The territory of America, discovered by Columbus, is very extensive and, as a result, has a different name for the tribes of Indians living in open lands. There are many of them, although European sailors used only one term for the native inhabitants of America - the Indians.
Columbus' fallacy and consequences
Over time, the mistake became clear: the fact that the indigenous people are the natives of America. Until the beginning of the European colonization of the 15th century, the inhabitants arrived in various stages of the communal-tribal system. Some tribes were dominated by the paternal clan, while others were dominated by matriarchy.
The level of development primarily depended on location and climatic conditions. In the process of the subsequent colonization of America by European countries, only the common name of the Indian tribes was used for a whole group of culturally related tribes. Below we will consider some of them in detail.
Specialization and life of American Indians
It is quite remarkable that the Indians of America made various ceramic products. This tradition originated long before contact with Europeans. AThandmade using several technologies.
Methods such as frame and shape molding, spatula molding, clay cord molding, and even sculptural modeling have been used. A distinctive feature of the Indians was the manufacture of masks, clay figurines and ritual objects.
The names of the Indian tribes are quite different, because they spoke different languages and had practically no written language. There are many ethnic groups in America. Let's look at the most famous of them.
The name of the Indian tribes and their role in the history of America
We will look at some of the most famous Indian tribes: the Hurons, Iroquois, Apaches, Mohicans, Incas, Mayans and Aztecs. Some of them were quite low level of development, while others were impressive with a highly developed society, the level of which cannot be defined simply by the word "tribe" with such extensive knowledge and architecture.
The local population of America has been significantly reduced during the colonization of places by European settlers, the gradual extermination and displacement, as well as diseases introduced by the colonizers, and the lack of immunity among the Indians. All this significantly reduced their numbers. The remaining Indians were relocated from traditional habitats to the reservation.
Hurons
The Huron tribe is one of the largest American Indian tribes. Before the European invasion, it numbered approximately 40,000 people.
Central Ontario was originallyseat of the Hurons. It is known that during the bloody and long-term enmity with the Iroquois tribe, the Hurons were divided into two unequal groups. A smaller part of the tribal group tried to settle in Quebec (modern Canada). A larger group settled in Ohio (USA), but very soon was forced to move to Kansas.
The Hurons were the first tribe to enter into trade relations with the Europeans. Today, about 4,000 Indians live in Canada and the United States.
Iroquois
The Iroquois, as it turned out, are quite enterprising Indians. The Iroquois tribe is one of the most influential and warlike tribes of pre-colonial American times. Their kinship was formed along the maternal line, and there was also a division into clans.
The Iroquois had a constitution that was "written" with shell beads. By the way, thanks to their ability to speak languages, they conducted trade business both with neighboring tribes and with Europeans. In the 17th century, the tribe had a fairly developed relationship with the Dutch.
The Iroquois made and used various masks with a distinctive feature - a hooked nose. According to their legends, masks protected the people and their families from diseases. The Indians lived in ovachirs - long houses, in which almost the entire family, including the elder, was placed.
River People
Mohicans are Indians from the East Algontine tribe. The name of the tribe in translation means "people of the river".
Original placeresidence - the Hudson River Valley and around it (Albury, New York). The first contact with Europeans took place in 1609. The Mohicans were a confederation, and at the time of the first contact were divided into five tribes: Mohicans, Vikagyok, Wawaihtonok, Mehkentovun and Westenhuk.
Inhabitants were engaged in agriculture, hunting and fishing, as well as gathering. Interestingly, they had a monarchical form of government. At the head was a leader, whose status was inherited.
Subsequently, many migrated to Massachusetts Stockbridge. Some of the Mohicans converted to Christianity, while a number of them retained their own traditions. Subsequently, most of the surviving representatives of the tribe moved to areas of Wisconsin.
Apache-Indians
Nation, consisting of several communities, which has a similar culture and language.
They all share the common name of an Indian tribe called the Apache. The warriors of this tribe differed from others in their ferocity and survival in harsh conditions. Apaches are Indians who owned military strategy and battle planning. For several centuries, warriors went on military campaigns and defended their territories, mercilessly destroyed everyone who got in their way.
The first European invasion took place in 1500. These were the Spanish colonizers. The consequences of the war led the Apaches to lose their old established ties with neighboring tribes.
Initially, the Indians led a nomadic and semi-nomadic lifestyle, moving throughoutterritory of the southwestern United States. Their main occupations were animal hunting and gathering. The food was quite simple, consisting mainly of berries, mushrooms and corn.
Dome-shaped wigwams with a smoke hole and a hearth were used for living. They built with branches, leather and grass. Today their number is about 30 thousand. Apaches live in the territories of Arizona, Oklahoma and New Mexico.
On the American continent, there are only three highly developed indigenous civilizations: the Incas, the Aztecs and the Maya. Unfortunately, much knowledge about them has been lost, and it was only thanks to archaeologists that we managed to learn about these ancient cultures.
Ancient civilizations
The Aztecs and Mayans are the most famous of most Indian tribes. The Mayan people are a highly developed tribe located in Central America. They are famous for their cities, completely carved out of stone, as well as extraordinary works of art. The Maya built several cities at quite a distance from each other.
It is noteworthy that the basis was a complex of pyramids, and their height was not inferior to the pyramids of Egypt. They had hierographic writing and used the concept of zero in mathematics. The Maya were excellent astronomers, and it was they who created the famous calendar, which ended its calendar in 2012. This ancient people disappeared long before the arrival of Columbus.
Aztecs are the most numerous people in Mexico. Initially, they were a wandering hunting tribe, but after long wanderings, the Aztecs settlednear Lake Texcoco. Later they mastered agriculture and built cities, the main one was Tenochtitlan. Interestingly, the ancient people had a rather complex system of irrigated agriculture.
The Aztecs kept old traditions before the Spanish conquest. Their number was about 60 thousand. The main occupations were hunting and fishing. In addition, the tribe was divided into several clans with officials. Tribute was withdrawn from subject cities.
The Aztecs were distinguished by the fact that they had a fairly rigid centralized control and a hierarchical structure. The emperor and priests stood at the highest level, and the slaves at the lowest. The Aztecs also used the death pen alty and human sacrifice.
Highly developed Inca society
The most mysterious Inca tribe belonged to the largest ancient civilization. The tribe lived at an altitude of 4.5 thousand meters in the mountains of Chile and Colombia. This ancient state existed from the 11th to the 16th centuries AD.
It included the entire territory of the states of Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. As well as parts of modern Argentina, Colombia and Chile, despite the fact that in 1533 the empire had already lost most of its territories. Until 1572, the clan was able to resist the attacks of the conquistadors, who were very interested in new lands.
The Inca society was dominated by agriculture with terraced farming. It was a fairly advanced society that used sewers and created an irrigation system.
Today manyhistorians are interested in the question of why and where such a highly developed tribe disappeared.
"Inheritance" from the Indian Tribes of America
Undoubtedly, it is clear that the Indians of America have made a serious contribution to the development of world civilization. Europeans borrowed the cultivation and cultivation of corn and sunflower, as well as some vegetable crops: potatoes, tomatoes, peppers. In addition, legumes, cocoa fruits and tobacco were introduced. We got all this from the Indians.
It was these crops that helped in their time to reduce hunger in Eurasia. Corn subsequently became an indispensable fodder base for animal husbandry. We owe many dishes on our table to the Indians and Columbus, who brought the "curiosities" of that time to Europe.
