America Before It Was America Before Columbus discovered the Americas in 1492 people had lived in the Western Hemisphere for tens of thousands of years. For much of this time it is believed that they experienced virtually no recorded, sustained contact with other parts of the world -- Europe, Africa, or Asia. Millions of people lived in an area some five times the size of Europe. In strikingly diverse habitats and climates they developed possibly the most varied and productive agriculture in the world. Their lifestyles and belief systems differed widely and they spoke hundreds of languages. Throughout the hemisphere, states and centers of high civilization had risen and fallen. The dynamic Mexica (Aztec) and Inca empires were still expanding at this time and internal migration and warfare were common. The peoples did not see themselves as part of an entity. Only later would this area be given a unifying name - America - and the people labeled "Indians" by Europe. We have focused on five geographical areas of the region to represent the variety and complexity of peoples and cultures before 1492: the Caribbean, Middle America, the Andean region, the South Atlantic, and North America. In order to understand what came to be called America we are often dependent on European observations. THE CARIBBEAN ISLAND SOCIETY The largest group of people living in the islands of the Caribbean were the Taínos. Their villages were governed by chieftains, or caciques, who enjoyed some distinctions of rank but received tribute in times of crisis only. Related families lived together in large houses built of poles, mats, and thatch. The Taínos were known for their fine wood carving and hammocks woven from cotton. Not a particularly warlike people, they played ceremonial ball games, possibly as a substitute for warfare and as an outlet for competition between villages and chiefdoms. The other major group living in the Caribbean were the more mobile and aggressive Caribs, who took to the sea in huge dugout canoes. By the late 15th century, the Caribs had expanded into the smaller islands of the eastern Caribbean from the mainland, displacing or intermingling with the Taínos. Early Explorers: Fernández de Oviedo Oviedo came to America in 1514, where for over thirty years he compiled detailed ethnographic descriptions of the goods, products, peoples and customs of the Caribbean and Central America. He introduced Europe to a wide variety of previously unheard of New World "exotica" such as the pineapple, the canoe, the smoking of tobacco, and the hammock. ’The indians sleep in a bed they call an 'hamaca' which looks like a piece of cloth with both an open and tight weave, like a net ... made of cotton ... about 2.5 or 3 yards long, with many henequen twine strings at either end which can be hung at any height. They are good beds, and clean ... and since the weather is warm they require no covers at all ... and they are portable so a child can carry it over the arm." FATE OF THE NATIVE PEOPLES The arrival of Europeans proved disastrous for the people of the Caribbean. Within 20 years, it is estimated that the native population of Hispaniola dropped from one million to 30,000. The Spaniards settled first on the island of Hispaniola and later moved on to Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Jamaica, forcing the Taínos to mine for gold. The local population quickly declined as a result of mistreatment, flight, disruption of agriculture, and disease. African slaves were imported as early as 1502 to replace the dwindling labor supply. As mining decreased, the Spanish introduced livestock, crops, and fruit trees. Cattle ranching and sugarcane became important as a stable Spanish society took hold in the large islands. The Caribbean played a crucial role as a staging ground for further exploration and conquest, and as a strategic defensive point for the Spanish empire. MIDDLE ATLANTIC CULTURES Before 1492, modern-day Mexico, most of Central America, and the southwestern United States comprised an area now known as Meso or Middle America. Meso American peoples shared many elements of culture: pictographic and hieroglyphic forms of writing; monumental architecture; a diet primarily of corn, beans, squash and chiles; the weaving of cotton cloth; and extensive trade networks. While most people lived by working the land, many societies also included nobles and priests, warriors, craftsmen, and merchants. The Mexica (Aztec) had formed a powerful state in the central valley of Mexico and conquered many neighboring states by the late 15th century. The bustling island capital, Tenochtitlan, with a population of perhaps 200,000, was located in the middle of Lake Texcoco. Groups like the Tarascans in the west and Zapotecs to the south, however, remained relatively independent. Even states that had been absorbed by the Mexica retained their rulers as well as their religion, language, and lands. This highly accurate calendar was developed by the people of Mexico prior to 1492. The tonalpohualli, or sacred calendar, ruled the life of each Mexica and was consulted on all important occasions. It was made up of 260 days, or 20 months of 13 days. ARTIFACTS OF THE PEOPLE OF MEXICO The Tarascans inhabited Michoacán, an area west of Tenochtitlán (present-day Mexico City) and south of Guadalajara. The illustration depicts schematically various occupational groups existing before the coming of the Spanish. Groups of figures sit, each with an object or symbol such as a net, a loom, a bow and arrow, a writing instrument, feathers, etc., that