A Sioux in traditional dress including war bonnet, circa 1908.

Native Americans (also Indians, American Indians, First Nations, First Peoples, Indigenous Peoples of America, Aboriginal Peoples, Aboriginal Americans, Amerindians, Amerind, Native Canadians, Native Mexicans, etc.) are those peoples indigenous to the Americas prior to European colonization, and their descendants in modern times. This term encompasses a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of them still enduring as political communities. A comprehensive tribal list can be found under "Classification of Native Americans." Download high resolution version (818x1024, 125 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (818x1024, 125 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Alternative meaning: Lakota, Côte dIvoire is a département of Côte dIvoire. ... 1908 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Indigenous peoples are: Peoples living in an area prior to colonization by a state Peoples living in an area within a nation-state, prior to the formation of a nation-state, but who do not identify with the dominant nation. ... Map of the Americas by Jonghe, c. ... World map showing location of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... World map of colonialism circa 1945. ... Viewed historically or developmentally, a tribe consists of a social formation existing before the development of, or outside of, states. ... A state is an organized political community occupying a definite territory, having an organized government, and possessing internal and external sovereignty. ... // Classification of Native Americans: United States and Canada Ethnographers commonly classify the native peoples of the United States and Canada into ten geographical regions with shared cultural traits (called cultural areas). ...

Some controversy over the term arises from the fact that in common usage the word "native" means "born in", and thus the term "native American" could be equally applicable to anyone born into an "American" country. This confusion arises out of a failure to recognise the distinction between (a) the common usage of the adjective "native", and (b) the usage of the specific compound noun "Native American". The latter term has particular, technical and legal usages which (as per this article) are narrower in scope than meaning simply "born in". Very often, the compound "Native American" will be capitalized in order to differentiate this intended meaning from others. Likewise, "native" (small 'n') can be further qualified by formulations such as "native-born" when the intended meaning is only to indicate place of birth or origin. Of course, neither of these two senses invalidates the other, so long as the intended sense is made clear by the context. An adjective is a part of speech which modifies a noun, usually making its meaning more specific. ... A compound is a word composed of more than one free morphemes. ... For any word written in a language with whose alphabet or alphabet equivalent has two cases, such as those using the Latin, Greek, Cyrillic, or Armenian alphabet, capitalization is the writing of that word with its first letter in majuscules (uppercase) and the remaining letters in minuscules (lowercase). ...

Another objection raised holds that by applying the term "Native Americans" to only select peoples on the basis of their genetic and cultural ancestry, they are conferred with an unjustifiably special or superior social-legal status, at the expense of others not in this grouping. A closely related conception is that by so doing legitimate rights and claims of other groups to territory and identity are lessened. The counter-argument notes that claims of indigenous or Native American identity are primarily intended to affirm rights to maintain and exercise their own cultural identity, observances and associations with traditional lands and to be free of discrimination on that basis- in accordance with universal human rights intended to apply to all. This pursuit does not prevent others from enjoying the rights and benefits which arise from being a member of the wider community. Furthermore, a distinct legal and communal status for Native peoples in the Americas is identified (there are differences by country); this derives from acknowledged historical treaties and similar instruments, as well as internationally recognized aboriginal title, rather than arbitrary genetics. Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... A treaty is a binding agreement under international law concluded by subjects of international law, namely states and international organizations. ... Aboriginal land claims are statements by Native or Aboriginal peoples about the ownership of land before the arrival of settlers, primarily Europeans. ...

The terms "Amerindian" and "Indian", both of which are derivatives of "American Indian" (as is "Amerind", though this term is more popular in linguistic circles), are not necessarily completely synonymous with "Native American". Although all Amerindians are Native Americans, not all Native Americans are Amerindians. "Amerindian" relates to a mega-group of peoples spanning the Americas that are related in culture and genetics, and are quite distinct from the later arriving Eskimos (Inuit, Yupik, and Aleut peoples native to Alaska and the Canadian Arctic). The latter share their cultural and genetic commonality with other arctic peoples not native to the American continent, such as those from arctic Russian Siberia. The word Amerind (a contraction of American Indian) usually refers to the Native Americans, the peoples who lived in the Americas before the Europeans discovered the continent; and to the modern ethnic communities that originate from those peoples. ... Eskimo is a term used for a group of people who inhabit the circumpolar region (excluding circumpolar Scandinavia and all but the easternmost portions of Russia). ... Inuit woman Inuit (Inuktitut syllabics: ᐃᓄᐃᑦ, singular Inuk or Inuq / ᐃᓄᒃ) is a general term for a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples of the Arctic who descended from the Thule. ... The Yupik or, in the Central Alaskan language, Yupik, are aboriginal people who live along the coast of western Alaska, especially on the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta and along the Kuskokwim River (Central Alaskan Yupik), in southern Alaska (the Alutiiq) and in the Russian Far East and St. ... The Aleuts (self-denomination: Unangax) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, U.S.A.. The homeland of the Aleuts includes the Aleutian Islands, the Pribilof Islands, the Shumagin Islands, and the far western part of the Alaska Peninsula. ... State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski (R) Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ... The Canadian Arctic is a vast region of northern Canada. ... Siberia Siberia (Russian: , common English transliterations: Sibir’, Sibir; from the Tatar for “sleeping land”) is a vast region of Russia and northern Kazakhstan constituting almost all of northern Asia. ...

