basic information about native indian americans

8/9/2019 basic information about Native Indian Americans

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americans4.htm

How the Indians Lived

ood

!ome tri"es depended almost entirely on a#riculture and had permanent

villa#es$ as did the %ue"lo peoples of the !outhwest. &thers depended

almost entirely on huntin#$ as did the %lains Indians. ' few tri"es in the

(orthwest depended on salmon )shin# almost as completely as the %lains

tri"es did on "ualo huntin#.

*ost Indians$ however$ had to search out every possi"le food resource.+ypically$ corn and other crops would "e planted in sprin# near a permanent

villa#e site. +he tri"e would then #o on a summer hunt$ and$ "ecause any

lar#e "and of Indians would soon kill or fri#hten o all #ame in a re#ion$

huntin# #rounds were chan#ed fre,uently. +he tri"e would return to the

villa#e site to harvest crops$ then move out a#ain on a fall hunt. ' winter

camp mi#ht "e made in an entirely dierent location. !tops were scheduled

to #ather such food as wild rice or camas roots$ and much time was #iven to

)shin#.

+hus most tri"es were mi#ratory in a more or less annual pattern. 'ny of anum"er of factors$ however$ could cause them to mi#rate to an entirely

dierent re#ion. or eample$ huntin# #rounds were fre,uently ehausted.

+ransportation

'lthou#h entral 'merican Indians made wheeled )#urines$ the wheel

as a transportation device was unknown to the Indians until the arrival of

uropeans. Instead of wa#ons$ the %lains tri"es used the travois. It consisted

of two poles "ound on either side of an animal$ with the other ends dra##in#

alon# the #round and a mat or "undle tied "etween them. 0o#s$ the Indians1

only fully domesticated animals$ were used "efore horses were o"tained$and could draw only li#ht loads. hen horses were ac,uired$ the travois

"ecame practical for lon# 3ourneys.

+he principal form of water transport was the canoe. +he "ark-frame

canoe was used in northern areas from 'laska to the 'tlantic coast. ramed

of spruce p5cea6 wood and covered with "ark corte7a6 usually "irch6 sewn

to#ether and made waterproof with pitch$ it was li#ht and could "e easily

carried. +he du#out caseta/ refu#io6 canoe was used on the %aci)c coast$ in

the !outh$ and in parts of the northeast and 8reat Lakes areas. It was made

of a sin#le lo# tronoco6$ hollowed out "y "urnin# or cuttin#. !ome du#outs

were as much as 9 feet ; m6 lon#.
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+he "ull "oat of *issouri lackfeet$ for eample$ used only temporary

rafts.

Housin#

In nothin# did tri"es dier more than in their ha"itations. *ost Indians lived

in sin#le-family dwellin#s$ "ut many dwelt in lar#e community houses.

+he wi#wam tipi$ tienda india6 of the 'l#on,uians was a domed or conical

structure framed with poles and covered with "ark$ rushes$ or "ranches. +he

'pache wickiup was a circular "rush shelter$ sometimes covered with "ark

or earth. +he hoctaw covered a frame of poles with palmetto leaves. +he

tepee of the %lains Indians was similar to the conical wi#wam$ "ut was

covered with "ualo skin.

i#wam.

i#wam. ' wi#wam is a domelike dwellin# once common amon# the

'l#on,uian-speakin# Indians of the astern oodlands of (orth 'merica. It

was usually made of li#ht poles tied to#ether with "ark to form an oval-

shaped dome. +he "uilder covered this framework with reed mats or "ark$

as shown in this illustration.

