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       #Post#: 80--------------------------------------------------
       American History and the Native American Society on the Eve of
       British Colonization
   DIR By: Mark4
       Date: May 26, 2021, 11:19 am
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       The Anasazi pottery seen here has been dated between 1000 and
       1300 C.E. In Renaissance times, Europeans were not the only ones
       accomplishing great things. No one can deny the beauty of
       Michelangelo's brushwork or the brilliance of Shakespeare's
       verse. But societies elsewhere also flourished. As the modern
       world turned 1600, it seems as though each corner of the globe
       had its own "renaissance." The Native American societies of
       North America were no different. They had diverse cultures and
       languages, much like Europe. When the British staked their claim
       to the east coast of the modern United States, they could not
       have dreamed of the complexity of the peoples they were soon to
       encounter.
       There are between 140 and 160 different American Indian tribes.
       There is no single Native American language. It would be as
       difficult for the Mohawk Indians of the East to converse with
       Zuni Indians of the West as it would be for Germans to converse
       with Turks. Before Europeans arrived in North America, Native
       peoples inhabited every region. This map shows Native American
       tribes, culture areas, and linguistic stocks. Twenty-seven
       states derive names from Indian languages. Native Americans
       turned wild plants such as corn, potatoes, pumpkin, yams, and
       lima beans into farm crops for human consumption. More than half
       of modern American farm products were grown by Native Americans
       before British colonization. Medicine was not an unknown science
       in the Western Hemisphere. Most natural herbs used for medicinal
       purposes in the modern world had also been used by Native
       Americans before European contact. Archaeologists have learned
       that North American Indians made salt by evaporation and mined a
       great many minerals including copper, lead, and coal. Despite
       myths to the contrary, not all Native Americans were peaceful.
       Like Europe, the American continent faced tribal warfare that
       sometimes led to human and cultural destruction. The buffalo
       played an important role in the survival of Native American
       tribes. In addition to providing food, the buffalo provided
       clothing and more.
       In short, there is no simple way to tell the tale of a continent
       that had been peopled by diverse communities for thousands of
       years. Their tales are as complex as any others, their cultures
       as rich, their knowledge as deep. British contact did not mark
       the replacement of established cultures by a better way of life,
       but rather the beginning of a new civilization based on a blend
       of diverse folkways.
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