Section 1: The Earliest Americans

First Migration to the Americas

Many scientists believe the first people arrived in North America during the Ice Age. The Ice Age brought a very cold climate with many glaciers which caused ocean levels to drop. Because of this, the land bridge between northeastern Asia and present-day Alaska was exposed. This land bridge is known as the **^^Bering Land Bridge. ^^**Scientist believe the **^^Paleo-Indians ^^**were the major Indian group who crossed this bridge.

This is an example of a migration. A migration: is a movement of people or animals from one region to another. This migration to North American took place over a long series of time. Scientist believe Paleo-Indians traveled south in Canada, through the United States, and Mexico following herds of animals. These people were known as hunter-gathers. Hunter-gathers: were people who hunted animals and gathered wild plants for food.

About 800 BC, the Ice Age ended. The rising temperatures melted glaciers which caused the Bering Land Bridge to be covered with water. The end of the Ice Age created new environments. Environments: are climates and landscapes that surround living things. Different environments influenced the development of different Native American societies and their culture. Culture: is a group’s set of common values and traditions, including language, government, and family relationships.

Many Native American groups changed over time. They began to plant crops. Maize (corn) was one of the most important early crops. Farming allowed the natives to settle and to stop migrating and moving. As population grew, more advanced societies began to develop.

Early Mesoamerican and South American Societies

Olmec and Maya

The Olmec is the earliest known civilization in Mesoamerica. The Olmec are known for the use of stone in architecture. They built the first pyramids in Americas and created structures with huge stones head.

Both the Olmec and Maya grew maize and other crops. They lived in small villages. Maya cities also had pyramids, large stone temples, palaces, and bridges, along with plazas and canals.

Aztec

The Aztecs were fierce warriors. In AD 1325, the Aztec founded their capital, Tenochtitlan. It became the biggest and most successful city in the Americas with trade and roads.

Inca

The Inca was a small tribe before it began expanding west in the mid-1400s. The Inca capital was Cuzco. The Inca are known for building and for art. They built massive building and forts made of stone bricks. They also had a advanced system of highways which allowed them to communicate with and control their empire.

Section 2: Native American Cultures

North America had many complex societies long before Europeans reached the continent.

Anasazi

The Anasazi lived in the Four Corners region. The Four Corners Region: is where present day Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet. Anasazi farmers grew maize, beans, and squash. Anasazi lived in pueblos. Pueblos are above ground houses made of heavy clay called adobe. These dwellings were built into cliffs for safety. Anasazi also built kivas,: underground ceremonial chambers, at the center of each community. Scholars think Anasazi began to abandoned their pueblos due to disease and raids from other tribes.

Mound Builders

The Hopewell Indians lived among the Mississippi, Ohio, and lower Missouri river valleys. The Hopewell culture declined but the Mississippian culture began to thrive in the same area. They built hundreds of mounds for religious purposes. These mounds had flat tops and temples were built on top of these mounds.

Native American Culture Areas

North and Northwest

The North and Northwest consist of harsh environments which was home to two groups of people: Inuit and the Aleut. Both groups survived by fishing and hunting large animals. Inuit tribe lived in igloos, hide tents, and huts. Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest carved images of totems: - ancestor or animal spirits - on tall, wooden poles. These were known as totem poles. This was important to both tribes culture.

West and Southwest

In the area around Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. The Southwestern Indians farmed the desert, gathered wild plants, and hunted small animals. They were hunter-gatherers. They used Adobe (a dry clay and straw mixture) to build their homes. They were able to hunt, but had a permanent settlement.

Great Plains

The Plains Indians hunted buffalo on the prairies between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains. Plains in this area were wide open and filled with large animals. The Plains Indians looked much different from the Woodland Indians. They did not live in permanent settlements, they moved around to follow their prey (nomadic). They lived in tepees to be able to follow Buffalo. Tepees are cone-shaped shelters. Like other Native American groups, Pawnee society was matrilineal. Matrilineal means that people traced their ancestry through their mothers instead of fathers.

Northeast and Southeast

• Eastern Northern America was rich in sources for food and shelter. Most southern groups included the Cherokee, Creek, and Seminole Indians.

• The Iroquois created the Iroquois League: This confederation, or alliance, was established by the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, and Seneca.

• The league helped the Iroquois become one of the most powerful tribe in North America. The league’s goal was to strengthen the alliance against invasion.

Shared Beliefs

• Native Americans believed that spiritual forces were everywhere, dwelling in heavenly bodies and in sacred places on earth.

• Native Americans also believed that individual ownership only applied to crops one grew.

• Native Americans all believed they needed to preserve the land for future generations.

Section 3: Trading Kingdom of West Africa

• West Africans did not profit much from trade because the routes were run by Berbers.