The same distinction is made in Canada, where the term First Nations applies only to those who belong to the same cultural and genetic mega-group of Amerindians mentioned above, excluding the Métis, Inuit, and Inuvialuit peoples. These groups are collectively referred to by the terms "Aboriginal peoples in Canada" or "First Peoples". Aboriginal peoples in Canada are enshrined in the Canadian Constitution with various treaty rights, some long established and many more currently under negotiation. First Nations is the current title used by Canada to describe the various societies of the indigenous peoples, called Native Americans in the U.S. They have also been known as Indians, Native Canadians, Aboriginal Americans, Amer-Indians, or Aboriginals, and are officially called Indians in the Indian Act, which... The Métis (pronounced MAY tee, IPA: , in French: or ) are one of three recognized Canadian aboriginal groups whose homeland consists of the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and the Northwest Territories. ... Inuit woman Inuit (Inuktitut syllabics: ᐃᓄᐃᑦ, singular Inuk or Inuq / ᐃᓄᒃ) is a general term for a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples of the Arctic who descended from the Thule. ... The Inuvialuit (Inuit language: real human beings) are Inuit people who live in the western Canadian Arctic region. ... Aboriginal peoples in Canada is a collective name for the original inhabitants of the region of North America that is now Canada, and their descendants. ... The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada. ...

The term Native American may also be construed to either include or exclude the Mestizos and Zambos of Latin America. Mestizo (Portuguese, Mestiço; Canadian French, Métis: from Late Latin mixticius, from Latin mixtus, past participle of miscere, to mix) is a term of Spanish origin used to designate the peoples of mixed European and Amerindian racial strain inhabiting the region spanning the Americas, from the Canadian prairies in... Representation of zambos during the Latin American colonial period. ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ...

Other indigenous peoples that are native to territorial possessions of American countries but are not specifically "Native American" (in the sense that they are not native to the actual lands that comprise the American continent) are a diversity of Pacific Islanders including: Native Hawaiians (also known as Kanaka Māoli and Kanaka 'Oiwi) in the US state of Hawaii, natives of American Samoa (USA) and natives of Easter Island (Chile). The Americas is an alternative name in the English language for the continent of America, to distinguish it from the United States of America, which is often just called America. ... A Pacific Islander or Pacific Person (plural: Pacific People) is a term used in several places, such as New Zealand and the United States, to describe people of a certain heritage In New Zealand, it is applied to a person who has emigrated from one of the smaller islands of... In April of 1990, Daniel K. Akaka became the first native Hawaiian and Chinese American to serve in the United States Congress as a Senator from the State of Hawaii. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... State nickname: The Aloha State Other U.S. States Capital Honolulu Largest city Honolulu Governor Linda Lingle (R) Official languages Hawaiian and English Area 28,337 km² (43rd)  - Land 16,649 km²  - Water 11,672 km² (41. ... Easter Island and its location Orthographic projection centred over Easter Island Easter Island (Polynesian: Rapa Nui (Great Rapa) or Te Pito te Henua (Navel and Uterus), Spanish: Isla de Pascua) is an island in the south Pacific Ocean belonging to Chile. ...

Early history

See also: Archeology of the Americas, Models of migration to the New World The Archeology of the Americas is the study of the archeology of North America, Central America (or Mesoamerica), South America and the Caribbean, which is to say, the pre-history and Pre-Columbian history of Native American peoples. ... When did people first enter the New World and how did they get there? This question has been debated for centuries and will probably continue to be for many more years to come in the anthropological community. ...

The Bering Strait Land Bridge Theory

Based on anthropological and genetic evidence, some scientists believe that most Native Americans descend from people who migrated from Siberia across the Bering Strait, between 17,000–11,000 years ago. Anthropology (from the Greek word άνθρωπος, human) consists of the study of humankind (see genus Homo). ... Genetics (from the Greek genno γεννώ= give birth) is the science of genes, heredity, and the variation of organisms. ... Human migration denotes any movement of groups of people from one locality to another, rather than of individual wanderers. ... Siberia Siberia (Russian: , common English transliterations: Sibir’, Sibir; from the Tatar for “sleeping land”) is a vast region of Russia and northern Kazakhstan constituting almost all of northern Asia. ... Satellite photo of the Bering Strait Nautical chart of the Bering Strait The Bering Strait is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, the eastmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, the westernmost point of the American continent, about 85 km in width, with a depth of...

The exact epoch and route is still a matter of controversy, as is whether it happened at all. Until recently, certain anthropologists alleged that migrants crossed the strait 12,000 years ago via the Bering Land Bridge which existed during the last ice age (which occurred 26,000 to 11,000 years ago), and that they followed an inland route through Alaska and Canada that had just been freed of its ice cover. There are a number of difficulties in this theory — in particular, growing evidence of human presence in Brazil and Chile 11,500 years ago or earlier [1]. There is also evidence of indigenous societies residing in the Americas, particularly on the Western coastlines, some 50,000 years ago. Thus other possibilities, not necessarily exclusive, have been suggested: (Pleistocene, Paleolithic – 10th millennium BC – 9th millennium BC – other millennia) Beginning of the Mesolithic, or Epipaleolithic time period, which is the first part of the Holocene epoch. ... Nautical chart of Bering Strait, site of former land bridge between Asia and North America The Bering land bridge, also known as Beringia, was a land bridge roughly 1600 km (1000 miles) north to south at its greatest extent, which joined present-day Alaska and eastern Siberia at various times... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ... The Upper Paleolithic or Palaeolithic is the third and last subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age as it is understood in Europe, Africa and Asia. ... Beginning of the Neolithic time period of the Holocene epoch. ...

