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History - The American West > The geography of America and The Plains Indians > Flashcards

The geography of America and The Plains Indians Flashcards

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1
Q

Where are the great plains?

A

In the centre of North America

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2
Q

What is the vegetation of the great plains?

A

Grasslands

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3
Q

Where are the Low Plains, and what is their vegetation?

A

Low Plains lie to the east, with Long grass. Low = Long

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4
Q

Where are the High Plains, and what is their vegetation?

A

High plains lie to the west, with short grass

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5
Q

What happens to the vegetation of the plains as you go south?

A

They become drier and more desert like.

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6
Q

What is the plains weather like?

A

Very variable, making farming difficult.

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7
Q

Why are the mountains either side of the plains are problem?

A

They produce rain shadows where very little rain falls.

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8
Q

Why is the distance from the sea a problem?

A

The distance from the ocean means that the plains are very hot in summer, and very cold in winter. (Large difference in temperature)

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9
Q

What sort of winds are found on the plains that cause enormous damage?

A

Tornadoes

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10
Q

What is the vegetation of the Rocky mountains?

A

Heavily wooded either side

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11
Q

What happens to water on the Plateau area of the Rockies?

A

The water can get trapped between the mountains. If the only way it can escape is by evaporation it will become more salty - like the Great Salt Lake.

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12
Q

What lies west past the Sierra Nevada mountains?

A

The Pacific coastlands

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13
Q

What is the climate of the Pacific coastlands?

A

They have a temperate climate as they are close to the sea.

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14
Q

What is a temperate climate?

A

The climate close to the sea, where the water cools the land in the summer, and warms it in the winter, producing more even temperatures.

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15
Q

What is a continental climate?

A

The climate in the middle of a continent, where there are no large bodies of water to even out the changes of temperature due to the seasons.

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16
Q

Why did people want to live in the Pacific coastlands?

A

Fertile, nice climate.

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17
Q

What major risk do people living in the Pacific coastlands still face?

A

Earthquakes as the Pacific plate meets the North American plate here.

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18
Q

What were the Native Americans known as?

A

American Indians, Red Indians, Plains Indians, Redskins.

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19
Q

Why were the Native Americans known as Indians?

A

Columbus thought that he had found a sea route to India

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20
Q

When did Columbus reach America?

A

1492

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21
Q

Name some Native American tribes

A

eg : Blackfoot, Crow, Sioux, Cheyenne, Apache, Navajo - only need a few!

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22
Q

What animal was found on the plains that the Native Americans relied on?

A

The buffalo.

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23
Q

What did the the Native Americans use the Buffalo for?

A

Meat; Skins for wool, clothing, shoes, vessels, tents; Sinews for thread; Bones for implements; Dung for fuel

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24
Q

What animal transformed the life of the Native Americans?

A

The horse

25
Q

How did the horse help the Native Americans?

A

It became easier to hunt, and easier to transport stored food and belongings.

26
Q

How did European diseases affect the Native Americans?

A

The farmers were decimated by smallpox and cholera. Nomadic tribes were more scattered, so less affected by epidemics and their population increased to 200,000 by 1850.

27
Q

What happened to the tribal boundaries?

A

They were not fixed, and there was a gradual south-west movement as the more powerful tribes drove off the weaker tribes.

28
Q

What were the powerful tribes responsible for the south-west movement?

A

The Sioux and the Comanche

29
Q

Were the Native Americans a uniform people?

A

No, each tribe was different, some were nomads, some were farmers, etc.

30
Q

What were the Native Americans views on land ownership?

A

The idea of owning land made no sense, land was free, like air, for anyone to use.

31
Q

How was land allocated in the settled farming tribes?

A

Anyone was free to grow their corn where they wanted to,

32
Q

What was the role of generosity?

A

Being generous increased status, as the implication was that the person could afford it. A chief who was not generous would lose influence.

33
Q

What was the role of possessions?

A

The plains Indians cherished them.

34
Q

What was the role of warfare?

A

Men gained prestige by warfare, and raiding parties were normal.

35
Q

Touching an enemy with a special stick was called

A

“counting coup”

36
Q

Why did they use rituals such as “Counting coup”

A

They reduced the need for actual killing, so warfare was sustainable.

37
Q

Name a symbolic act of bravery

A

“counting coup”

38
Q

Were all Native Americans warlike?

A

No, for instance the Pueblo Indians only fought in self-defence.

39
Q

Did the native Americans think of themselves as a nation?

A

No, they were only members of the tribe.

40
Q

Who in the tribe took care of hunting and warfare?

A

The men.

41
Q

What was the role of women?

A

Agriculture; finding food for horses; leading horses; tanning hides;making tipis; making pemmican; making goods.

42
Q

What were the rules on ownership?

A

Women could, and did own the things they made.

43
Q

What were tipis?

A

The buffalo hide tents

44
Q

What is pemmican?

A

A long lasting foodstuff, meat, fat and (sometimes) fruit.

45
Q

What was the role of man in the religion of the Native Americans?

A

Man is part of nature and does not have mastery over it.

46
Q

What was the Great Spirit?

A

The life-force present in nature. It is not sentient, unlike the Christian God.

47
Q

Did the Great Spirit have any human characteristics?

A

No, it could not be anthropomorphised

48
Q

How was nature seen in the Native American view?

A

It had a spiritual dimension and therefore was not to be exploited

49
Q

Why were circles important to the Native Americans?

A

They saw all things as being interconnected.

50
Q

How was successful hunting ensured?

A

There was a process of religious bargaining, involving the spirit of the animal (part of the Great Spirit) and rituals including dances.

51
Q

What was believed to have spirits?

A

Even rocks and mountains had spirits, so mining could upset the spirit of the mountain.

52
Q

What was the name for a member of the tribe who had a connection to the spirit world?

A

Medicine man

53
Q

What was the term for appealing to the spirits?

A

Making medicine

54
Q

Who would be the medicine man?

A

A member of the tribe who was strong and brave, and displayed wisdom and understanding of the visible world, and would therefore be wise in the spirit world.

55
Q

How did the native Americans pass their history on?

A

By telling stories (Oral tradition).

56
Q

Why were many stories lost?

A

The European diseases killed off many old people and the stories died with them.

57
Q

How does oral history compare with history in books?

A

With books it is possible to go back to earlier versions, with an oral history only the current version is available, so it is assumed that the current version is the only version.

58
Q

Which river divides east from west?

A

Mississippi. Spell it… no cheating.

History - The American West (4 decks)

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