The Native Peoples of America

It is believed that native people of North America came from Asia over 30,000 years ago on a land bridge across the Bering Straits and during the last Ice Age 10,000 years ago they moved further south.

• The oldest artefact found in America – an arrow-point – is 11,000 years old. The population started to increase about 5,000 years ago when the climate became more stable.

• Native American peoples lived in bands in villages along river valleys. They ate fish and meat and cultivated vegetables and maize.

• They obtained Goods not by buying but by gifts. They believed in a subsistence economy.

• They spoke numerous languages but those are not available in written form.

• They were friendly and welcoming to Europeans.

• They believed that time moved in cycles and each tribe had accounts about their origins and their earlier history which were passed on from one generation to the next.

• They were skilled craftspeople and wove beautiful textiles. They could read the land – they could understand the climates and different landscapes in the way literate people read written texts.

• The Europeans gave them blankets iron vessels, guns which were a useful supplement for bows and arrows to kill animals and alcohol in exchange for local products.

• The natives had not known alcohol earlier, and they became addicted to it which suited the Europeans because it enabled them to dictate terms of trade. (The Europeans acquired from the natives a tobacco addiction.)

The native peoples of North America are believed to they come from Asia over 30,000 years ago during the last Ice Age 10,000 years ago. They communicate through many languages but they do not have it in a written form.

The first Encounter of Native North Americans with European people has evidence suggesting it happened around 1000 AD. This encounter is believed to have involved the Norse people arriving in Vinland which is thought to be Newfoundland in modern-day Canada.

In this article, You will get to know about the Native North Americans and their Encounter with Europeans.