identifies the occupation of a specific group. A couple of figures in the upper part of the illustration sit alone and are identified as being the Cazonci and su gobernador (their governor). This well-illustrated manuscript from Mexico chronicles the history and customs of the Tarascan people before as well as during the Conquest in the area of Michoacán. Although written by a Franciscan friar, it is largely based on the accounts of informants among the Tarascan nobility and priests, thus essentially expressing an indigenous point of view. The Oztoticpac Lands Map Another artifact from the 1500‘s is the Oztoticpac (Mexico) Lands Map, a central Mexican pictorial document with Spanish and Nahuatl writing showing litigation surrounding the Oztoticpac estate within the city of Texcoco, ca. 1540. Its glyph, a symbolic figure, corresponds to the name "above the caves" (oztotl,cave; icpac, above), a hill stylized in the shape of a woman. The document on pre-European amatl paper involves the land and property ownership of the ruler of Texcoco who was executed during the early days of the Spanish Conquest in the Central Valley of Mexico. The execution left in its wake litigation involving ownership of properties claimed by various sons of Nezahualpilli, the lords of Texcoco. Most of the drawings on the map are plans of fields with indigenous measurements and place glyphs. Near the upper left is the plan of several houses within a precinct. On the upper right is a map showing about seventy-five plots of land. Additional fields are drawn at the lower right. Nahuatl and Spanish descriptions as well as three long Nahuatl texts include mention of Tollancingo, Oztoticpac, Tezcuco, Don Carlos, and Don Hernando. As far as it is known, this is the earliest recorded lawsuit or conflict in horticultural literature anywhere in the world. MIDDLE AMERICA CREATING NEW SPAIN After having organized the expedition in Cuba, Hernando Cortés led the conquest of the Mexica (Aztec) empire from 1519-1521. Tenochtitlán, the capital city, was razed and rebuilt as Mexico, the capital of the viceroyalty of New Spain. Within thirty years, it had the first printing press in the Americas, a cathedral, and a university. Indian residents far outnumbered the 8,000 or so Spaniards, and perhaps the 5,000 Africans of diverse origins living there by 1550. From the capital, the Spanish spread out to adjoining areas and eventually into today's New Mexico and Guatemala. Silver mining assured that the economy would flourish. Spaniards used Indian laborers to establish their farms, ranches, and towns, and religious orders mounted intensive missionary campaigns. Despite a great reduction in population, native cultures and communities nonetheless survived, adapting to the new circumstances of Spanish rule. THE ANDES: LIFE IN THE HIGHLANDS Organized states and advanced cultures had long flourished in the Andean mountain region. The semi-arid highlands were the center of the far-flung Inca empire, Tahuantinsuyu, that extended from today's Chile to Colombia. Cuzco, the capital, was located at 10,000 feet above sea level. Impressive adaptations to this unique environment allowed civilizations to thrive at higher altitudes than anywhere else in the world. The Andean peoples had learned to freeze-dry foods by taking advantage of the daily extremes of temperature at high altitudes. They kept herds of llamas and alpacas in the altiplano, weaving textiles from the wool. Using irrigation and terracing, they developed varieties of potatoes at high altitudes; grew corn and coca at lower levels; and raised cotton in the lowlands. They were knowledgeable miners, fine metalworkers, and great builders. A rotating system of labor for public works that was traditional among Andean peoples was used to construct thousands of miles of roads. These roads greatly facilitated the movement of troops, peoples, and goods. Sacsahuaman, Peru - The huge fortifications surrounding the Incan capital of Cuzco, built to protect and to solidify Incan control, are outstanding examples of the advanced engineering techniques of Andean peoples. Stones of several tons in weight were precisely cut and placed in jigsaw-like fashion, without the aid of mortar, to form massive walls. These stone structures have withstood numerous earthquakes during the intervening centuries. CONQUEST IN THE ANDES The conquest of Peru was similar to that of Mexico in many ways. Inspired by rumors of a rich empire, Francisco Pizarro and other Spaniards reconnoitered the western coast of South America in the 1520s. In 1532, in the midst of a civil war, the Spaniards seized the Inca emperor Atahaullpa. After exacting a huge ransom in gold and silver, they executed him, but it was some time before they consolidated their conquest. The Spaniards conquered the Inca capital of Cuzco, but found the imperial city too high and remote. Instead, they established a new capital, Lima, near the coast. Highland communities, therefore, experienced less contact with Spanish culture than did lowland communities. However, all Indian communities were subject to Spanish tribute and labor demands, adapted from the Incan mita system. These often onerous obligations brought disruption, change, and hardship. SOUTH ATLANTIC PEOPLES The coastal areas of eastern South America and the interior of the Amazon basin were home to several million people at the end of the 15th century. This enormous area, bordering the Andes mountains on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the east, extends from present-day