Tribe of North American Indians. Iroquois - Indians of North America: the number and range of the tribe

In his Encyclopedia of Indian Wars 1850-1890, Gregory F. Michno provides interesting data on which tribes offered the most serious resistance to the US army. However, by "army" he quite rightly means not only the troops of the Federal government, but also the territorial units of the Civil War (it is precisely such a regiment, by the way, that is responsible for the famous massacre on Sand Creek), Confederate troops and all kinds of paramilitary forces that were in public service, like the Texas Rangers, volunteers, etc. As an indicator of "danger", Michno offered a fairly convincing criterion: the ratio of the number of casualties suffered by the army in battles with the tribe (or tribal alliance) to the actual number of military clashes. Raiding civilians, killing white women and scalping their children are not included here.

So, in the first place - Kickapoo (Kickapoo). Formally, they take this position quite rightly: 100 killed and wounded in the army for 5 battles. Ratio - 20. However, in fact, they can be safely excluded from the table. The Kickapoo were one of the "civilized" tribes that lived on the reservation. They really tried very hard to become "good Indians" - they learned English, mastered agriculture and cattle breeding, in a word, they were an absolutely peaceful people. However, when the Civil War began, the tribe, fearing that men would be sent to fight for the Confederacy, decided to emigrate to relatives in Mexico. well, about like most of the Soviet Saami in 1944-1945. But if no one touched the Sami, then Kickapoo was unlucky to wander into Texas. Rather, it was difficult for them to bypass Texas, but they went absolutely legally, had all the papers in order and believed that they were not in danger. They were wrong. The commander of one of the detachments of the Texas volunteers believed that a good Indian is only a dead Indian. Scouts warned him that the Indians roaming Mexico were not Comanches, but friendly and absolutely peaceful Kickapoos, whom even the most biased racist could not accuse of attacks on whites before. But the commander replied that in his understanding there could be no peaceful Indians, and ordered an attack on the camp. The attack was carried out in the best traditions of Texas pseudo-military idiots: randomly, without reconnaissance and in a crowd. At the same time, women and children were the first to come under fire. Kickapoo tried several times in good English to address the Texans, but they killed all the parliamentarians. When a man left the camp with two children behind him (as he tried to show that he did not want a fight), he was shot, and then the children were killed. Here the Kickapoo, no matter how peaceful they were, became somewhat brutalized. Everything was in order with their rifles, so in the ensuing battle, the volunteers lost about 100 people killed and wounded. The Kickapoos could have killed everyone, but when the Texans fled, the Indians hurried to set up camp and rushed to the border. So Texas out of the blue made another enemy. Yes, all the juicy details about the murder of women and children come from the surviving volunteers, who, without embarrassment in expressions, told what a wonderful commander they had. The remaining 4 battles took place already in the 80s of the 19th century, when the US Army went across the border into Mexico to punish the Kickapoo for raids, and eventually returned them to the reservation. in USA. These skirmishes were in one gate

Second is my favorite Not Perce (Nez Perce).

Battles and skirmishes - 16, the loss of the army killed and wounded - 281 people. Ratio - 17.5. The army suffered all the battles and losses during the so-called "Ne Perce War" in the summer of 1877, when four clans of the Ne Perce tribe and one clan of the Palooza tribe refused to go to the reservation in Oregon and fled from the US Army for three months, inflicting hellish losses on the latter. The piquancy lay in the fact that at the same time they drove the herds and generally traveled with their families - children, women and the elderly. The Americans say with some pride that they still study Ne Perce tactics in military schools, as an understandable and well-researched exemplary example of guerrilla warfare. Someday I will write about them.

Who is in third place? Well, of course, incomparable Modocs (Modocs).

These bunnies have a unique achievement in the history of the Indian wars - they killed more soldiers than they lost warriors. Battles - 12, army losses - 208, ratio - 17.5. I'll write more later.

Fourth place - well, there is nothing surprising. This is Sioux (Sioux).



Fights - 98, army losses - 1250, ratio - 12.7. The Little Bighorn, of course, plays a significant role here, but the total number of losses suffered by the army is impressive.

