History of the Americas Essay
Daniela Mota
Exam 1
Chapter 1)
Before the arrival of the Europeans to the Americas, Indians had lived and eventually developed different types of societies. The first and most simple of the type of society were called “nomadic societies”. These usually consisted of about fifteen to fifty people and usually no more than that. Men were primarily the hunters and women were the gatherers. These societies were also equalitarian which was a system based on everyone in the community contributing equally. Indian societies were also often matrilineal. They would heavily rely on women who were seen as the “backbone” of the tribe. Although men typically ruled these societies, women played a huge role in spiritual rituals and female elders helped select tribal leaders and took part in the gatherings. Due to the small number of people, they had the ability to move around frequently which helped the women figure out a system for successful farming. Another type of society was known as a “semi-nomadic society”. In the semi-nomadic societies they had larger groups of people usually consisting of approximately fifty to one hundred people. Because these societies had a larger number of people, their ability to migrate was nonexistent thus initiated the birth of domestication of plants and animals. This also helped develop the earliest form of agriculture which was called slash and burn. With this technique the Indians figured out that if you burn and slash your crops, they grow back much stronger and in a more abundant amount. Another outcome of these societies was came a form of headship within the communities. This form of leadership typically consisted of a council of elders because the Indians believed they have more experience in life and have lived the longest, they have valuable wisdom and knowledge to share. Sedentary civilizations soon followed in development. In these civilizations, class systems were established. At the top of the social pyramid were the priests and
Exam 1
Chapter 1)
Before the arrival of the Europeans to the Americas, Indians had lived and eventually developed different types of societies. The first and most simple of the type of society were called “nomadic societies”. These usually consisted of about fifteen to fifty people and usually no more than that. Men were primarily the hunters and women were the gatherers. These societies were also equalitarian which was a system based on everyone in the community contributing equally. Indian societies were also often matrilineal. They would heavily rely on women who were seen as the “backbone” of the tribe. Although men typically ruled these societies, women played a huge role in spiritual rituals and female elders helped select tribal leaders and took part in the gatherings. Due to the small number of people, they had the ability to move around frequently which helped the women figure out a system for successful farming. Another type of society was known as a “semi-nomadic society”. In the semi-nomadic societies they had larger groups of people usually consisting of approximately fifty to one hundred people. Because these societies had a larger number of people, their ability to migrate was nonexistent thus initiated the birth of domestication of plants and animals. This also helped develop the earliest form of agriculture which was called slash and burn. With this technique the Indians figured out that if you burn and slash your crops, they grow back much stronger and in a more abundant amount. Another outcome of these societies was came a form of headship within the communities. This form of leadership typically consisted of a council of elders because the Indians believed they have more experience in life and have lived the longest, they have valuable wisdom and knowledge to share. Sedentary civilizations soon followed in development. In these civilizations, class systems were established. At the top of the social pyramid were the priests and