Argentina to the Guianas. Socio-political structures were usually not highly developed in this area. The Tupí-speaking groups lived in villages in which related families resided together in large houses. They practiced slash-and-burn agriculture, and hunted and fished using blow guns and poison-tipped arrows. Manioc, a tuber, was their staple crop. They engaged in warfare and some groups practiced ritual cannibalism. Tupí groups eventually overcame the Tapuyas, mobile hunters & gatherers. NORTH AMERICA DIVERSE SOCIETIES In the 16th century, North America -- occupied today by Canada and most of the United States -- was home to hundreds of groups speaking a striking variety of languages and dialects. They lived in diverse settings, from the Algonquian of the eastern woodlands, to the Caddo and Wichita of the grassy Midwestern plains, and the Taos of the arid southwest. Some North American tribes, like the Iroquois, were organized into large political confederations. Extensive trade networks - sometimes operating over long distances - allowed for the exchange of products such as animal skins, copper, shells, pigments, pottery, and foodstuffs. Housing styles varied from covered wood to multilevel dwellings constructed of stone and mud, and transportable shelters made of poles and animal hides. Many tribes played games such as lacrosse and stickball. Religion was an integral part of daily life, tying them to the land, to other living things, and to the spirits that animated their world and provided order to social relations. A GLANCE AT VILLAGE LIFE The people of Secotan lived in permanent villages near today's North Carolina Outer Banks. Like the northern Algonquians, they farmed collectively in the growing season and dispersed into family units to hunt during the colder months. The engraving, based on a drawing made by John White in the 1580s, shows careful management and use of the land. Crops include tobacco and pumpkins, corn in three stages of growth, and sunflowers, while domesticated deer graze in the adjoining woods. The buildings include family units and storehouses for corn. The Secotan traded with other groups like the powerful Mandoag of the Piedmont area of North Carolina, who acted as middlemen in the copper trade. INVENTING ’AMERICA" The name America was given to the Western Hemisphere by a European writer and mapmaker after Columbus' death. Nothing in their experiences had led the first explorers to realize that they had come into contact with a vast and unrecorded continent, many times the size of Europe. Previously there had been no accounts, or even rumors, of the "unknown" peoples of this "new" continent in European scholarly literature or in popular chronicles. Mediterranean explorers in search of the spices and riches of the Far East initially believed that they had reached Asia. In part due to this confusion, Europeans conjured up or "invented" images and tales to explain America that would conform to the descriptions of Marco Polo and others. In early allegorical images, "America" was sometimes portrayed as a noble, native woman submissively awaiting European arrival. Ferocious sea animals and exotic creatures filled early maps of the region. Regrettably, we still have incomplete knowledge of the world view and everyday life of the varied peoples of the Americas before European settlement. Spain in THE AmericaS The Gutiérrez map depicts what appears to be the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V (Charles I of Spain), as the reborn Caesar in his chariot crossing the Atlantic to lay claim to America. Mediterranean explorers had broken open the "gates of Gilbraltar", considered by the ancient Romans to be the westernmost limit of their empire. They revealed a "fourth continent" across the Atlantic and a whole new world of potential for the modern empire builders. The map contains information available in 1554 at the Casa de Contratación in Seville, which regulated travel to the Western Hemisphere. To Europeans, most of the interior of America was still terra incognita (unknown land). Diego Gutiérrez filled it in with a mixture of real and highly fanciful images. The map highlights the course of the Amazon River and the location of the silver mines of Potosí. The Gutiérrez map, which relies upon the collection of data acquired by Spain on America, contains the most up-to-date (as of 1562) information on the people, settlements, and other geographical features of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America, all of Central and South America, and portions of the western coast of Africa.. Six separately engraved sheets are neatly joined to form the largest printed map of the Western Hemisphere up to that time (36.75 inches by 33.5 inches). The map provides a grand view of an America filled with images and names that had been popularized in Europe over seventy years: parrots, monkeys, mermaids, huge sea creatures, Brazilian cannibals, Patagonian giants, and an erupting volcano in central Mexico complement the settlements, rivers, mountains, and capes. Although containing fanciful imagery, Gutiérrez's map did correctly recognize the existence of the Amazon River system, other rivers of South America, Lake Titicaca, the location of Potosí, and the myriad coastal features of South, Central, North, and Caribbean America. It was the last printed Spanish map of America to appear before the late seventeenth century. It was also the first map of America to include the name of California. EUROPE CLAIMS AMERICA: THE ATLANTIC JOINED The dramatic encounters of