North American Culture

North American Culture

North America is a continent positioned on the North of the globe. It borders four oceans; the Arctic, the Atlantic, the Caribbean and the Pacific oceans. It is named as the 3rd largest continent in square meters and the continent with the forth largest population capacity. The entomology of North America can be traced back to an Italian explorer who toured the continent in the late 1400s and the early 1500s. The continent is best known for the pre-existence of the dinosaur species which has become extinct over time.

History of the North Americans

The history of the North America has been backed by many theories and myths, by different scientists and individuals living there. It is believed that the people of Inuit were among the last people to migrate to North America. Among the oldest cultures are the Clovis and the Mound builders cultures that thrived before the 1500s. In the early times, North America was divided into different cultures which related to geographic and genetic zones and their different languages. In the early time the North American people were mainly subsistence farmers, who grew tomatoes, maize and squash. The woodlands part of the continent in the 1500s was involved with the hunting and gathering of wild animals and did a lot of fishing. (James, 2001).

Migration to North America

The Paleo- Indians are allegedly the first people to migrate to North America. The word Paleo means old. Modern discussions of the history of the Paleo- Indians is still underway but according to the traditional believe they entered Northern America through a bridge that was between Siberia and Alaska almost 50,000 years back. They migrated from the glaciers regions when the sea levels were significantly lowered and the ice started to melt. They followed a route that was ice free that connected them to the bridge and thus the southern lands. The culture of the old Indians was known as the Plano Culture which was characterized by chipped stone points and small band mainly characterized by a group of individuals from the same extended

North American Culture

family. (James, 2001).

These groups were mobile and they moved from various situations and locations in search of novel materials. They were mainly hunters and gatherers therefore they were involved in collection and making of new tools for there activities. They hunted big mammals from the wild which have now become extinct. However they did not solely depend on the large mammals but they also hunted the small and also wild plants and fruits. Due to changes in the climate and the intensity of hunting most of the animals became extinct and they started relying on the other subsistence activities. They were also involved with trade with groups of people that they found whilst they moved. They traded tool and they kept going to search for game meat and new areas of settlement. (James, 2001).

However in their course of moving they came into contact with areas that were already populated and this highly reduced there procreation capabilities and they slowly became distinct. A famine that hit the Britons during the 1800s led to the migration of the Irish to North America in search of food, this was an immense mass departure. Most of this Irish people were both males and females who practiced farming. During the early 1800s and early 1900s Germany was facing political wrangles and this led to a migration into North America. (James, 2001).

Gutierrez Map

The Gutierrez Map was named after Diego Gutierrez who studied the composition of the now called America from Canada to Tierra del Fuego. The map contained animals, rivers, chariots, coat of arms, sea monsters and sea battles, observed by the map maker Diego Gutierrez. The sketch was to help the explorers to grasp the routes and in there surveys. (Rosenwald, 1949).

In the Gutierrez map, outlines of the Native Americans are positioned in the Portuguese territory

North American Culture

of Brazil. In this area of Brazil the Native Americans are represented tearing limb from limb and eating human beings. Being in Brazil, the map helped the Europeans who wanted to colonize the Americans know exactly where they can be found and also since they are pictured eating other humans other Europeans are concerned and are involved with the preaching the gospel of togetherness that everyone is equal and that the should not capture and eat each other. This strengthened the European claims of sovereignty because seeing that the Native Americans are involved with eating each other mercilessly gave them a sense of power over them. They felt that since they did not eat each other and were involved with other important activities that did not involved disablement and feasting on human flesh, that they were more superior to the Native Americans. (Rosenwald, 1949).

The French and Spanish coats of arms in the Gutierrez map designate and officiates the sponsorship of the map by the France and Spain. This sponsorship was as a result of a royal marriage. It was also as a result of a peace treaty between England and France which was a very wide-ranging agreement between the two groups. This treaty was concluded by the marriage of the two kingdoms that is Spain and France and this is explained as the reason why the coat of arms is situated in the left hand side of the Gutierrez map. (Rosenwald, 1949).

References

Jacobs, James (2001). The Paleo-Americans: Issues and Evidence Relating to the Peopling of the New World. Anthropology & Archaeology Pages.

Lessing Rosenwald (1949). Quarterly Journal of the Library of Congress, Sixteenth-Century Maps.

North American Culture