| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Olmec | The earliest known civilization in Americas in Central america, lived in lowlands along the Gulf of Mexico. |
| hunting and gathering | The killing of wild animals and fish as well as the gathering of fruits, roots, nuts, and other plants for sustenance. |
| Aztec | a particular society at a particular time and place |
| Maya | a member of an American Indian people of Yucatan and Belize and Guatemala who had a culture (which reached its peak between AD 300 and 900) characterized by outstanding architecture and pottery and astronomy |
| Inca | a member of the small group of Quechuan people living in the Cuzco valley in Peru who established hegemony over their neighbors to create the great Inca empire that lasted from about 1100 until the Spanish conquest in the early 1530s |
| Land bridge | a bridge between two larger pieces of land formed by a small strip of land and is often temporary |
| Nomads | people with no permanent home; move from place to place in search of food, |
| Farming | working the land as an occupation or way of life |
| Hunting | the work of finding and killing or capturing animals for food or pelts |
| Trade | Trade networks linked people across large distances. new ideas and skills were also spread during the trades. |
| Plateau | a large area of flat land elevated high above sea level |
| Iroquois | A term which designates a confederacy of 5 tribes originally inhabiting the northern part of New York state, consisting of the SENECA, CAYUGA, ONEIDA, ONONDAGA and MOHAWK. |
| League of the Iroquois | the largest and most powerful known eastern-indian confederation, formed around 1450. |
| Political power | ability of one person to get another to do something |
| "crossing the land bridge" (Theory #1) | Glaciers locked up water from the oceans, causing sea levels to fall and uncovering land that had been under water. |
| "the boat" (Theory #2) | Some scientists believe that the first Americans crossed the Artic waters by boat. |
| "the island" (Theory #3) | Other scientists believe that the first Americans cam from Europe, Africa, or Islands in the south Pacific. |
| Social classes | Priests held great power in Mayan society. Only priests, the Mayans believed, could perform the ceremonies needed to bring good harvest or victory in battle. |
| Nobles | were known as worriors and government officials |
| Laborers and farmers | were near the bottom of the Mayan society |
| Slaves | were at the bottom of the Mayan society, most of them were prisoners of war. |
| Tenochtitlan | On an island in the middle of the lake. The causeway linked the capital to the mainland. |
| Emperor | Chosen by nobles and priests to lead in war. |
| Priest and Nobles | Priests preformed rituals, gave advice and ran schools and Nobles served as official judges and governors. |
| Warriors | Could become nobles by killing or capturing enemies. |
| Merchants and Artisians | Merchants often acted as spies for the empire and Artisans passed skills on to their children. |
| Farmers | made up most of the population. |
| Slaves | were mostly captive or criminals. |
| A Powerful Empire | in 1500, the Aztecs ruled a huge empire. It stretched from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean and included millions of people |
| 6 Social classes of the Aztec people | 1. Emperor 2. Priest and Nobles 3. Warriors 4.Merchants and Artisans 5. Farmers 6. Slaves |
| European beliefs of Native Americans | they believed that native Americans cultures were uncivilalized tribes. |
| Native Americans | were advanced enough to have a government and political system |
| The Mayas | had social classes and Advances in learning.( astronomy, 365 day calendar, concept of zero) |
| The Aztecs | Tenochtitlan ( island),Religion (special attention to the sun God), social class (6), A powerful Empire (rulers), Builders |
| The Incas | Largest empires in the Americas, Skilled engineering skills to farm the dry rugged mountain lands, massive stone temples/forts. |
| Hohokam people | were the first people to create a watering system in Southern Arizona by digging ditches from rivers to fields. |
| Anasazis | created an irrigation system, but they lived in the four corners region where they built homes on the side of cliffs out of stone that were call Adobes. |
| Adobe | Houses that are made of Stone |
| People of the Southwest | Anasazis and Hohokam people |
| Christopher Columbus | Reached the Americas in 1492 (really thought he was in East Indies) called the first people he saw Indians. |
| quipu | a cord or string with knots that stood for quantities. The quantities might be bags of grain, number of soldiers or other amounts. |
| The Powerful Empire | by 1500 the Aztecs ruled a huge empire,stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific Ocean. |
| Human sacrifices | The Aztecs paid special to the Sun God believing that the sun required a human sacrifice to rise each morning. |
| Chinampas | Aztec farmers harvested several crops a year on these floating gardens |
| diffusion | spreading ideas from one culture to another |
| mound builders | were groups known as the Hopewells and the Mississippians in Cahokia Illinois |
| mounds | were first used for burials, later used for religious ceremonies. Like pyramid temples of the Mayas. |
| tribe | is a community of people who share common customs, language, and rituals. |
| culture area | is a region in which people share a similar way of life. |
| farming,gathering and fishing | Native Americans developed a variety of ways to meet their basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter . |
| respect for nature | Central to native Americans beliefs was a deep respect for the Earth. close bond with plants, nature, and animals. |
| Kachinas | The Hopi religion believed these spirits brought rain and helped the Hopi live properly |
| The People of the Long House | Iroquois were among the native American groups in the Eastern Woodlands ( New York area). |
| climate and natural resources | helped shape Native American cultures in different regions, also influenced the crops people grew and animals they hunted. |
| Inuits people ( far North) | lived in the Artic region ( frozen seas and icy plains) |
| Utes and Shoshones people ((Plateau region) | people of the plateau region. |
| culture of Northwest region | enjoyed milder temperatures and abundant food supplies. |
| Natchez ( southeast region) | these people benefited from the regions warm, moist climate. |
| Arctic/ Sub-Arctic | Tundra and sub Arctic (cold and short) MEAT BERRIES AND NUTS, Nomadic, honored ocean and weather,animal and spirits. |
| Northwest Coast | Marine( mild and moist), warm summers, cold winters, Farmers fish and crops, lived in homes made of wood, A FAMILY HAD MORE WEALTH, POTLATCHES |
| California/great basin | DESERT HOT DAYS AND COLD NIGHTS LITTLE RAINFALL STEPPE HOT SUMMERS,NUTS, ROOTS,SMALL ANIMALS AND BERRIES,lived in small groups (clans) moved around in small groups to gather food. |
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