• The migrants may have crossed the land bridge several millennia earlier and followed a coastal route, thus avoiding the ice-covered interior.
• They may have been seafaring people who moved along the coast, though some contest this theory because they believe there was a lack of seafaring skills of peoples during this time period.
• The crossing of the Bering Land Bridge may have occurred during the previous ice age, around 37,000 years ago. This is also supported by the archaeology dating of some sites in South America prior to the previously assumed date of 12–14,000 years ago, but still does not account for the earliest settlements extant in the Americas.
• A more radical alternative is that the Siberians were preceded by migrants from Oceania, who arrived either by sailing across the Pacific Ocean or by following the land route through Beringia at a much earlier date. Proponents of this theory claim that the oldest human remains in South America and in Baja California show distinctive non-Siberian traits, resembling those of Australian Aborigines or the Negritos of the Andaman Islands. These hypothetical American Aborigines would have been displaced by the Siberian migrants, and may have been ancestral to the distinctive Native Americans of the Tierra del Fuego, who are nearly extinct.

It should be noted, however, that many Native Americans reject the above theories as being scientific mythologies which have, at their base, an implicit political motivation. Many Native communities have their own traditional stories that offer accounts to their origins, but by and large those accounts have been ignored by scholars. Ironically, as more evidence of very early Native presence in the Americas emerges, Native accounts regarding their genesis on the continent have become increasingly validated. The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic (Greek παλαιός paleos=old and λίθος lithos=stone or the Old Stone Age) was the first period in the development of human technology of the Stone Age. ... Map of Oceania. ... The Bering land bridge, also known as Beringia, was a land bridge roughly 1600 km (1000 miles) north to south at its greatest extent, which joined present-day Alaska and eastern Siberia at various times during the ice ages. ... Baja California (highlighted) Alternative use: Baja California (state) Baja California or Lower California is a peninsula in the west of Mexico. ... Australian Aborigines are the main indigenous people of Australia. ... The Negritos include the Atis, and at least 5 other tribes of the Philippines, the Semang of the Malay peninsula, and 12 Andamanese tribes of the Andaman Islands. ... Ethnolinguistic map of the precolonial Andaman Islands The Andaman Islands are a group of islands in the Bay of Bengal, and are part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Union Territory of India. ... The American Aborigines are a hypothetical group of people, originally from Pacific Ocean and arrived in South America long before the ancestors of todays American Indian peoples came there. ... Tierra del Fuego (Spanish: land of Fire) is an archipelago at the southernmost tip of South America. ...

Some mainstream anthropologists and archaeologists consider the genetic and cultural evidence for a primarily Siberian origin overwhelming. According to their theories, at least three separate migrations from Siberia to the Americas are highly likely to have occurred:

• The first wave came into a land populated by the large mammals of the late Pleistocene, including mammoths, horses, giant sloths, and woolly rhinoceroses. The Clovis culture would be a manifestation of that migration, and the Folsom culture, based on the hunting of bison, would have developed from it. This wave eventually spread over the entire hemisphere, as far south as Tierra del Fuego. This group is believed to have reached the New World no later than 11,000 years ago.
• The second migration brought the ancestors of the Na-Dene peoples. They lived in Alaska and western Canada, but some migrated as far south as the Pacific Northwestern U.S. and the American Southwest, and would be ancestral to the Dene, Apaches and Navajos. This group is believed to have reached the world between 6,000 to 8,000 years ago.
• The third wave brought the ancestors of the Eskimos and the Aleuts. They may have come by sea over the Bering Strait, after the land bridge had disappeared. They are believed to have reached Alaska as early as 3,000 years ago.
• In recent years, molecular genetics studies have suggested as many as four distinct migrations from Asia. These studies also provide surprising evidence of smaller-scale, contemporaneous migrations from Europe, possibly by peoples who had adopted a lifestyle resembling that of Inuits and Yupiks during the last ice age.