  • Berbers: a group of people from Northern Africa.

Kingdom of Ghana

• The first people in Ghana were farmers on the Niger River.

  • Soninke: the farmers on the Niger River in Ghana

• The Soninke families began to band together for protection from nomadic herders. This banding was the beginning of Ghana.

• Ghana was in a good position for a trading center. Ghana itself was rich in gold.

• Nearly all trade between northern and southern Africa passed through Ghana.

• To raise money, Ghana forced traders to pay taxes. They used their wealth to build an army and an empire.

Islam of Ghana

• The trade routes introduced the people of Ghana with people of many different cultures and beliefs. Trade with Arab brought the religion of Islam into Ghana.

  • Islam: a religion founded in 600s by an Arab named Muhammad.

  • Followers of the religion follow Muhammad’s teachings in a book called the Qur’an.

• The trade route of Ghana was soon attacked by Almoravids. Without its trade route for support, the empire of Ghana soon fell.

Kingdom of Mali

• Mali lay along the upper Niger River. Due to the fertile soil, Mali grew.

• Due to its position, Mali could control trade.

• Mali’s rise to power was due to a ruler named Sundiata. The most famous king of Mali was Mansa Musa.

  • Mansa Musa: most famous king of Mali; brought wealth, power, and fame to the empire.

• Due to Mansa Musa’s Islam religion, Islam spread through a large part of West Africa.

• Musa had mosques built throughout Mali.

  • Mosques: buildings for Muslim prayer

• After Mansa Musa died, poor leadership weakened the empire.

Songhai Empire

• Songhai lay also along the Niger River.

• The Songhai Empire soon conquered most of the Mali empire.

• Askia the Great: one of Songhai’s greatest rulers; grew education

  • Askia the Great set up schools, libraries, and an effective government system.

• Once Askia the Great died, trade began to decline. Changes in trade patterns completed Songhai’s fall.

West African Slave Trade

• People who were captured by warring groups during battle would be sold into slavery. Sometime criminals were also be sold into slavery.

• Kings traded slaves for valuable goods such as horses, textiles, and weapons.

Section 4: Europe before Transatlantic Travel

Greek Philosophers and Government

• Greeks valued human reason and believed in the power of the human mind to explain, think, and understand life.

  • Three of the greatest Greek thinkers were :

    • Socrates: a great teacher, wanted to make people think and question their own belief

    • Plato: a philosopher and teacher, wrote a work called The Republic.

    • Aristotle: taught that people should live their lives based on reason:

      • Reason: clear and ordered thinking

• Greek doctors studied the human body to understand how it works.

• Athens was the first Greek city-state to establish democracy.

  • Democracy: a form of government in which people rule themselves.

• All male citizens participated directly in government, the Greek government was known as a direct democracy.

Roman Law and Government

• Romans elected officials to rule the city. These officials only served 1 year terms.

• Rome was republic, not a democracy. Their republic consisted of 3 parts:

  • Roman laws were written and kept on public display so people could read and know them.

  • There were elected representatives who protected the city and its residents.

  • Romans were innocent until proven guilty under the law.

Middle Ages

• After the Roman Empire fell, the time during the 500s was known as the Middle Ages.

Feudalism

• Nobles needed soldiers to defend their lands. Nobles gave knights land in exchange for service.

  • Knights: warriors who fought on horseback for land in exchange for military service.

• During the Middle Ages, life revolved around the Christian church.

Crusades

• A long series of war happened in the late 1000s called the crusades.

• These crusades were between European Christians and Muslims in southwest Asia over the land where Jesus had lived.

Travel, Trade, and Towns

• New technology helped farmers produce larger harvest. Many trade routes began to open at this time.

  • Silk Road: a caravan route that started in China and ended in the Mediterranean Sea, safe for travelers and traders.

• Trade route spread through Europe. Due to this, Black Death infected many traders and travelers.

  • Black Death: a disease that spread through Europe due to trade; killed around 25 million people

• Trade associations called guilds became an influential part of European life.

Renaissance

• **Renaissance: “**rebirth”

• The Renaissance was the time period after the Middle Ages. The movement began in Italy.

• During this time, European rulers began to increase their power over the nobles.

Search for Knowledge

• Love of art and education was a key feature during the Renaissance period.

• The Renaissance emphasized the importance of people rather than focusing on religion.

  • Humanism: focusing on human value and the study of humanities

• Famous artists and writers during the Renaissance period included: Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and Danta Alighieri.

  • Johannes Gutenberg: a German man who developed the printing press that used movable type.

Economic Changes Affect Trade

• During this time, merchants began to create joint-stock companies.

  • Joint Stock Companies: or businesses in which a group of people invest together.

• Forming joint-stock companies allowed investors to take fewer risks.