Fifth place - Utah (Ute).



Fights - 10, losses - 105, ratio - 10.5. True, it should be noted that, unlike 2-4 places, they fought not so much with the regular army, but with all sorts of paramilitary Mormon formations. Even if it's official.

Sixth honored place - Paiute.


33 fights, army losses - 302, ratio - 9.2. Payutah should be a special stop. These hunter-gatherer tribes were despised by absolutely everyone - the whites, who gave them the derisive name "diggers" due to the fact that digging up edible roots provided a significant part of the tribe's food supplies. Neighboring Indians for the fact that the Payutes were poor, did not have horses and guns. Guns and horses really got to them very late, and during the Snake war, bow and arrows were the main weapon of the Payutes for a long time.


And yet, the diggers managed to stand up for themselves like no other. This war was fought in the difficult times of 1864-1868, both sides knew no mercy, and the army committed war crimes against the Snakes much more than against other, more famous tribes (and at the same time, the Payutes believed that the blue soldiers were a very humane people compared to civilians!) It's just that this conflict is little known. As a result of the war, half of the tribe died. The rest, however, reconciled with the whites and then lived relatively well.

The rest of the tribes are distributed as follows:
Tribe Battles Army Loss Ratio
Horn (Rogue) 23 196 8.5
Cheyenne 89,642 7.2
Shoshone 31,202 6.5
Arapaho 6 29 4.8
Comanche 72,230 3.1
Kiowa 40,117 2.9
Hualapai 8 22 2.7
Apaches (Apache) 214,566 2.5
Navajo 32 33 1

Please note that in his works Yu. Stukalin wrote that the Apaches were head and shoulders above the steppe Indians in the tactics of guerrilla warfare, and in general were much more dangerous. Practice has shown that in reality the Sioux warmed up the blue soldiers much more than the southern Indians.

Indian myths about kachinas, gods and teachers.

Hopi Indians are a people living on the territory of a 12.5-kilometer reservation in northeast Arizona. Hopi culture, a tribe of Indians, traditionally belongs to a group of peoples called pueblos. According to the all-American census, held at the turn of the millennium, in 2000, the population of the reservation, which now creates Hopi tobacco, and was previously responsible for making predictions, is 7 thousand people. The largest known Hopi community, the Hopi Reservation, once lived in First Mesa, Arizona.

The ancestors of the ancient Indian peoples are the Hopi Indians.
The Hopi are supposedly descended from one of the oldest Indian cultures that once built their empires on the territory of the states of Nevada and New Mexico. The Hopi Indians are the descendants of the legendary Maya, Aztecs and Incas, whose civilizations developed in the period from the 2nd to the 15th millennium. The Hopi language belongs to the Hopi Shoshone sub-branch of the Aztec language group. Modern residents of a settlement in Arizona, the Hopi do not stop calling themselves the descendants of ancient tribes and the keepers of their heritage. According to ancient legends belonging to the Hopi Indians, this people was originally a mixture of representatives of tribes from all over America, who later identified themselves as an independent people.

The Hopi country has been formed for more than one century. The first contact of the ancestors of modern Hopi Indians with Europeans took place back in 1540. During periods of hard conquest, a significant part of the Hopi tribe underwent forced Christianization. However, this is only part of the tribe. As the elders assure: "The Hopi Indians fought to the end, which allowed them to preserve the faith of their ancestors." In 1860, there was a pueblo uprising, the consequence of which was the formation of Spanish punitive groups. Fortunately for the local population, the Hopi Indians successfully repelled attacks from the Spanish invaders. As a result, the then Spanish government almost completely lost control over the Hopi and their friendly tribes.

The cooperation of cultures, although not voluntary, to some extent favorably affected the Hopi Indians. At the end of the 17th century, they adopted the skills of handling domestic animals: donkeys, horses and sheep. And later, the Hopi Indians mastered cattle breeding, and learned how to work with iron and gardening. In addition, unlike the Mayan and Aztec heritage, the Hopi language, their cultural and mythological heritage was not looted and burned.