+he lon#house of the Iro,uois was a communal house ? to 9 feet 9? to

; m6 lon# "y a"out 9@ feet ?.? m6 wide. It was made of "ark supported "ya framework of poles. +he *andan "uilt circular communal houses$ each

a"out 4 feet 92 m6 in diameter. +hey were "uilt of tim"er and "ranches

covered with dirt or clay. +he ho#an of the (avaho was a mound-shaped

structure$ lar#e enou#h for a sin#le family$ made of lo#s and mud. +he

&maha$ &sa#e$ and %awnee used earth lod#es or #rass lod#es. +he most

ela"orate community dwellin#s were the cli dwellin#s and pue"los of the

!outhwest. +hey were made of stone$ ado"e$ or coarse plastered

wickerwork$ often several stories hi#h.

lothin#

>uckskin tanned deer hide6 was a common material for clothin#. *en of

many tri"es wore a shirt that hun# free over the hips$ a "reech-cloth$

le##in#s$ and moccasins. omen commonly wore a short-sleeved dress$

reachin# "elow the knee and tied at the waist "y a "elt. omen also wore

le##in#s and moccasins. ' few tri"es wore sandals and some went "arefoot$

"ut moccasins of varied desi#n and decoration were almost universal.


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8arments were sewn with a "one awl$ and often were ela"orately decorated

with shells$ porcupine ,uills$ feathers$ and$ after uropeans came$ "eads.

(ecklaces$ arm"ands$ and other articles of personal adornment were

common.

>ualo ro"es and$ later$ "lankets served as winter overcoats. !ome Indians

in prehistoric times wove fa"rics of cotton$ hair$ fur$ mountain-sheep wool$

or feathers.

+he feathered headdress$ often with lon# trails$ was a late development

amon# tri"es of the %lains$ althou#h other Indians used feathers as

ornaments. *any Indians of the ast and !outh wore tur"ans or head"ands.

'lon# the %aci)c oast hats were of "asketry.

ommunication

Indians spoke many dierent lan#ua#es see section ALan#ua#e 8roups and

+ri"esB6$ "ut a si#n lan#ua#e of hand #estures was widely understood "y the

tri"es "etween the *ississippi and the


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Indians were #enerally indul#ent with children$ seldom punishin# them$ "ut

takin# #reat pains in trainin# them.

lackfeet Indians$ was the creator$ "ut he could "e tricky$ mean$

and sometimes evil$ and sometimes he overreached himself and was

defeated. !imilar was &ld *an oyote$ of the rows. !un$ his wife *oon$ and

their son *ornin# !tar were powerful persons$ "ut had frailties similar to

those of the 8reek #ods.

+he sun dance of many %lains tri"es was dedicated to the sun$ "ut these

Indians were not eclusively sun worshipers. +here were many dances

whose purpose was to #ain "ene)ts from the deitiesDfor eample$ the

"ualo dance$ corn dance$ and rain dance.

Eoun# warriors sou#ht individual aid "y prolon#ed fastin# and prayer in

solitude. +hey mi#ht dream that an animal or "ird spoke to them= the

creature would then "ecome the personal AmedicineB #uidin# spirit6 of the

fastin# warrior.

8overnment

+he Iro,uois had a well-or#ani7ed confederacy and decided issues around a

council )re. !iou "ualo huntin# and %ue"lo a#riculture were hi#hly

or#ani7ed communal eorts$ as were many reli#ious festivals. +ri"al

councils$ however$ #enerally had little control over the individual$ and chiefs

#overned only "y the powers of personal leadership. rime was lar#ely a

personal matter. *urder mi#ht "e aven#ed "y relatives of the victim$ or an

indemnity mi#ht "e paid "y the killer.

!ecret societies of warriors often eercised considera"le police power and

directed hunts and tri"al mi#rations.


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arfare was almost entirely a matter of personal leadership. ' youn#

warrior would announce that he planned a raid= those who wished$ 3oined

him. If he were uniformly successful he would "ecome a popular war chief.

arfare was a normal state= other tri"es were either allies or enemies

(ative 'merican Life

iowa-warrior

' comprehensive illustrated #uide to (ative 'merican Life with pictures and

videos. ontainin# facts and information a"out dierent aspects of the

everyday life and lifestyle of (ative 'merican Indians. acts and informationa"out many items used in (ative 'merican life. 0iscover how the men and

children lived in Indian villa#es. ind out a"out their music and musical

instruments includin# drums and Fute. (ative 'merican ood and cookin#.

