02. Indigenous North America Before European Contact Free Online FlashCards

What do “pre-Columbian” and “pre-contact” mean?

Pre-Columbian means before Christopher Columbus’s 1492 voyage; pre-contact is often more precise because Europeans arrived in different regions at different times.

How did environment influence Indigenous lifeways?

Environment shaped Indigenous lifeways, but it did not mechanically determine them. Communities developed distinctive solutions, and trade and migration spread ideas, materials, crops, and technologies.

What were the agricultural benefits of the Three Sisters?

Maize provided structure for bean vines, beans added nitrogen to the soil, and squash shaded the ground and helped retain moisture.

What characterized Northwest Coast societies?

Northwest Coast communities relied on fishing, shellfish gathering, woodworking, and permanent villages. Rich resources supported substantial stored surpluses and ranked societies.

What moved through Indigenous trade networks besides goods?

Trade spread material goods such as copper, shells, pigments, pottery, skins, food, and turquoise, along with artistic styles, religious symbols, technologies, diplomatic practices, and information.

What was distinctive about traditional Cherokee clan organization?

The Cherokee traditionally organized social life through matrilineal clans, meaning clan membership was traced through the mother’s line.

How did the Haudenosaunee Confederacy make collective decisions?

The Haudenosaunee united several nations through council deliberation, negotiated agreement, and shared political responsibilities.

What made Cahokia significant?

Cahokia, near present-day St. Louis, was the largest known pre-Columbian settlement north of Mexico. At its height, about 1050–1150 CE, it had an urban center, satellite communities, plazas, and more than 100 mounds.

Why should Cahokia’s decline be explained cautiously?

Cahokia’s decline has no single proven cause. Population movement, environmental change, political conflict, disease, resource pressures, and shifting trade relationships may all have contributed.

What did Chaco Canyon’s built environment connect?

Chaco’s great houses, kivas, roads, astronomical orientations, and ceremonial spaces connected architecture with political, economic, and religious activity.

What principle appears in many Indigenous worldviews?

Many Indigenous worldviews emphasized reciprocal relationships among people, animals, plants, ancestors, places, and spiritual powers.

Why did some communities use controlled burning?

Controlled burning could promote useful plants, improve hunting grounds, and reduce the risk of severe wildfires.