One result of these successive waves of migration is that large groups of Native Americans with similar languages and perhaps physical characteristics as well, moved into various geographic areas of North, and then Central and South America. While Native Americans have traditionally remained primarily loyal to their individual tribes, ethnologists have variously sought to group the myriad of tribes into larger entities which reflect common geographic origins, linguistic similarities, and life styles. (See Classification of Native Americans.) Orders Subclass Monotremata Monotremata Subclass Marsupialia Didelphimorphia Paucituberculata Microbiotheria Dasyuromorphia Peramelemorphia Notoryctemorphia Diprotodontia Subclass Placentalia Xenarthra Dermoptera Desmostylia Scandentia Primates Rodentia Lagomorpha Insectivora Chiroptera Pholidota Carnivora Perissodactyla Artiodactyla Cetacea Afrosoricida Macroscelidea Tubulidentata Hyracoidea Proboscidea Sirenia The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the presence of mammary glands... The Pleistocene Epoch is part of the geologic timescale, usually dated as 1. ... Species Mammuthus columbi Columbian mammoth Mammuthus exilis Pygmy mammoth Mammuthus jeffersonii Jeffersonian mammoth Mammuthus meridionalis Mammuthus primigenius Wooly mammoth A mammoth (from Russian мамонт) is any of a number of an extinct genus of elephant, often with long curved tusks and, in northern species, a covering of long hair. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The Horse (Equus caballus) is a sizeable ungulate mammal, one of the seven modern species of the genus Equus. ... Families Rathymotheriidae Scelidotheriidae Mylodontidae Orophodontidae Megalonychidae Megatheriidae Ground sloths are extinct edentate (Order Xenarthra) mammals that are believed to be relatives of tree sloths and three-toed sloths. ... Binomial name Coelodonta antiquitatis (Blumenbach, 1807) The Woolly Rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis) is an extinct species of rhinoceros that survived the last ice age. ... The Clovis culture is a prehistoric Native American culture that first appears in the archaeological record of North America around 13,500 years ago, at the end of the last ice age. ... The Folsom Tradition is a name given by archaeologists to a sequence of Paleo-Indian archaeological cultures of central North America. ... Binomial name Bison bison Linnaeus, 1758 The American Bison (Bison bison), also called Buffalo, is a bovine mammal that is the largest terrestrial mammal in North America. ... Tierra del Fuego (Spanish: land of Fire) is an archipelago at the southernmost tip of South America. ... Na-Dené or Na-Dene is a Native American language family which includes the Athabaskan languages, Eyak, and Tlingit. ... State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski (R) Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... The Southwest region of the United States is drier than the adjoining Midwest in weather; the population is less dense and, with strong Spanish-American and Native American components, more ethnically varied than neighboring areas. ... The Dene are a group of indigenous peoples that live in the Arctic regions of Canada. ... This article is about the Native American tribe, for other uses of the word see Apache (disambiguation). ... Manuelito, Navajo chief Navajo Nation (Navajo Naabeehó Dineé) is the name of a sovereign Native American nation established by the Diné. The Navajo Nation Reservation includes about 27,000 square miles (70,000 km²) of land, slightly smaller than Maine or South Carolina) over part of three states, and is... Eskimo is a term used for a group of people who inhabit the circumpolar region (excluding circumpolar Scandinavia and all but the easternmost portions of Russia). ... The Aleuts (self-denomination: Unangax) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, U.S.A.. The homeland of the Aleuts includes the Aleutian Islands, the Pribilof Islands, the Shumagin Islands, and the far western part of the Alaska Peninsula. ... State nickname: The Last Frontier, The Land of the Midnight Sun Other U.S. States Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Governor Frank Murkowski (R) Official languages English Area 1,717,854 km² (1st)  - Land 1,481,347 km²  - Water 236,507 km² (13. ... World map showing location of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of Eurasia, defined by subtracting Europe from Eurasia. ... World map showing location of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... // Classification of Native Americans: United States and Canada Ethnographers commonly classify the native peoples of the United States and Canada into ten geographical regions with shared cultural traits (called cultural areas). ...

While many Native American groups retained a nomadic or semi-nomadic lifestyle through the time of European occupation of the New World, in some regions, specifically in the Mississippi River valley of the United States, in Mexico, Central America, the Andes of South America, they built advanced civilizations with monumental architecture and large-scale organization into cities and states. Length 6,270 km Elevation of the source 450 m Average discharge Saint Louis¹: 5,500 m³/s Vicksburg²: 16,800 m³/s Baton Rouge³: 12,800 m³/s Area watershed 2,980,000 km² Origin  Lake Itasca Mouth  Gulf of Mexico Basin countries United States (98. ... Central America is the region of North America located between the southern border of Mexico and the northwest border of Colombia, in South America. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... A civilization or civilisation has a variety of meanings related to human society. ... Architecture (in Greek αρχή = first and τέχνη = craftsmanship) is the art and science of designing buildings and structures. ... CITY Is A network of 5 Television Stations owned By CHUM Limited They Include CITY 57 Toronto CKVU 10 Edmonton 51 Calgary 5 Winnipeg 13 on December 1 CHUM Perchased the Fomer A-Channels Stations in Alberta and Manitoba Under the Banner of CITY-TV Everywhere. Broadcasting for the first... A state is an organized political community occupying a definite territory, having an organized government, and possessing internal and external sovereignty. ...