Indian +ri"es%ictures of the (ative 'mericans

History of (ative 'mericans (ative 'merican Indians

(ative 'merican lothin#+he Indian ars

(ative 'merican Houses (ative 'merican Indian (ames

(ative 'merican !ym"ols (ative 'merican !tories

(ative Indian +ri"es Inde (ative Indian eapons and +ools

amous (ative 'mericans (ative 'merican ulture

(ative Indian 'rt (ative 'merican omen

+he Indi#enous %eople of the Gnited !tates

0iscover interestin# facts and information a"out the history and culture of(ative 'merican Indians and their tri"es

isit olonial 'merica for the History of the olonists


' comprehensive and illustrated #uide to (ative 'merican Life and the

everyday lifestyle of the (ative 'merican Indian. 'll of our articles are

accompanied "y pictures$ paintin#s and many have videos - all "rin#in#

(ative 'merican Life literally to life and ena"lin# a "etter understandin# of

each of su"3ects covered.

Information and acts a"out (ative 'merican Life


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0iscover facts and information a"out items that were invented "y Indians to

make their daily life and work more comforta"le. Learn a"out their leisure

time and the #ames that the men$ women and children played. +heir music

and son#s and the musical instruments that accompanied their customs and

festivals. hat type of food did they eatJ How did their food vary from one

re#ion to anotherJ amples of some (ative 'merican recipes and specialtypes of food such as pemmican and hominy. (ative 'merican huntin# and

the many uses of the "ualo. *odes of transport and how this varied from

one area to another$ from the horse to the travois and the canoe. 0iscover

facts and information a"out all these elements of (ative 'merican Life.

yanktonai-nakota-siou


+his section covers a variety of dierent su"3ects with articles a"out (ative

'merican Life.


%emmican +he *ustan# Horse (ative 'merican Indian Horses

'merican Indian +attoos (ative 'merican %aint *akin# ire

(ative 'merican %aint ar %aint *akin# ire

!moke !i#nals ace 'nd >ody %aintin# (ative Indian *en

(ative 'merican 0rums ampum +he +hree !isters

(ative 'merican Huntin# (ative 'merican anoes (ative Indian 8ames

(ative 'merican *usic omanchero>ualo

+ravois +he +hree !isters Kayaks

(ative 'merican ood (ative Indian 0o# (ative 'merican


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+he life styles of (ative 'mericans ran#ed from nomadic$ semi-nomadic to

static. +hey lived in separate tri"es across the vast continent of (orth

'merica and the (ative Indian life was dictated "y the natural resources

that were availa"le to them. +heir (orth 'merican Life and pre-historic

!tone '#e lifestyle only chan#ed when the uropeans appeared. +he (ative

'mericans had never under#one the chan#es and transition to the >ron7e'#e Life or the Iron '#e Life. +heir weapons and tools were all made of

stone$ they had not eperienced the use of metals$ their life was a primitive

one.


(ative 'merican Life and traditions were related to speci)c individual tri"esand dierent areas and re#ions. 'rticles on speci)c elements of 0aily (orth

'merican life include articles a"out their food$ their recipes$ the processin#

of animals and the various methods of cookin#. How they travelled. when

they would travel and the mode of transport availa"le to them includin# the

travois and canoes. In some tri"es the food included )sh. +here are facts

and information a"out the methods of )shin# and the production of )sh oils.

+he animals that were found in villa#es and the role of animals in the (ative

'merican life from do#s to horses. +heir leisure time was important as were

the sports and the #ames that they played. +he

%ictures and ideos of (ative 'merican Life

0iscover the vast selection of pictures on the su"3ect of (ative 'merican

Life. +he pictures show the clothin#$ ar %aint$ weapons and decorations of

various (ative Indian tri"es that can "e used as a really useful educational

resource for kids and children of all a#es. e have included pictures and

videos to accompany the main topic of this section - (ative 'merican Life.

