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Native Americans: The Beginning
Junior English
The First Migration: Ice Age
Travelers Ice Age hunters
Traveled with dogs, crossed Bering Land Bridge (now under Bering Strait) from Siberia to present day Alaska
20-40K yrs ago Others followed route
throughout the years By 1490—great European
exploration—numerous groups of Native Americans scattered throughout continent
Native Americans:
Eight Geographical Groups 1. Northeast Coast: Coastal dwellers;
fishers; developed complex culture 2. Plateau: River valley dwellers; primarily
fishers; relatively small population 3. Great Plains: grassland dwellers;
nomadic buffalo hunters after introduction to the horse
4. Northeast: forest dwellers; primarily hunter-gatherers, also farmers and fishers
5. Great Basin: Desert basin dwellers; primarily gatherers because of barren surroundings; small population
6. California: Desert, mountain, river, or coastal dwellers depending on location; primarily gatherers and fishers
7. Southwest: Canyon, mountain, and desert dwellers; either farmers or nomadic hunters
8. Southeast: River valley dwellers; primarily farmers, but also hunter-gatherers and fishers
Native Americans:
Eight Geographical Groups
Native American Literature Did not use written language Stories passed from generation to
generation through story and song Stories centered around a particular
character, event, or element Most common stories
center around: The trickster The gambler The creation Abduction Migration
The Oral Tradition
Stories were reliant upon repetition Used in ceremonial situations Repetition aided in memorization Provided narrative cohesion Participatory Powerful and unifying
Creation Stories Similar to the account in The Bible Similar from tribe to tribe Used to explain how world/universe
was created Explained the origin of man
Sometimes had animal characteristics
Sometimes non-gender, or only one gender (usually female— mother earth)
Creation Stories Contained what the tribe generally
believed the relationships between People People and nature
Contained origins of tribal customs and structures
Creation Stories Creation occurs primarily in one of five ways:
From chaos or nothingness From a cosmic egg or primal maternal
mound From world parents who are separated From the process of earth diving Land was created from mud pulled from bottom
of ocean by animal spirit From several stages of emergence from
other worlds, or states of being Every story, there is a sense of birth—both of
the world and humans
Creation Stories Characteristics Characteristics include:
A Creator (medium for creation) Such as clay, fluids, and supernatural power
The trickster; can be A negative force A cultural hero (dives to the depths of
nothingness to find form) The first man and woman
Job is to continue to create both offspring, and plants and animals
The flood hero Saves mankind from great waters
and begins again
Trickster Tales One form of creation story Trickster is usually a coyote Vary from tribe to tribe, but contain
same basic qualities: Tricksters are more than
deceivers who make us laugh By crossing social boundaries,
they both break rules and show how important rules are
Tricksters are creators in their own rights
Trickster Tales Presence of traditional elements, such as:
Animals --buffalo, coyote, spider, salmon Vegetables –usually corn Minerals—clay, obsidian
(type of rock) Landscape—a holy mountain,
a vast sea Weather–storm Supernatural—spirits, etc. Also, colors, directions, time,
and dances
Native American Religion Commonalities
At time of European contact, nearly all indigenous cultures in North America had developed coherent religious systems that included creation myths
Most natives worshiped an all-powerful, all-knowing Creator or "Master Spirit" as well as numerous lesser supernatural entities, including an evil god
Members of most tribes believed in the immortality of the human soul and an afterlife
Religious Similarities with Europeans
Three beliefs common to Native American tribes: All had developed a religion; creation
myths, origin myths, etc. Worshipped an all-powerful “Great Spirit” Immortality of the human soul; an afterlife
Sought assistance of their deity with prayers and offerings
Called upon specially trained clergy, such as a Shaman, to assist them, particularly during times of crisis
Religious Differences: Native Americans & Europeans Native Americans did not distinguish
between the natural and supernatural as Europeans did Native Americans perceived the
“material” and “spiritual” worlds as one Protestant and Catholic traditions were
more inclined to separate the pure/spiritual beings in heaven from sinful men and women
Conclusion Europeans arrived in the 15th
century The Pequot War in 1636
Friction between Puritans and Pequot Indians
Pequot defeated in 1637 massacre Survivors were
beheaded or sent into slavery
Works Cited• Lewis, S. “Native American Literature”• “Native Voices” unit, American Passages website
– Unit Overview www.learner.org/amerpass/unit01/instructor.html
– Authors: Stories of the Beginning of the Worldwww.learner.org/amerpass/unit01/authors-8.html
• Divining America: Religion and the National Culture– Native American Religion in Early America
www.nhc.rtp.nc.us/tserve/eighteen/ekeyinfo/natrel.htm