See also: Mississippian culture, Cahokia, Mesoamerica, Maya, Olmec, Zapotec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Aztec, Aymara, Inca, indigenous people of Brazil. The Mississippian culture was a Mound-building Native American culture that flourished in the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States in the centuries leading up to European contact. ... This article is about the Native American city. ... Mesoamerica is the region extending from central Mexico south to the northwestern border of Costa Rica that gave rise to a group of stratified, culturally related agrarian civilizations spanning an approximately 3,000-year period before the African discovery of the New World by Columbus. ... The word Maya or maya can refer to: The Maya – a Native American people of southern Mexico and northern Central America the modern Maya people the pre-Columbian Maya civilization the Maya language Maya – a concept in Hindu/Vedic philosophy a state of misperception of reality the inherent force of... The Olmec were an ancient people living in the tropical lowlands of south-central Mexico, roughly in what are the modern-day states of Veracruz and Tabasco on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. ... Zapotec refers to a native people of Mexico, their language family consisting of more than 15 languages, and their historic culture and traditions. ... The Toltecs (or Toltec or Tolteca) were a Pre-Columbian Native American people who dominated much of central Mexico between the 10th and 12th century AD. Their language, Nahuatl, was also spoken by the Aztecs. ... Teotihuacan is the largest Pre-Columbian archeological site in the Americas. ... The Aztecs were a Mesoamerican people of central Mexico in the 14th, 15th and 16th century. ... Aymara is the name of a South-American people and of their language. ... For other meanings of Inca, see Inca (disambiguation). ... The indigenous peoples of Brazil (povos indígenas in Portuguese) comprise a large number of distict ethnic groups who inhabited the countrys present territory prior its discovery by Europeans around 1500. ...

Settling Down

By 1500 B.C. many tribes had settled into small indigenous communities. Theses began as temporary settlements built by the hunter-gatherers, and over the centuries they grew into small villages, mostly established in the river valleys of North America, where crops could be raised. While exhibiting widely divergent social, cultural, and artistic expressions, all Native Americans group worked with materials available to them and employed social arrangements that augmented their menas of subsistence and survival. Gradually, these communities became more sophisticated; examples of more complex societies incuded the tribes of the southern United States from the Atlantic Coast to the Mississippi River. These groups were the most highly developed Indian civilizations north of Mexico. They constructed large and complex earthworks, and were particularly skilled at small stone scupltures and engravings on shell and copper. It has been suggested that Northern America be merged into this article or section. ... Length 6,270 km Elevation of the source 450 m Average discharge Saint Louis¹: 5,500 m³/s Vicksburg²: 16,800 m³/s Baton Rouge³: 12,800 m³/s Area watershed 2,980,000 km² Origin  Lake Itasca Mouth  Gulf of Mexico Basin countries United States (98. ... A civilization or civilisation has a variety of meanings related to human society. ...

The large pueblos, or villages, built on top of rocky talleland or mesas of Southwest around A.D. 700, were a complicated aggregate of family apartments. Towns were one large complex of buildings, with multistoried houses arranged around courtyards or plazas. Wooden ladders provided access to upper levels. Under the courtyards, subterranean kivas, or ceremonial structures, served as meeting rooms for religious societies.

European colonization of the Americas

The European colonization of the Americas forever changed the lives and cultures of the Native Americans. In the 15th to 19th centuries, their populations were ravaged, by the privations of displacement, by disease, and in many cases by warfare with European groups and enslavement by them. The first Native American group encountered by Columbus, the 250,000 Arawaks of Haiti, were enslaved. Only 500 survived by the year 1550, and the group was extinct before 1650. Although there is some debate as to whether the prehistoric, Clovis culture was European in origin, the first generally accepted European colonists were the Norse, starting but then abandoning a colonisation process. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Arawakan languages are an indigenous language family of South America and the Caribbean. ... Events February 7 - Julius III becomes Pope. ... // Events June 23 - Claimant King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland arrives in Scotland, the only of the three Kingdoms that has accepted him as ruler. ...

In the 15th century Spaniards and other Europeans brought horses to the Americas. Some of these animals escaped and began to breed and increase their numbers in the wild. Ironically, the horse had originally evolved in the Americas, but the last American horses, (species Equus Scotti and others [2]) died out at the end of the last ice age. The re-introduction of the horse had a profound impact on Native American culture in the Great Plains of North America. This new mode of travel made it possible for some tribes to greatly expand their territories, exchange goods with neighboring tribes, and more easily capture game. (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... Binomial name Equus caballus Linnaeus, 1758 The Horse (Equus caballus) is a sizeable ungulate mammal, one of the seven modern species of the genus Equus. ... Variations in CO2, temperature and dust from the Vostok ice core over the last 400 000 years For the animated movie, see Ice Age (movie). ... The Great Plains states. ... Game (food) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Europeans also brought diseases against which the Native Americans had no immunity. Chicken pox and measles, though common and rarely fatal among Europeans, often proved fatal to Native Americans, and more dangerous diseases such as smallpox were especially deadly to Native American populations. It is difficult to estimate the total percentage of the Native American population killed by these diseases. Epidemics often immediately followed European exploration, sometimes destroying entire villages. Some historians estimate that up to 80% of some Native populations may have died due to European diseases. For more information, see population history of American indigenous peoples. A disease is any abnormal condition of the body or mind that causes discomfort, dysfunction, or distress to the person affected or those in contact with the person. ... In a medical sense, immunity is a state of having sufficient biological defenses to avoid infection, disease, or other unwanted biological invasion. ... Chicken pox, also spelled chickenpox, is a common childhood disease caused by the varicella_zoster virus (VZV), also known as human herpes virus 3 (HHV_3), one of the eight herpesviruses known to affect humans. ... Smallpox (also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera) is a highly contagious disease unique to humans. ... An epidemic is a disease that appears as new cases in the population in a period of time at a rate (the number of new cases in the population during a specified period of time is called the incidence rate) that substantially exceeds what is expected, based on recent experence. ... There were millions of people living in the Americas when Christopher Columbus arrived in 1492. ...

