1-2: Pre-Columbian American Indian Societies

Before 1491

American Indians

First Americans nomadic

Bering Strait

Became sedentary over time

American Indians

Central and South America

Maya (Yucatan)

Aztec (Mexico)

Inca (Peru)

American Indians

North America

Language

Southwest

Northwest

Great Plains

Midwest

Northeast

Atlantic Coast

American Indians

Similarities with European Society

Calendars

Irrigation systems for farming

Domestication of crops

Medicine

Large cities (Tenochtitlan)

Religion

Gender division (labor)

American Indians

Key Difference from European Society

No concept of private property

American Indians

Like every other society in the world at the time, Pre-Columbian America was characterized by inter-tribal warfare resulting in the displacement, migration, and enslavement of numerous tribes

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Europe Before the 16th Century

Vikings—Greenland, 1000

Europe unable to meet the challenge of sustained colonization

• Lack of economic/technical resources

• Political/social division

• Feudalism

– Preoccupation with local concerns

– Illiterate, poor, unfree citizenry

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Improvements in Technology

Demise of feudalism/rise of rival nation-states

Growth of cities and a strong merchant class

The Renaissance and education

Printing press (mass produced books on geography, foreign culture, trade)

Advances in ship design and navigation

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Religious Conflict

Catholic Victory (Spain)

• Stability and unity

Protestant Reformation (N. Europe)

• Competition to spread the “right” version of Christianity

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Expanding Trade

New Routes

Slave Trading

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Reasons for Leaving “Old World”

Escape from direct religious persecution

Fear about religious future at home

Anxiety about political change in Europe

Dismay over the economy

Need for farmland

Relief from joblessness

Europe Moves Toward Exploration

Reasons for Coming to “New World”

Desire for gold and precious metals

Claims to new colonies (mercantilism)

Missionary work

Adventure and curiosity

Trade

Passage to the Far East (NW Passage)

“Gold, God, & Glory”