Important Terms to Know (HQC 304)

Important Terms to Know (HQC 304)

• Economic: Relating to the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
• Cultural: Relating to the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively.
• Political: Relating to the government or the public affairs of a state or other organized community.
• Social: Relating to human society and its members.
• Cause: A factor that produces an effect; a reason.
• Consequence: A result or effect.
• Way of Life: The typical patterns of behaviour, values, and attitudes of a group of people.
• Physiographic region: A region characterized by its physical features, including landforms, climate, and vegetation.
• Dwelling: A house or dwelling place.
• Linguistic group: Groups of people who speak similar languages.
• Subsistence Activity: Activities people engage in to meet their basic needs.
• Demographic: Relating to the statistical study of human populations.

Bering Strait Theory

• In 30,000 BCE, the first occupants crossed the Bering land bridge from Asia to North America.
• In 15,000 BCE, the ice melted, creating a corridor, allowing access to the North American interior.
• By 12,000 BCE, these groups reached and settled in Quebec.

Algonquian Way of Life

• Way of life: Nomadic, following game, hunting, fishing, and gathering.
• Social: Patriarchal society; men/fathers in control.
• Dwellings: Wigwams.
• Political: Band chief's power based on hunting skills, courage, etc.

Iroquois Way of Life

• Way of life: Sedentary; permanent settlements.
• Social: Matriarchal society; women/mothers in control.
• Dwellings: Longhouses.
• Political: Village council, made up of men appointed by clan mothers.

Inuit Way of Life

• Way of life: Nomadic; following game.
• Social: Patriarchal society; men/fathers in control.
• Dwellings: Igloos in winter, tents in summer.
• Other: Used parkas and dogsleds.
• Physiographic Region: Inuit — Arctic; very harsh frozen areas of northern Quebec and Canada
• Physiographic Region: Algonquins — Canadian Shield and Appalachians

Roles of Men and Women in Iroquois and Algonquian Societies

• Iroquois men: Hunted, fished, built longhouses, traded, defended the community.
• Iroquois women: Gathered, practiced agriculture, took care of children, cooked.
• Algonquian men: Fished, hunted, traded, made canoes/snowshoes.
• Algonquian women: Domestic work, cooked, prepared furs, took care of children.

Passing of Knowledge

• First occupants had no writing system.
• Elders recounted myths and history to their tribesmen.

Gift-Giving

• Reciprocity is part of the circle of life.
• It was a voluntary, honourable act, and also part of commercial and military (warfare) relations.

Alliances and Rivalries

• Alliances: Partnerships between groups.
• Rivalries: Enemies groups.

Reasons for European Explorations

• In 1453, the Turks took over Constantinople, blocking the traditional trade route to Asia.
• Europeans therefore sought new routes to Asia, leading to the exploration of the Americas.

Cod Fisheries off the Coast of Newfoundland

• In 1497, John Cabot discovered the "Great Fishing Banks."
• European fishing and whaling quickly became important economic activities.

Voyages of Jacques Cartier

• Goals: Establish a colonial empire, find a western route to Asia, discover precious metals, and evangelize indigenous peoples.

Economy Policy - Mercantilism

• Mercantilism was an economic policy in which a colony (New France) provided raw materials to the mother country (France).

The Seigneurial System

• A method of dividing land in an organized way.
• The land provided food and aimed to populate New France.
• Long narrow strips of land perpendicular to the St. Lawrence River.

The Fur Trade

• The King granted a company a monopoly over the fur trade, and the Company of 100 Associates.
• Indigenous peoples hunted for fur and traded it with the French.
• The French transported the furs to France to make fur products.

Review Questions (Chapter 1)

• Physiographic regions: Impact on various aspects of first occupant's societies.
• Maliseet and Mi'kmaq: Reasons for regular movement and choosing waterway camps.
• Iroquois: Connection between sedentary lifestyle and agriculture-based subsistence.
• Chiefs' leadership: Relationship with the decision-making process of First Nations.
• Indigenous knowledge transmission: Methods and importance in the 16th century.

Review Questions (Chapter 2)

• Mercantilism: Economic role of a colony.
• Colony development: Mandate, obligations, and privileges.
• Huron-Wendat Alliance: Reasons for the alliance.
• Company of One Hundred Associates: Obligations and benefits.
• Social organization (1627): Model and its features.

Review Questions (Chapters 1 & 2)

• Trade communication channels: two main communication types used by Indigenous for trade.
• Conflicts between alliances: three examples of diverging interest reasons for conflicts.
• Prisoners role in Indigenous wars: social role of prisoners during Indigenous wars.
• French objectives in organizing expeditions: specific objectives for organising 16th-century exploration expeditions.
• Innu alliance: What permission and concerns the Innu had.
• First contacts between Indigenous peoples and Europeans: understanding of first contacts from an excerpt.
• Jacques Cartier's voyages (1534, 1541): missions and outcomes of voyages based on excerpts.