Native Americans in the United States

Map of Native American language families roughly as found at first contact with Europeans.

Download high resolution version (1005x912, 422 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1005x912, 422 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ...

Early relations

During the American Revolutionary War, the newly proclaimed United States competed with the British for the allegiance of Native American nations east of the Mississippi River. Most Native Americans who joined the struggle sided with the British, hoping to use the war to halt colonial expansion onto American Indian land. Many native communities were divided over which side to support in the war. For the Iroquois Confederacy, the American Revolution resulted in civil war. Cherokees split into a neutral (or pro-American) faction and the anti-American Chickamaugas, led by Dragging Canoe. Many other communities were similarly divided. The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), also known as the American War of Independence, was a war fought primarily between Great Britain and revolutionaries within thirteen North American colonies. ... Length 6,270 km Elevation of the source 450 m Average discharge Saint Louis¹: 5,500 m³/s Vicksburg²: 16,800 m³/s Baton Rouge³: 12,800 m³/s Area watershed 2,980,000 km² Origin  Lake Itasca Mouth  Gulf of Mexico Basin countries United States (98. ... The Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee, also known as the League of Peace and Power) is a group of First Nations/Native Americans. ... Alternate meanings: Cherokee (disambiguation) The Cherokee are a people native to North America who first inhabited what is now the eastern and southeastern United States before most were forcefully moved to the Ozark Plateau. ... The Chickamauga are a Native American people related to the Cherokee people. ... Dragging Canoe (1730? – 1792) was an American Indian war leader who led a dissident band of young Cherokees against the United States in the American Revolutionary War. ...

Frontier warfare during the American Revolution was particularly brutal, and numerous atrocities were committed on both sides. Noncombatants of both races suffered greatly during the war, and villages and food supplies were frequently destroyed during military expeditions. The largest of these expeditions was the Sullivan Expedition of 1779, which destroyed more than 40 Iroquois villages in order to neutralize Iroquois raids in upstate New York. The expedition failed to have the desired effect: American Indian activity became even more determined. // Background Among the Acts of Parliament denounced by the Patriots as Intolerable Acts were the Proclamation of 1763, which forbade Anglo-American settlement west of the Appalachians; and the Quebec Act of 1774, which made provision for the extension of Québecs borders to the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. ... The Sullivan Expedition, also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, was a campaign led by Major General John Sullivan and General James Clinton against Loyalists (Tories) and the four nations of the Iroquois who had sided with the British in the American Revolutionary War. ... 1779 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Upstate New York is the region of New York State outside of the core of the New York metropolitan area. ...

Native Americans were stunned to learn that when the British made peace with the Americans in the Treaty of Paris (1783), the British had ceded a vast amount of American Indian territory to the United States without even informing their Indian allies. The United States initially treated the American Indians who had fought with the British as a conquered people who had lost their land. When this proved impossible to enforce (the Indians had lost the war on paper, not on the battlefield), the policy was abandoned. The United States was eager to expand, and the national government initially sought to do so only by purchasing Native American land in treaties. The states and settlers were frequently at odds with this policy. Painting by Benjamin West depicting John Jay, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Laurens, and William Temple Franklin. ...

Removal and reservations

Shoshoni tipis, about 1900

In the 19th century, the incessant Westward expansion of the United States incrementally compelled large numbers of Native Americans to resettle further west, sometimes by force, almost always reluctantly. Under President Andrew Jackson, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which authorized the President to conduct treaties to exchange Indian land east of the Mississippi River for lands west of the river. As many as 100,000 American Indians eventually relocated in the West as a result of this Indian Removal policy. In theory, relocation was supposed to be voluntary (and many Indians did remain in the East), but in practice great pressure was put on American Indian leaders to sign removal treaties. The most egregious violation of the stated intention of the removal policy was the Treaty of New Echota, which was signed by a dissident faction of Cherokees, but not the elected leadership. The treaty was brutally enforced by President Martin Van Buren, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 4,000 Cherokees (mostly from disease) on the Trail of Tears. Download high resolution version (887x589, 79 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (887x589, 79 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Shoshone is a Native American language. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845), one of the founders of the Democratic Party, was the seventh President of the United States, serving from 1829 to 1837. ... The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was a law passed by the Twenty-first United States Congress in order to facilitate the relocation of American Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi River in the United States to lands further west. ... 1830 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Indian Removal refers to the nineteenth century policy of the government of the United States to relocate American Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi River to lands west of the river. ... The Treaty of New Echota was a removal treaty signed in New Echota, Georgia by officials of the United States government and several members of a faction within the Cherokee nation on December 29, 1835. ... Alternate meanings: Cherokee (disambiguation) The Cherokee are a people native to North America who at time of European contact in the 16th century inhabited what is now the eastern and southeastern United States before most were forcefully moved to the Ozark Plateau. ... Order: 8th President Vice President: Richard M. Johnson Term of office: March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841 Preceded by: Andrew Jackson Succeeded by: William Henry Harrison Date of birth: December 5, 1782 Place of birth: Kinderhook, New York Date of death: July 24, 1862 Place of death: Kinderhook, New York... The Trail of Tears refers to the forced removal of the Cherokee American Indian tribe by the U.S. federal government, which resulted in the deaths of about 4,000 Cherokee Indians. ...