+he videos ena"le fast access to the ima#es$ paintin#s and pictures

to#ether with the information and the many facts featured on this su"3ect.0etails of all of the articles and pa#es contained on

www.warpaths2peacepipes.com can "e accessed via the (ative Indian

+ri"es Inde. e hope you en3oy watchin# the (ative 'merican Life related

videos - 3ust click and play - a #reat educational resource for kids a"out

'merican Indian Life.

http://people.ucls.uchica#o.edu/snekros/2M-@N2we",uests/0aily

N2LifeN2@C/[email protected]

Hannah, and Tara

Men
http://people.ucls.uchicago.edu/~snekros/2007-8%20webquests/Daily%20Life%2089/dailylife89.htmlhttp://people.ucls.uchicago.edu/~snekros/2007-8%20webquests/Daily%20Life%2089/dailylife89.htmlhttp://people.ucls.uchicago.edu/~snekros/2007-8%20webquests/Daily%20Life%2089/dailylife89.htmlhttp://people.ucls.uchicago.edu/~snekros/2007-8%20webquests/Daily%20Life%2089/dailylife89.html


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When a boy of the Plains Indian tribe was born, he would be named after an elder or

ancestor of the tribe. As the boy grew up, unless he didnt do anything important his

name would change and would describe a brae act or famous battle they had been

through. As the boy grew up, he was !ept farther and farther away from the girls

because the boys would hae been training on their fighting s!ills for war and

horsemanship. The most important goal for a male Plains Indian as they grew up was

to be tough and brae, and to win the approal of the rest of the tribe. When the boy

became good enough with his s!ills he trained on for most of his life, the boy would

go on his first hunt. When the boy finally reaches manhood, at age seenteen, he

would leae his illage for a time to search for his guardian spirit. When the man

came bac! he would be ready to "oin the warriors of the rest of the tribe in battle. If

the man was not in battle he would be hunting for buffalo for the illage. Hunting for

buffalo was not an easy "ob, in fact it could ta!e days or een wee!s to find the herd.

When they did find the buffalo herd, they wouldnt !ill them right away, but go bac!

to the illage to tell the chief the good news, and then the chief would send them to

!ill them or may not. When they did !ill the buffalo, they would only !ill the amount

they needed, and feast on them

#eligion

$ife for the plains Indians was considered one big religious ceremony. The whole world

was a mystery. The s!y, sun, moon and earth were all called Wan!an Tan!a, the %reat

&pirit with no end. They were also considered indiidual gods. Thunder and wind were

also gods. &acred powers always wor!ed in circles. The cycle of the sun and moon was

a circle, the eagle's flight and the winds moement. Wan!an Tan!as symbol was a

circle. It stood for the (arth, the Teepee and the &acred Hoops. The tribes would

flourish as long as the circle was unbro!en. The plains Indians didnt need a priest to see

the gods face to face. They would communicate with the %reat &pirit through dreams

and isions.

They would do so priately, inenting their own ways to communicate. The only thing a

man needed to hae isions was his medicine bundle and his pipe. He would only open

his bundle in priate, for the things in it, pebbles, oddly shaped roots and animal bonesand claws, were ery sacred and had lies of their own. )ot all religious ceremonies

were priate though. *ne of the best e+amples of this was the &undance. It was a ritual

of selftorture, where men would dance for four days without food or water until they

would faint. To start the ritual, scouts would search for a cottonwood tree to -!ill to

become the sacred dance pole. They would treat it as a warrior, tal!ing to it respectfully.

/our women would chop down the tree, which was not aloud to touch the ground. The

tree would be mounted in the center of camp, and the dance would begin. *n the fourth

day of the &undance, warriors would run sta!es through the top layer of their s!in on

their chests and bac!s. They would tie these sta!es to thongs, which connected to thepole and were weighed down by buffalo s!ulls. They would dance around the pole in a


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circle, slowly moing bac!wards and trying to brea! free from the pole. (entually, the

weight of the s!ulls would brea! the thongs, and the men would be free. If any flesh

was ripped off, it would be an offering to the gods. &ince the dance lasted four days,

many people would faint from e+haustion before the dance was oer. While

unconscious, they would hae dreams and hallucinations that would tell them what to

do and how to lie their life for the rest of the year until the ne+t &undance.

