Early People
The narrow body of water the first Americans crossed from Asia to reach North America
the Bering Strait
The civilization that developed a writing system, an accurate calendar, and advanced math before fading out around 900 AD
Maya
The term for a society that has organized systems of government, religion, and learning
Civilization
Why did Native American groups form governments and councils?
To make decisions, share resources, and protect each other.
Which group moved to the Southwest after the Ancestral Puebloans moved out?
Navajo
A person who moves to follow a herd of animals or collect food
nomad
Where did the Aztec build their main city center?
today's Mexico City
What religious belief holds that animals and the Earth have spirits?
Animism (or the belief in nature spirits)
Which group formed in present-day New York state and likely had the first written constitution used in North America?
The League of the Iroquois (or Iroquois Confederacy)
ancestor
Two factors that heavily influenced where Native American groups decided to settle and how they used resources
Geography and climate
What group lived in the Arctic, built homes out of ice and snow, and developed the kayak?
Iuit
Who were the shamans in Native American communities?
Men and women believed to have special powers
What main animal did Plains groups depend on as their primary food source and economic resource?
Buffalo
ways of life that are done on a regular basis
customs
Why did settlers in the Pacific Northwest not need agriculture?
They fished, hunted, and gathered enough food without farming
How do scientists know that the Mound Builders from the Ohio area traded with other groups?
They found materials in the mounds that were not available in that local area.
How did American Indian groups pass down their customs, traditions, and folklore from one generation to the next?
Storytelling and oral tradition
A system by which a group produces, distributes, and consumes goods and services
economy
a trade good that is a raw material and not manufactured
commodity
The technology developed by early people in modern-day Mexico to bring water to crops
Irrigation
Why did the Ancestral Puebloans build their homes inside cliffs?
To stay cool in the hot climate and shelter themselves from the sun
What group lived along the Florida coast and used shells to craft tools, jewelry, and clothing decorations?
the Calusa
Why did American Indian groups establish trading networks?
To exchange goods they had for items they needed that were not available in their own region.
System of trade routes that connected different areas
trading network