Conflicts generally known as "Indian Wars" broke out between U.S. forces and many different tribes. Authorities entered numerous treaties during this period, but later abrogated many for various reasons. Well-known military engagements include the atypical Native American victory at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876, and the massacre of Native Americans at Wounded Knee in 1890. On January 31, 1876 the United States government ordered all remaining Native Americans to move into reservations or reserves. This, together with the near-extinction of the American Bison which many tribes had lived on, set about the downturn of Prairie Culture that had developed around the use of the horse for hunting, travel and trading. The Indian Wars were a series of conflicts between the United States and Native American peoples (Indians) of North America. ... Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about: United States Wikinews has news related to this article: United States United States government CIA World Factbook Entry for United States House. ... The Battle of the Little Bighorn, also called Custers Last Stand, was an engagement between a Lakota-Cheyenne combined force and the 7th Cavalry of the United States Army that took place on June 25, 1876 near the Little Bighorn River in the eastern Montana Territory. ... 1876 is a leap year starting on Saturday. ... The Wounded Knee Massacre or the Battle of Wounded Knee was the last armed conflict between the Great Sioux Nation and the United States of America. ... 1890 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... January 31 is the 31st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1876 is a leap year starting on Saturday. ... BIA map of Indian reservations in the continental United States. ... Binomial name Bison bison Linnaeus, 1758 The American Bison (Bison bison), also called Buffalo, is a bovine mammal that is the largest terrestrial mammal in North America. ...

Students at the Bismark Indian School in the early 20th century

American policy toward Native Americans has been an evolving process. In the late nineteenth century reformers in efforts to civilize Indians adapted the practice of educating native children in Indian Boarding Schools. These schools, which were primarily run by Christians [3], proved traumatic to Indian children, who were forbidden to speak their native languages, taught Christianity instead of their native religions and in numerous other ways forced to abandon their Indian identity[4] and adopt European-American culture. There are also many documented cases of sexual, physical and mental abuses occurring at these schools [5] [6]. Bismarck Indian School, North Dakota. ... Bismarck Indian School, North Dakota. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... A civilization or civilisation has a variety of meanings related to human society. ... Native Americans (also Indians, Aboriginal Peoples, American Indians, First Nations, Alaskan Natives, Amerindians, or Indigenous Peoples of America) are the indigenous inhabitants of The Americas prior to the European colonization, and their modern descendants. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ... Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament writings of his early followers. ...

Current status

There are 563 Federally recognized tribal governments in the United States. The United States recognizes the right of these tribes to self-government and supports their tribal sovereignty and self-determination. These tribes possess the right to form their own government; to enforce laws, both civil and criminal; to tax; to establish membership; to license and regulate activities; to zone; and to exclude persons from tribal territories. Limitations on tribal powers of self-government include the same limitations applicable to states; for example, neither tribes nor states have the power to make war, engage in foreign relations, or coin money. [7] This is a list of Native American Tribal Entities which are recognized by the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs. ...

In addition, there are a number of tribes that are recognized by individual states, but not by the federal government. The rights and benefits associated with state recognition vary from state to state. This is a list of Native American Tribal Entities which are recognized by individual States but not by the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs. ...

Military defeat, cultural pressure, confinement on reservations, forced cultural assimilation, outlawing of native languages and culture, termination policies of the 1950s, and 1960s, and slavery have had deleterious effects on Native Americans' mental and physical health. Contemporary health problems include poverty, alcoholism, heart disease, diabetes, and New World Syndrome. // Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the height of the baby-boom from returning... The 1960s, or The Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ... Indian slavery was a practice of the Spanish from the earliest days on the Caribbean islands they first settled. ... Poverty is the state of being without, often associated with need, hardship and lack of resources across a wide range of circumstances. ... Bold text Polish propaganda poster saying: Stop drinking! Come with us and build a happy tomorrow. ... There are different forms of heart disease: Coronary heart disease Ischaemic heart disease Cardiovascular disease The study of heart disease is Cardiology This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... This article is about the disease that features high blood sugar. ... New World Syndrome is a set of noncommunicable diseases brought on by consumption of rich food. ...

As recently as the 1970s, the Bureau of Indian Affairs was still actively pursuing a policy of "assimilation" [8], the goal of which was to eliminate the reservations and steer Indians into mainstream U.S. culture. As of 2004, there are still claims of theft of Indian land for the coal and uranium it contains. [9] [10] [11] [12] This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1970s. ... The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) responsibility is the administration and management of 55. ...

In the state of Virginia, Native Americans face a unique problem. Virginia has no federally recognized tribes, largely due to the work of one man, Walter Ashby Plecker. In 1912, Plecker became the first registrar of the state's Bureau of Vital Statistics, serving until 1946. An avowed white supremacist and fervent advocate of eugenics, Plecker believed that the state's Native Americans had been "mongrelized" with its African American population. A law passed by the state's General Assembly recognized only two races, "white" and "colored". Plecker pressured local governments into reclassifying all Native Americans in the state as "colored", leading to massive destruction of records on the state's Native American community. State nickname: Old Dominion Other U.S. States Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Governor Mark R. Warner (D) Official languages English Area 110,862 km² (35th)  - Land 102,642 km²  - Water 8,220 km² (7. ... 1912 is a leap year starting on Monday. ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... White supremacy is an ideology which holds that the white race (variously defined) is superior to other races (also variously defined). ... Eugenics is the self-direction of human evolution: Logo from the Second International Congress of Eugenics, 1921, depicting it as a tree which unites a variety of different fields. ... African Americans, also known as Afro-Americans or black Americans, are an ethnic group in the United States of America whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Sub-Saharan and West Africa. ...