Women

Women of the %reat Plains played a ery important role in society. 0ou might thin! that

men did all the hard wor! and women had the easy "obs. Howeer that is incorrect. (ach

woman would own a tipi1 one significant and timeconsuming "ob that women had to do

was to pitch the tipi. The women would hae to gather all there goods and their tipi,

wheneer the chief would decide to moe to another area. Another tedious, howeer

crucial "ob they had to do was to tan hides. Tanning hides included s!inning a buffalothen putting it out to dry in the sun. After the s!in was dry they would ma!e clothing or

a tipi coer. 2uffalo were ery !ey to the people of the plains, not only did they ma!e

their clothes out of them, they also coo!ed and used them for food. The main "ob that

the men would hae to do was to hunt buffalo. Women were the ones who were

responsible for coo!ing the animal. The women would do all of the coo!ing, and

gathering. In addition to coo!ing, they also had to raise the children. The women didnt

always wor!1 they also had time for fun. &ometimes they would ta!e a brea! from their

wor! and play a game called 3 &hinny4. &hinny is li!e field hoc!ey. 2ac! then they

would use stic!s and a buc!s!in ball. It was ery important for a woman to !eep her

reputation as a good house!eeper, if not she would be considered useless. Women of the

%reat Plains had to do the most wor!. A tribe would not be able to surie without

women.

5hildren

The lies of Plains )atie Americans aried depending on the tribe, but generally the

life of Plains )atie American children was not bad. Their parents were !ind to them.

They neer hit their children, but they did emphasi6e strength. /or e+ample a baby in a

)atie American society was not supposed to cry. If the child had been cared for, and itstill cried, then its mother would put its cradleboard somewhere away from camp. If the

tribes enemies heard a bay crying that could alert them to the other tribe and gie away

their position. When children got a little older they learned about their culture. They

were told stories, and attended ceremonies. The rituals taught them about there religion.

To learn about the s!ills they would need for their life, they copied their parents and

other adults. 2oys would ride fa!e horses. The children also played a game called

3shinny4 to entertain themseles. The game shinny was li!e hoc!ey1 they would push a

ball into a goal using wooden stic!s. %irls would ma!e small ersions of tepees to

imitate their parents. They also played with dolls made out of buc!s!in. As the childrenmatured they started ta!ing more roles in the tribe. When boys were fourteen, and close


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to being an adult, He would go on to search for his guardian spirit. The boy would wait

on top of a hill for four days. 7uring this time, he would watch for his guardian spirit,

and some had isions of the spirits. They would also go on their first hunt around this

age. %rowing up as a Plains )atie American was not bad and definitely prepared them

for tribe lies.

5lothing

The natie Americans used 8uills el! teth and for a ery few men eagle feathers and

shells for decorations on their clothing they also used fringes which were both for

decoration and to help !eep water of the clothes natie ameracan men wore

breechcloths leggings and shirts the woman wores!irts or dresses made out of hide deer

hide or buc!s!in hide imew thread or plantfibe were used to sew things to getherchildren aften went around na!ed moccasins were traditional foot wear either rabbit

s!in or buffalo hides were used to !eep people warm headreses were called

warbonnots the war chief usually had the longest hairrdresses a buffalo was often used

to record history the dresses were made out of one buffallo s!ins or 9 dear s!ins

because dear s!ins were smaller leggings were made : dears!ins one for each legs

mineral and plant dyes were used to die cloth

)atie American clothing was simple for daily life. The men wore leggings, a

breechcloth and a shirt. The women wore a dress or a shirt and a s!irt and shorter

leggings. $eggings were made out of deers!in one for each leg then bound with sinew,

which is ta!en from the bac!bone of a buffalo. &!irts were made out of a dear s!in and

wrapped around the waste dresses were sewn at the shoulder and were made out of fie

dear s!ins or one or two buffalo s!ins. In the winter robes of buffalo or rabbit s!ins

were used to !eep warm

basic information about native indian americans

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