However, not everything was so rosy for the ancient tribe. For many years, the Hopi Indians were in conflict not only with Europeans, but also with the neighboring Navajo tribe. Under the influence of the Atab migrations, the Hopi were forced to move to more protected mountain areas. The settlements built by the Hopi tobacco growers were named First Mesa, Second Mesa, and Third Mesa. The first Mesa was for many years the oldest active settlement belonging to the Indians on the territory of the American continent. In fact, the Hopi Indians lived for decades in villages completely surrounded by the huge Navajo reservation. The militant tribes were separated only by the Hopi River and mountain ranges, which serve as a barrier to settlements. Today, the once warring tribes are at peace and even cooperate on environmental issues.

Hopi tobacco is a true treasure of the Indian world.
Today, the Hopi is not even a tribe famous for its culture or history, but the ancient Indians, who were glorified by Hopi tobacco, grown all over the world, by people of different cultures and peoples. This variety of tobacco, Hopi tobacco, as the name implies, was bred by the Hopi tribe in the distant past, and its smoking preceded rituals aimed at appeasing and communicating with ancestors. So the famous ritual dance of the Kachin Hopi was certainly accompanied by a calm and unconstrained lighting of a pipe with tobacco. It is believed that Hopi tobacco is able to open the soul of a person, it gives a person the opportunity to fully feel the events and phenomena of the surrounding reality. The variety of tobacco, called Hopi mapacho, has not spread as well around the world as its cheaper counterparts, however, even in the CIS countries it will not be possible to find amateurs and professionals involved in the cultivation, production and sale of the true heritage of the ancient Indians.

Hopi culture is a heritage of Mesoamerica.
The name of the tribe - "Hopi" is translated as "peaceful people" or "peaceful Indians". The concept of peace, order and mutual assistance is deeply rooted in the religion, rituals and culture of the ancient people. Hopi culture, the religion of this people, is fundamentally different from the beliefs of #Aztecs, #Incas or #Maya. Unlike ancestors who promote sacrifice, the Hopi religion, which implies respect for things and the world around, is permeated with pacifist sentiments. The labyrinths of the Hopi, their settlements and reservations, were originally built not for protection, but for pacifying rites. In the words of the Hopi themselves: "War is never an option."

In their beliefs, the Hopi worship great spirits, the kachinas. For several centuries, the Indians have been praying to them for rain or harvest. Hopi culture is founded and relies on the belief in Kaichna. They make kachin dolls, give them to their children and sell them to tourists interested in the history of #Mesoamerica. Hopi to this day practice the oldest religious rites and ceremonies, which are celebrated according to the lunar calendar. Nevertheless, even this people with the richest mythological basis has not escaped the influence of mass American culture. Photos of the Hopi, modern Indians, confirm this fact. The American dream more than once or twice encroached on the foundations of the ancient people.

Traditionally for Indian tribes, the Hopi have developed a high level of farming, and products are produced both for sale and for their own use. Today, the Hopi are fully involved in monetary and economic relations. The Hopi culture has not lost its uniqueness and independence, it has simply become accustomed to the surrounding realities. Many members of the tribe have official jobs and a stable income to provide for their families. Others are engaged in the production and sale of multiple works of art, the most notable of which are Hopi Indian paintings, paintings painted in the same way as hundreds of years ago. The Hopi people live, and their way of life and culture develop.

The Hopi Indians are the prophets of the modern world.
Talking about the art and culture of the Indians. For many years, the attention of researchers from all over the world was riveted to stone tablets describing the history of the Hopi. Some of them contain frightening prophecies of the future. The Hopi are a peaceful tribe. But even in their religion there was a place for terrifying omens and events. The elders of the Hopi Indians and the ancient stone tablets they keep are responsible for predictions that foreshadow the death of the world and the decline of human civilization. The most famous of the Hopi prophecies is a prediction published in 1959.

According to him, the fourth world, the world in which we live, will soon come to an end. As the Hopi say: “a white brother will appear on earth, not the white brother who fights, which is evil and greedy, but the one who will return the lost text of ancient scriptures and mark the beginning of the end with his return.”

