Native Americans The Native Americans comprise almost an infinity of cultures in North, Central and South America, and the islands of the Caribbean. There are several language families, a multitude of religions, social systems, histories, and mythologies spread across these- each one sharing defining characteristics with other tribes and also being uniquely its own. Today we are going to be concentrating on the tribes located in North America- their values, beliefs, way of life and traditions.

Creation and origin stories have been passed down from generation to generation and tell how animals, humans, and the natural world were created, and they offer important instructions and lessons for living. In addition to creation stories, Native Americans rely on other oral traditions to pass down their histories and worldviews. Understanding oral traditions is central to understanding Native American history, but it also presents unique challenges. Because oral traditions often went undocumented or were hidden from nonnative peoples, historians have often assumed that Indians did not have history, (and we see this when looking back at initial European accounts that classify Native Americans as being “savage” and “uneducated”) that they were timeless peoples who did not keep documents or records of their pasts- which we now know is not true!

Indian hunters killed buffalo by confining them on top of the surrounding cliffs and then frightening them and driving them over the edge. Such skillful hunting methods conserved human energy and allowed for large group interactions, particularly during the processing of such large animals- teamwork. These buffalo kills also increased trade links in the Great Plains through the exchange of buffalo mea, skins, bones for tools and jewelry, etc.

Review North America before European contact was a diverse and interconnected world. Native peoples inhabited almost every corner of the continent. The many different tribes lived in intimate familiarity with their environments, had different economies and beliefs (they practiced religion!), but some key principles shared. Far from being a “virgin land” or “wilderness,” as Europeans often believed, native North America was a vibrant, dynamic world of diverse peoples, languages, and cultures. Scholars estimate that between 2 million and 18 million people inhabited North America north of present-day Mexico at the time of European contact. An estimated 40 million to 90 million Native Americans lived throughout the Americas. These numbers, however, quickly declined as a result of European diseases and warfare against Native Americans. (We will see accounts of this from the Howard Zinn “Christopher Columbus” chapter.

Who was Crazy Horse? Tashunca-uitco (Crazy Horse) Celebrated for his skill and ferocity in battle, Crazy Horse was recognized among his own people as a visionary leader committed to preserving the traditions and values of the Lakota way of life. Even as a young man, Crazy Horse was a legendary warrior: – He stole horses from the Crow Indians before he was thirteen – Led his first war party before turning twenty – Fought in the war led by the Oglala chief Red Cloud against American settlers in Wyoming – Played a key role in destroying William J. Fetterman's brigade at Fort Phil Kearny in 1867