Chapter 1: Exploration and the Colonial Era

1

Journal • Write a brief dialogue that might have taken place among the

Native Americans observing the European ship.

2

Ancient Cultures in the Americas• 20,000 B.C. a land bridge exists between Asia and Alaska

across Bering Straight• 8,000 B.C. temperatures warm -> agriculture develops ->

people plant crops in Mexico• Ancient American societies• Olmec in southern Mexico (1200 B.C.-400 B.C.)• Maya in Guatemala (A.D. 250 – 900 A.D.)• Aztecs in Mexico (1200 – 1500s)• Inca dominate west coast of S. America (1200 – 1500s)

• Built cities and ceremonial centers, empires,

3

4

Native American Societies of the 1400s

• Hohokam and the Anasazi introduce crops (corn, beans, squash) into American S. West

• northern Cali = Nootka hunt ocean for whales

• New Mexico + Arizona = Pueblo tribes grow corn + beans -> live in multi-story adobe houses

• NY = Iroquois hunt deer and bears 5

Common Characteristics• Land was not to be

sold• Extensive trade routes• Cultures suited for

their environment• Natural world is filled

with spirits• Basic unit of

organization = family• Birth, marriage, death

guided by tradition6

West African Societies of the 1400s• 600 – 1600 dominant

empires = Ghana, Mali, Songhai• Control of trans-Sahara

trade• Kingdoms of Benin and

Kongo • Strong govts., powerful

rulers, collective ownership of land• Importance of family,

tradition and belief in one creator

7

West African Societies of the 1400s• Timbuktu, center of

trading network that connects W. Africa to ports in N. Africa• Islam brought by

traders from N. African traders• Portuguese set up

trading posts in W. Africa 8

Assignment: Ch. 1 Sec. 1 People Achievements

Ancient Americans

Native Americans

West Africans

Define and explain the significance of the following:

Beringia land bridge, Anasazi, Pueblo, Songhai9