American history: 40 000 BC - 1492 AD


 

The First Americans

At daybreak on the morning of Friday, August 3, 1492, an Italian adventurer named Christopher Columbus set sail from Spain to find a new way from Europe to Asia ...

The First Americans - PowerPoint-Präsentation

Potlatches

The "potlatch" was a popular ceremony amongst the wealthy Pacific coast tribes of North America ...

Potlatches - PowerPoint-Präsentation

The first Americans - The geography of America

The first Americans arrived between 25,000 and 35,000 years ago ...

Map of America - PowerPoint-Präsentation

Vegetation map of America - PowerPoint-Präsentation

The physiography of the United States

Three major features dominate the physiography of the United States ...

Long ago

Many, many years ago, this country in which we live was one vast expanse of woodland and fields, mountains and swamps ...

Native Americans

The first people to live in North America came from Asia between 10,000 and 30,000 years ago ...

The Native Americans

The first people on the American continent came from Asia ...

American history: 15,000 BC - 1,000 AD

The first people to inhabit what is now the United States arrived about 15,000 years ago ...

The Inuit I

How would you like to be known as "raw meat eaters"? ...

The Inuit II

Finding out about the Inuit is especially difficult ...

Spread of the Thule Inuit

Stage I: The weather improved in the 11th century, with fewer icepacks which has made hunting difficult ...

Sources I: Inuit

In this storm there fell so much snow, with such bitter cold air, that we could scarce see one another for the snow ...

Inuit hunters

Two parties of hunters set off from the village ...

Inuit hunters - PowerPoint-Präsentation

Hunting and farming in Ancient America: the Inuit

Charming Inuit Igloo

Beautifully made out of snow ...

Charming Inuit Igloo - PowerPoint-Präsentation

Exploration of the Inuit I

In the Middle Ages there had been attempts to settle colonies on Greenland and Newfoundland ...

Exploration of the Inuit II

Frobisher´s voyages were followed by others which failed too ...

Woodland people: North-East Indians

New York was not built and developed using native American methods ...

Woodland people: North-East Indians: The Iroquois and Algonquian tribes

There were two main groupings in the North-East - the Iroquois, and the Algonquians ...

Strength through unity: The Iroquois League

Each tribe looked after its own affairs - this is different from a modern government which is often in charge of a huge area ...

Sources II

Before the beginning of the Christian period, the Indian was living a simple life in a village ...

Hunting and farming in Ancient America: the Woodlands and Plains Indians

Magnificient Iroquois Longhouse

This desirable residence is located in a town protected by a strong wooden wall ...

Magnificient Iroquois Longhouse - PowerPoint-Präsentation

The Aztecs: the Terror Empire

The Aztecs believed that human blood – especially hearts – pleased their gods ...

Native peoples of the Americas: Communication I: Travel and trade

Some people think the wheel is the greatest invention ever ...

Native peoples of the Americas: Communication II: Information

Writing is something we take for granted ...

Native peoples of the Americas: Gods, myths and superstitions

We have to forget our idea of religion with its churches and beliefs ...

Explorers from Europe

If you ask "Who discovered America?", the answer that you will usually receive is "Christopher Columbus" ...

Explorers from Europe - PowerPoint-Präsentation

American history: 1000 - 1565

The continent of North America appears to have been first sighted by Europeans in about A.D. 1,000, when Leif Ericson's boat went off course on a voyage from Norway to Greenland ...