Chapter 1: The First Occupants Flashcards
Where do many experts believe that the first occupants travelled from?
They believe they travelled from the steppes of Asia
What is a Steppe?
A steppe is a great grassy plain without trees
About how long ago did sheets of ice covered Northern Europe and the Americas? How thick was the ice? What is this phenomenon called?
1-About 30,000 years ago
2-The ice was 2-3 km thick
3-This is called the Ice Age
What did the Ice Age do? What did it allow nomadic hunters to do?
1-The Ice Age lowered the ocean level by 100 meters
2-It allowed hunters to cross from Asia to America
What is the Bering Strait? What did it used to be before the Ice Age?
A large body of water separating Siberia and Alaska.
It used to be the land bridge of Beringia
10,000 years ago what made the trip from Asia to America impossible?
Rising ocean levels
How long ago did the first occupants reach the St-Lawrence Valley?
about 10,000 years ago
What are the 3 theories of how the first occupants travelled from Asia?
1- Travelled by the sea following the Aleutian islands
2-People from Oceania crossed the Pacific ocean with boats
3-Europeens crosses the Altlantic from island to island
How long ago did the Inuits arrive in America?
5,500 years ago?
How to the Inuits arrive to America?
The crossed the Bering Straight by Kayaks the were made from seal pelt
How long ago was the first wave of migration towards America?
20,000 years ago
Who occupies the Northeastern Appalachians of America?
The Iroquoian and the Algonquian
What are the alternative historical sources that are
available ?
Artifacts
Written Accounts by Europeans
The Lifestyle, culture and traditions passed down by descendants
What is an artifact?
an object produced by human craftsmanship
In the 1500’s how many Iroquoian nations were there?
9
Where did the Iroquoian nations live? Why did they live there?
They live along the fertile lowlands of the St-Lawrence River. They lived there because of the climate and the river, the land was ideal for agriculture
What is estimated population of Iroquois? How many are there in Quebec?
100,000
There were about 5,000 in quebec
How many people did Iroquoian villages have?
They had from 50 to 1,500
How many people did Huron communities have?
About 2000
How many families shared a longhouse?
from 5 to 10 families
What are the traditionally cultivated plants known as The 3 Sisters?
Corn, Beans and Squash
What is the traditional diet of an Iroquoian?
- Fresh Fish
- Game & Wild
- Cultivated Produce
When and why would Iroquois relocate their villages?
- Every 10 to 15 years
- The houses would deteriorate, if the distance of firewood was too far
- If the nutrients in the Soil were depleted
What were men responsible for in Iroquoian communities?
They were responsible for clearing the land, hunting, fishing, constructing homes, trading with other nations and defence.
What were women responsible for in Iroquoian communities?
They were responsible for cultivating the soil, hunting small game, bringing in the harvest, and caring for the welfare of the children and the family
What the society like in Iroquoian villages?
It was matrilineal
What is a Matrilineal society?
Family ties, communication with the clans and worldly goods were passed down from mother to daughter. Each longhouse began with the eldest woman of the mother clan.
How many chiefs does each Iroquoian political structure have? What are they?
2
The warrior chief and the band council chief
What does the band council chief/civil chief do?
He is responsible for village affairs and relationships between other nations. He participates in the council meetings. He is chosen by the mother of the clan.
What does the council represent?
The council represents the village at council meetings
What does the warrior chief do?
The warrior chic represents the village at The Council of Nations. He maintains relationships with other nations and determines strategies in case of war
When do Iroquois trade?
when the harvest was plentiful and surpassed immediate needs
Who was the Iroquois strongest commercial partner?
The Huron
What did they exchange for corn and tobacco?
Meat, skins, furs and agricultural products
How did the Iroquois become semi-sedentary?
They found the St-Lawrence Valley The land was fertile They started agriculture and became farmers They became semi-sendentary And they created villages
What territory did the Algonquians occupy?
The Canadian Shield and the Appalachians
How many Algonquians were there? How many in quebec?
There were about 70,000 with 20,000 living in Quebec
Where did the Algonquians live? Why were they nomadic?
They lived in dense boreal forests because their land wasn’t as fertile as the Iroquois
How did the Algonquians survive?
They survived on hunting, trapping, fishing and harvesting wild foodstuff
How did the Algonquians navigate across rivers and lakes?
By birch bark canoes
Where would the Algonquians move to in the fall?
They moved to their favourite hunting ground to set up camp for the winter
What do the Algonquians do when spring arrives?
They meet up with people with common ancestors and spend the summer together
What does summer mean for the algonquians mean?
Its a time for celebrations and weddings
What is the algonquian society based on? What does this mean?
A patrilineal society
This means that the family line possessions were passed down from father to son
What are the responsibilities for men in Algonquian groups?
Hunting, fishing to feed their families and defending them. Making canoes and snowshoes
Trading and Making tents
What are the responsibilities for women in Algonquian groups?
Harvesting housework collecting wood making fires preparing pelts making clothes and tent covers
Do Algonquians have a political structure?
no
What doesn’t exist in the circle of life?
Notions of superiority and inferiority
What do Amerindians recognize? What do they try to do?
The freedom of animals and vegetation
They try not to unbalance or diminish nature and take only what is needed and are grateful for it
What do Algonquian hunters do in a situation where they have to kill an animal?
They warn it thats its going to be killed and that its necessary for their survival. After its killed there is no waste.
What was impossible?Why?
The accumulation of riches by any individual
Because the notion of private property was unknown
What is a notion of the circle of life?
The practice of gift giving
What is the fundamental rule of social relationships?
giving
Is giving voluntary or compulsory?
voluntary
When someone receives a grift must they give one in return?
yes
Is there a hierarchal structure for Amerindians?
no. No individual is subordinate to another.
How do Amerindians see women?
They see women as the force of reason, responsible for educating, children and answering the needs of the group, to understand life and its laws.
How did amerindians raise their children?
with patience and constraint
What are the personal qualities amerindians search for in their chiefs
intelligence
influence
generosity
hunting and fishing skills
What did amerindians practice?
an animistic religion; they believed that each element of the earth has a spirit
