, and calendars based on precise observations.

Algonquian language family

One of the largest Native American language families in the Northeast; among 20+ families with over 400 languages.

Siouan language family

A major language family of the Great Plains.

Athabaskan language family

Language family in the Southwest (and Alaska), including Navajo and Apache.

Hohokam

Desert-dwelling southwestern culture (New Mexico/Arizona) with irrigation farming and settlements in caves, under cliffs, or multistoried buildings.

Anasazi

Ancestral Puebloans of the Southwest known for irrigation and multistoried cliff dwellings.

Pueblos

Southwestern communities that practiced irrigation agriculture, often with multistoried buildings.

Northwest longhouses/plank houses

Permanent longhouses or plank houses built from wood, extending from Alaska to northern California.

Totem poles

Carved wooden poles by Northwest Coast peoples depicting family lineage, beliefs, and events.

Great Plains

Region with many nomadic buffalo-hunting tribes; lived in teepees and earthen lodges; cultivated maize, beans, and squash; engaged in trade.

Teepees

Cone-shaped, portable dwellings made from animal skins stretched over a wooden frame used by Plains tribes.

Earthen lodges

Dwellings built with earth and timber, common among Plains peoples near rivers.

Cahokia

Largest mound-building settlement in the Midwest, with up to about 30,000 inhabitants.

Adena-Hopewell culture

Ohio Valley mound-building culture known for large earthen mounds.

Iroquois Confederation

Political union of five tribes: Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk; powerful from the 16th century through the American Revolution.

Seneca

One of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederation.

Cayuga

One of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederation.

Onondaga

One of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederation; central in leadership.

Oneida

One of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederation.

Mohawk

One of the five nations of the Iroquois Confederation.

Coastal Plains tribes

Indigenous peoples east of the Mississippi from New Jersey to Florida; descendants of Woodland mound builders; built timber and bark lodgings along rivers and relied on river/Atlantic resources.

Woodland mound builders

Mound-building cultures in the Ohio and Mississippi valleys known for large earthen mounds.

Three Sisters agriculture

The intercropping of maize (corn), beans, and squash—staple crops in many Native American communities.

Horses in the 17th century Plains

Indigenous groups acquired horses from Europeans, enabling nomadic buffalo hunting and mobility (e.g., Lakota Sioux).

Lakota Sioux

Great Plains group that adopted horses and shifted toward buffalo hunting.

Atlantic Seaboard settlements

Coastal settlements from New Jersey to Florida with timber/bark lodgings along rivers and food from rivers/Atlantic resources.