The apocalypse in Hopi predictions will be preceded by events, the so-called signs. There are nine in total. The first sign speaks of evil people who will take the land from its rightful owners. The second sign is wooden wheels that will replace horses. The third sign is the invasion of strange animals. The fourth sign is the earth wrapped in iron snakes. The fifth sign is a giant web that will envelop the earth. The sixth sign says that the earth will be repainted by evil people. In the seventh sign of the Hopi Indians, the sea will turn black and life will begin to fade. The eighth sign heralds the fusion of cultures. And the last, ninth sign speaks of dwellings high in the sky, falling to the ground. The apogee of these events will be the end of the world and the disappearance of human civilization from the face of the Earth. So terrible is the future of the Hopi tribe, a people with a thousand-year history. http://vk.cc/4q4XMl

Usually, speaking of ancient America, they first of all remember the Aztecs, Mayans and Incas. But on the American continent, long before these well-known peoples, there were others. In many ways, they made this wild continent quite suitable for life ...

The very first "Americans" hunted mammoths and other large animals. Dangerous fishing often ended tragically.

The remains of one of the unfortunate hunters were discovered by scientists in 1947 in Mexico, in the town of Tepeshpan. He died about 11 thousand years ago. From the sculptural reconstruction, a cave dweller with powerful superciliary arches and a low forehead looks at us. The hunter was, by the standards of antiquity, quite old - over 50 years old!

Influenced by the climate

By the 8th millennium BC, the climate became drier and warmer, the meadows turned into semi-deserts. Some species of large animals became extinct, others moved north. Some of the hunters also migrated with them. Their descendants have preserved the ancient way of life right up to historical times.

Others preferred to stay put and adapt to new conditions. The main importance was the collection of plants, and hunting served only as a help. From gathering - one step to agriculture, but many tribes have not done it.

Areas favorable for agriculture were in Mesoamerica and in the Central Andes - in Peru and Bolivia. It was in these regions that ancient civilizations were formed.

The transition took millennia. The first - about 7 thousand years ago - was "domesticated" gourd. It was followed by zucchini, chili peppers, cotton, beans, avocados. Finally, it was the turn of the maize. The oldest ears discovered by archaeologist Richard McNeish in Mexico are 5,600 years old. Around this time - IV-III millennium BC - they began to cultivate maize in the Andes.

Finally, the culture of farmers was formed in the III-II millennium BC. Permanent settlements arose, weaving, ceramics appeared. People sculpted dishes and terracotta figurines that retained the appearance of their creators.

The appearance of clay figurines testified to the beginnings of beliefs - probably the cult of ancestors. Worshiped farmers and natural forces. There were shamans and leaders who became hereditary nobility.

At the end of the II millennium BC, the first civilizations arose.

Olmec heads

On the banks of the rivers of the Mexican state of Veracruz, a combination of two tillage systems - slash-and-burn and floodplain - made it possible to harvest 3-4 crops per year. River floods, like the Nile in Egypt, gave rise to the Olmec civilization.

Between 1350 and 1250 BC, the inhabitants of one of the settlements created terraces and platforms on one of the plateaus. There is a proto-city of San Lorenzo.

Between 1150 and 900 BC, it became the ceremonial and administrative center in control of the Coatzacoalcos river basin. A system of artificial reservoirs, a water supply system, many monumental stone sculptures and a “visiting card” of civilization were created there.

The most prominent building in San Lorenzo was the so-called "Red Palace" - a long building with walls of rammed earth, limestone and sandstone slabs and a roof of palm leaves. The building was decorated with 4-meter columns, and under the floor there was an aqueduct made of basalt gutters. Probably, the building served as the residence of the leader.

Representatives of the elite lived in stone-lined houses on the highest part of the plateau, community members lived in huts on terraced slopes. They were engaged in agriculture, pottery, weaving, fishing, hunting. There were also professional artisans who worked on orders from the ruling elite.

