2.  The process by which humans occupy a territory that they organize and transform according to their needs.

3.  The first traces of occupation in what is today Quebec dates back about12 000 years.

4.  Most archeologists believe that humans migrated to North America from Asia over the Beringia land bridge.  About 15 000 years ago, as the climate was changing, an ice-free corridor opened up and allowed people to travel into the continent.

7.  New discoveries have cast some doubt on the ice-free corridor theory.  Some researchers think that the climate would have been too hostile for people to pass by that route.  Instead they believe that small goups of people may have come to North America by boat.

9.  It is very likely that North America’s first settlers came from Asia.  The precise date of their arrival is difficult prove.

10.  The occupation of the territory of Quebec took place over a very long time.  About 15 000 years ago, the Laurentian Ice Sheet started to melt.  This caused sea water to flow into the St. Laurence lowlands.  The tops of mountains like Mount St- Hillaire and Rougemont formed islands in the Champlain Sea.

11.  The sea water eventually receded around 10 000 years ago.

12.  The occupation of Quebec took place during 3 distinct periods. › Paleoindian period (10 000 to 8 000 BCE) › Archaic period (8 000 to 1 000 BCE) › Woodland period (1 000 BCE to 1 500 CE)

13.  This period is when the first occupants arrived in the territory of Quebec.  Ice still covered a large part of the area.  The climate was harsh.  The Champlain Sea was slowly receding, leaving behind the St. Lawrence River and many lakes and rivers.

14.  Animals came to inhabit the territory and groups of hunter-gatherers came into the territory to hunt the herds of large game animals.  These nomadic groups travelled along waterways and through mountain passes.

15.  Major change occurred in the landscape and the settlement of the territory.  The end of the glaciation period mean the inhabitable territory increased in size.  The environment became increasingly stable and moving around became seasonal.  Trade networks developed.

16.  The nomadic populations of the Archaic period were very familiar with the resources of the territory.  The population increased.  Food and tools diversified.

17.  Trade networks permitted the spread of objects, plants and new techniques.  3 major innovations transformed daily life for Aboriginal populations: › The bow and arrow › Pottery › agriculture

18.  Bow and arrows improved hunting techniques.  Pottery and cultivation of corn spread into the area from south of the great lakes.  Agriculture lead to increase population in the region.  Gradually groups came together to form organized communities, which lead to the creation of villages.

19.  About 4 500 years ago groups of nomadic hunters from Siberia arrived in Arctic Quebec.  They hunted sea mammals (seal, walrus, narwal) and flourished in a very hostile environment due to their hunting techniques.

20.  They had to be good hunters because of the rarity of vegetation and raw materials.  Around the year 1 000 CE the arctic experienced another wave of migration from Alaska.  They were the Thule, ancestors of the Inuit.

21.  The Thule hunted whales and moved around in their kayaks or umiaks.  They also travelled by dogsled.  They used spears, harpoons, and bows and arrows.