American Yawp Ch1 PDF

The American Yawp Chapter 1 “Indigenous America”  II The First Americans Origins and Migration of Indigenous Peoples in the Americas The Last Ice Age (15,000-20,000 years ago) Continental Glaciers: Massive, mile-thick sheets of ice-covered large portions of Earth. Bering Land Br...

The American Yawp Chapter 1 “Indigenous America”  II The First Americans Origins and Migration of Indigenous Peoples in the Americas The Last Ice Age (15,000-20,000 years ago) Continental Glaciers: Massive, mile-thick sheets of ice-covered large portions of Earth. Bering Land Bridge: Connected Siberia to Alaska; early humans crossed into the Americas via this land bridge. Migration into the Americas Small Bands: Early humans likely traveled in small, mobile groups. Earlier Migrations Possible: Evidence suggests humans may have reached the Americas even earlier. Monte Verde: Site in Chile with evidence of human settlement Florida/Central Texas: Other sites suggest settlement in North America up to 14,500 years ago.  II The First Americans Indigenous Peoples Diverse Populations: Hundreds of languages and distinct cultural practices across the continent. Rich Diets: Indigenous peoples relied on a variety of resources, fostering population growth. Regional Practices Northwest: Reliant on salmon as a primary food source. Plains and Prairies: Bison hunters followed seasonal migration patterns of bison herds. Cultural Stories Lenape's Sky Woman: Creation myth emphasizing the deep spiritual and cultural connection to nature. Choctaw's Mothermound: Symbolic mound tied to the fertility and cyclical nature of life on Earth. II The First Americans (9000–5000 Years Ago) Mesoamerica: Domesticated maize (corn): Easy to dry and store; spiritually and culturally significant. Eastern Woodlands: Cultivated “The Three Sisters”: Corn, beans, squash. Practiced shifting cultivation: Maintained soil quality with hand tools. Gender roles: Women farmed while men hunted and fished. Social and Cultural Changes Food surpluses enabled societal roles like religious leaders, artists, and soldiers. Health Impacts: Weaker bones and teeth due to reliance on agricultural diets. Shared Traits: Kinship and spiritual practices Deeply tied to the environment. Property concepts: Ownership of tools and crops, not land. Matrilineal ancestry: Traced lineage through women, unlike European norms. II The First Americans Southwest: Puebloan Societies (2000 Years Ago) Agricultural technology: Advanced irrigation supported population growth and societal development. Chaco Canyon (900–1300 CE): Population apprx.15,000 with monumental structures like Pueblo Bonito. Connected communities politically, culturally, and through long distance trade. Environmental challenges: Over irrigation and deforestation contributed to decline (apprx.1130 CE). Mississippi River Valley: Cahokia (1050 CE) “Cahokia Big Bang”: Period of rapid population growth and political, social, and ideological transformation. Food surplus: Supported urbanization and hierarchical chiefdoms. Enslaved war captives: Integral to the economy; captives were often adopted or married into communities. Decline: Political turmoil and warfare contributed to the collapse of Cahokia. Pacific Northwest Abundant resources: Thrived on natural food sources like fish, birds, and other regional resources. Potlatches: Elaborate ceremonial feasts displaying wealth and reinforcing social hierarchies.  III European Expansion Scandinavians Established colonies in Iceland and Greenland. Leif Erikson reached Newfoundland (modern-day Canada). Norse colony failed due to conflicts with natives and environmental challenges. Prince Henry the Navigator (Portugal) Advanced exploration through research, technology, and investments. Portuguese sailors developed the astrolabe and caravel. Portuguese Exploration Built trading forts/posts along the African coastline. Introduced sugar cultivation (originally from Asia) in the Canary Islands. Enslaved Africans were used on plantations or traded for goods like guns and iron. Spanish Exploration Christopher Columbus (1492): Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria landed in the Bahamas. Encountered the Tainos, described as kind and gentle. Left 39 Spaniards behind and returned with 17 ships and over 1,000 men. Spanish decimated the Arawaks through exploitation (encomienda system) and disease (typhus, influenza). Indigenous population dropped by 90%, from 3 million to a fraction.  IV Spanish Exploration and Conquest Spanish exploration and conquest were driven by the desire for land, gold, fame, and the spread of Christianity. Encomienda system: Allowed settlers to extract labor and tribute from Indigenous populations. Often resulted in severe exploitation and abuses. Bartolomé de Las Casas: A former encomendero who became an advocate for Indigenous rights. Criticized the encomienda system, leading to its replacement by the Repartimiento system in 1542. Despite reforms, many abuses persisted.  IV Spanish Exploration and Conquest The Maya built a highly advanced civilization in Central America: Constructed huge temples and urban centers. Developed a written language, advanced mathematics, and accurate calendars. Likely collapsed before European arrival due to agricultural practices and droughts. The Aztec Empire was the largest empire in the New World, dominating the Valley of Mexico. Tenochtitlán (founded in 1325): Built on chinampas(floating gardens). Connected by causeways and canals. Contained 70,000 buildings and a population of 250,000 people. Demanded tribute from conquered peoples, including agricultural goods, jade, and gold. IV Spanish Exploration and Conquest 1519: Hernán Cortés led a Spanish expedition to invade Mexico. La Malinche: An enslaved Indigenous woman who served as Cortés’ interpreter and advisor. Montezuma II, the Aztec emperor, was killed during the conquest. The smallpox epidemic devastated the Aztec population. 1521: 1521: After two years of conflict, disease, and destruction, Cortés sacked Tenochtitlán, resulting in over 15,000 deaths The Inca Empire located in the Andes Mountains thousands of miles of roads connecting its vast territory. 1533: Francisco Pizarro conquered the Inca capital, Cuzco. The spread of smallpox weakened the Inca population, aiding Spanish conquest. The Spanish exploited Indigenous labor to extract gold and silver, fueling Spain’s wealth.. IV Spanish Exploration and Conquest Spanish Migration and Racial Hierarchy By the 16th century, 225,000 Spaniards had migrated to the New World, with a total population of 750,000. Migrants were often young, single men seeking wealth, land, and social advancement. A racial hierarchy based on purity of blood was established: Peninsulares: Spanish born individuals. Criollos: Spanish born in the Americas. Mestizos: Mixed Spanish and Indigenous ancestry. Indios: Indigenous people. Mothers were often able to claim that their daughters were 25% Indigenous, which allowed them to secure certain rights within the Spanish colonial system, including some of the privileges of Spanish citizenship. IV Spanish Exploration and Conquest After conquering Mexico, Spain moved north in search of gold. 1513: Juan Ponce de León explored Florida but found no gold or silver. The Caribbean became a plantation point of interest due to its suitable geology and climate. Francisco Vázquez de Coronado traveled into the Southwest. Hernando de Soto enslaved and abused Indigenous populations in the Southeast.  References L. D. Burnett et al., “The New World,” in The American Yawp, eds. Joseph Locke and Ben Wright (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2018).