This Census Bureau map depicts the locations of Native Americans in the United States as of 2000.

Even after his death, Plecker still haunts the state's Native American community. In order to receive federal recognition and the benefits it confers, tribes must prove their continuous existence since 1900. Plecker's policies have made it impossible for Virginia tribes to do so. The federal government, while aware of Plecker's destruction of records, has so far refused to bend on this bureaucratic requirement. A bill currently before U.S. Congress to ease this requirement has been favorably reported out of a key Senate committee, but faces strong opposition in the House from a Virginia member concerned that federal recognition could open the door to gambling in the state. [13] Download high resolution version (3456x2568, 646 KB)I know, i know: GIFs is bad. ... Download high resolution version (3456x2568, 646 KB)I know, i know: GIFs is bad. ... 1900 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Seal of the Congress. ... Seal of the Senate The United States Senate is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the House of Representatives. ... Seal of the House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the Senate. ... Gambling (or betting) is any behavior involving risking money or valuables (making a wager or placing a stake) on the outcome of a game, contest, or other event in which the outcome of that activity depends partially or totally upon chance or upon ones ability to do something. ...

In the early 21st century, Native American communities remain an enduring fixture on the United States landscape, in the American economy, and in the lives of Native Americans. Communities have consistently formed governments that administer services like firefighting, natural resource management, and law enforcement. Most Native American communities have established court systems to adjudicate matters related to local ordinances, and most also look to various forms of moral and social authority vested in traditional affiliations within the community. To address the housing needs of Native Americans, Congress passed the Native American Housing and Self Determination Act (NAHASDA) in 1996. This legislation replaced public housing, and other 1937 Housing Act programs directed towards Indian Housing Authorities, with a block grant program directed towards Tribes. In calendars based on the Christian Era or Common Era, such as the Gregorian calendar, the 21st century is the current century, as of this writing. ... Firefighter with an axe A firefighter, sometimes still called a fireman though women have increasingly joined firefighting units, is a person who is trained and equipped to put out fires, rescue people and in some areas provide emergency medical services. ... For the band, see The Police. ... A court is an official, public forum which a public power establishes by lawful authority to adjudicate disputes, and to dispense civil, labour, administrative and criminal justice under the law. ...

Gambling has become a leading industry. Casinos operated by many Native American governments in the United States are creating a stream of gambling revenue that some communities are beginning to use as leverage to build diversified economies. Native American communities have waged and prevailed in legal battles to assure recognition of rights to self-determination and to use of natural resources. Some of those rights, known as treaty rights are enumerated in early treaties signed with the young United States government. Tribal sovereignty has become a cornerstone of American jurisprudence, and at least on the surface, in national legislative policies. Although many Native American tribes have casinos, they are a source of conflict. Most tribes, especially small ones such as the Winnemem Wintu of Redding, California, feel that casinos and their proceeds destroy culture from the inside out. These tribes refuse to participate in the gaming industry. Gambling (or betting) is any behavior involving risking money or valuables (making a wager or placing a stake) on the outcome of a game, contest, or other event in which the outcome of that activity depends partially or totally upon chance or upon ones ability to do something. ... The Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey A casino is a building that accommodates gambling. ... Tribal sovereignty is the ability of a tribe to govern itself. ... Jurisprudence is the scientific and historic study of law, inclusive of: Legal history, including legal historiography and hermeneutics; Legal philosophy; Legal science, e. ... External link http://www. ... Redding from space, April 1994 Redding is the county seat of Shasta County, California, USA, located on the Sacramento River and on Interstate 5 south of Lake Shasta. ...

Many of the smaller eastern tribes have been trying to gain official recognition of their tribal status. The recognition confers some benefits, including the right to label arts and crafts as Native American and they can apply for grants that are specifically reserved for Native Americans. But gaining recognition as a tribe is extremely difficult because of a Catch-22 in the process. To be established as a tribal groups, members have to submit extensive genealogical proof of tribal descent, yet in past years many Native Americans denied their Native American heritage, because it would have deprived them of many rights, such as the right of probate. The Waccamaw tribe and the Pee Dee tribe of South Carolina were granted official recognition February 17, 2005. Two other tribal applications were denied for lack of documentation. Catch 22 has become a term, inspired by Joseph Hellers novel Catch-22, describing a general situation in which A must have been preceded by B, and B must have been preceded by A. Symbolically, (~B => ~A) & (~A => ~B) where either A or B must come into being first. ... Genealogy is the study and tracing of family pedigrees. ... Probate is the legal process of settling the estate of a deceased person; specifically, distributing the decedents property. ... February 17 is the 48th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ...

According to 2003 United States Census Bureau estimates, a little over one third of the 2,786,652 Native Americans in the United States live in three states: California at 413,382, Arizona at 294,137 and Oklahoma at 279,559