European and American peoples from 1492 to 1600 varied considerably from place to place and over time. This section of the exhibit examines the immediate consequences of contact in the five geographical areas of America reviewed previously. The Indian peoples sometimes greeted Europeans warmly, provided them with food, and taught them important new survival skills. In some cases, they perceived them as being divine, or at least spiritually powerful. Some used the newcomers as allies against old enemies. Others saw them as new enemies, to be grudgingly tolerated or strongly resisted. However, native peoples were quickly disillusioned by treachery or mistreatment at European hands. The Europeans brought technologies, ideas, plants, and animals that were new to America and would transform peoples' lives: guns, iron tools, and weapons; Christianity and Roman law; sugarcane and wheat; horses and cattle. They also carried diseases against which the Indian peoples had no defenses. Hundreds of thousands died, just due to diseases. The interaction among groups produced a complex mosaic of relationships. Varying forms of resistance and adaptation among Indian, African, and European peoples occurred throughout the region. INCURSIONS IN NORTH AMERICA The French, Spanish, Portuguese, and English arrived in North America in the 16th century, sporadically and in small numbers. Fishermen plied their trade off the Newfoundland coast from around 1500. Some Europeans hoped to find an alternative route to Asia (the Northwest Passage), wealthy civilizations, or precious metals, but few found what they sought. They did not, however, confront an untamed wilderness, but rather people who often lived in villages and towns. The European intruders depended almost entirely on the indigenous people, who provided them food and guides, sometimes under duress. They made few serious attempts to settle in the early years. Frequently, the most enduring impact of their expeditions was negative. Their diseases devastated native populations, and violence and wholesale commandeering of food supplies left a legacy of fear & hostility. The Spanish and French Disrupt Life in Florida Almost from the outset, European arrivals in the Florida peninsula produced violent confrontations. The Spanish came first, presumably as an extension of slave raiding in the Caribbean islands. Ponce de Leon's expeditions, in 1513 and 1521, failed because of Timucua and Calusa resistance. Subsequent Spanish expeditions moved on without founding any permanent settlements until St. Augustine was established in 1565. In the early 1560s, French Huguenots established a colony at the mouth of the Saint Johns River. Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues, who mapped the area and wrote an account of his experiences, survived the 1565 Spanish attack that destroyed the French colony. Engravings based on his drawings show the site in Florida where the French first landed; Timucua men and women carrying fruit; and a battle scene in which French soldiers aided their ally Outina against his enemy Potanou. The French initially touched the Florida coast near the St. Mary's River in the early 1560s, attempted settlements in the region, created alliances with the various Indian settlements, and eventually were annihilated by the Spanish in 1565. The contacts of the French with the Timucua peoples of what is now northern Florida were documented by Jacques Le Moyne. In this view, the alliance of the French with the Chief Outina is used to overwhelm his arch-enemy Potanou. EUROPEANS ALONG THE SOUTH ATLANTIC Portugal's claim to Brazil resulted not only from Cabral's 1500 landing, but also from the 1494 Treaty of Tordesillas. French efforts to exploit the resources and to establish settlements in the area persisted through much of the 16th century. The Spanish concentrated on the Rio de la Plata region and established the cities of Buenos Aires in 1536 and Asuncion in 1537. Intense Portuguese colonization of Brazil began in the same decade. The capital, Salvador, was established in 1549 at the Bay of All Saints. The first Jesuits, who would play a crucial role in Brazilian society, arrived the same year. They established missionary settlements called aldeas in which they hoped to bring Tupinambas and other groups into "civilized" society by subjecting them to a disciplined routine and making them full-time farmers. Portuguese efforts to use indigenous labor were never very successful. Gradually they began to import African slaves as sugarcane cultivation got underway in the northeast. Epilogue Indian, European, and African peoples continued to shape new American societies. By the end of the 18th century, these new Americans began to rebel against their European masters. Independence movements spread, creating many separate nations. While colonial languages such as Spanish, Portuguese, French and English became widespread, millions of people continued to speak their own languages, such as Navaho, Quechua, Guarani, and Nahuatl. While distinct peoples from throughout the world continue to come together in the Americas, many hold on to or reclaim their uniqueness. The process of cultural exchange and adaptation can be seen in religion, festivity, ceremony, and daily life. However, the tensions between tradition and change, prosperity and poverty, tolerance and intolerance in the hemisphere continue to create turbulence.

We hope you found this article helpful.

Search for more immigration articles related to:
"America Before It Was America"

Bookmark this Page!