After 900 BC, river courses changed, and San Lorenzo gradually lost its importance. The main Olmec center was another archaeological complex La Venta, the heyday of this city fell on the VIII-IV centuries BC.

In La Venta, several stone heads, a pyramid, stone thrones, tombs, steles with images of rulers and jaguar-like deities, and a mosaic in the form of a jaguar head were discovered. The jaguar was a sacred animal for the Laventians: it was carved on figurines, ornaments, and the rulers were given the features of this beast. Reliefs were also found here that convey the myth of the connection of the divine jaguar with an earthly woman or, according to another interpretation, the transformation of a shaman into a jaguar.

The "jaguar style" of the Olmecs spread throughout Mesoamerica, and their hieroglyphic inscriptions and dates were long considered the oldest. Scientists have decided that the Olmecs are the "mother culture", the progenitor of all civilizations in the region. Further research showed that they were one of many. Other peoples began the path to civilization at the same time as them, and in some ways stepped even further.

Zapotec Mystery

During the heyday of San Lorenzo in Oaxaca, they began to honor the Earth and Sky. The formidable forces of the Earth were represented in the form of a snarling jaws of a jaguar. Perhaps the jaguar is an Olmec influence, but otherwise the culture went its own way.

Between 850 and 700 BC, platforms for short-lived hut temples arose, and the people of San José Mogote created the first chiefdom. A couple of centuries later, others were formed. At first they sought to resolve conflicts peacefully, then they began to fight.

Once the enemies burned the temple in San José Mogote. Punishment awaited the wicked, the memory of which has been preserved for centuries.

The carved slab depicts a sacrificed prisoner. Signs between his feet: a dot and a hieroglyph - the first example of Zapotec writing, dating back to ... 600 BC! Probably, the name of "Herostratus" is imprinted.

The writing of the Zapotecs has not yet been deciphered. At one time it was considered the oldest - even older than the Olmec! In our time, the Olmecs again have the advantage, although it is possible that two cultures came to this discovery at the same time.

Along with writing, a calendar, carved bas-reliefs, temples, tombs of leaders and the first figured vessels - the so-called urns - appeared in San José Mogota.

The sacred mountain of Monte Alban - here in the 5th century BC the capital of the Zapotecs was erected

Around 500 BC, the inhabitants of the village moved to the top of the sacred mountain Monte Alban. There, during the heyday of La Venta, the first real city arose - the capital of the Zapotec state.

By the 1st century BC, the kings of Monte Alban subjugated Oaxaca, and then stepped beyond its borders. The next 300 years were a period of expansion of the kingdom, and then five centuries of prosperity. Ugas Monte Alban at the end of the 1st millennium - shortly before the centers of the "classical" Maya.

The first attempt to create a civilization in the Valley of Mexico ended tragically.

The inhabitants of the village of Cuicuilco, shortly before the beginning of our era, learned a lot. They made elegant dishes, built adobe dwellings, and even built a pyramid - a truncated cone of sand and clay, lined with stones and adobe (the same as adobe). But there was an eruption of the volcano Shitle, and the houses of farmers with all the utensils were buried under a layer of lava.

Scientists suggest that not all died. Some fled to Teotihuacan. Perhaps it was they who accelerated its development and inspired the Teotihuacans to create the huge pyramids of the Sun and the Moon.

The heyday of Teotihuacan fell on the first centuries of our era and coincided in time with the heyday of Monte Alban and the formation of the first Mayan kingdoms. With the Zapotecs, the Teotihuacans lived peacefully, dividing spheres of influence. With the Maya it was different. In 378, the commander Siyah-Kak undertook a long campaign, seized power in the Mayan Tikal and founded a new dynasty subordinate to Teotihuacan. Oddly enough, the conquest benefited the Maya, and Tikal became their largest state in the 5th century.

Teotihuacans soon forgot about the "vassals", and at the end of the 7th century the first "megalopolis" perished.

Predecessors of the Incas

The ancient history of South America is less known. In addition, several archaeological records have been recorded there.

The first is the Ecuadorian “man from Otovalo” and the oldest remains in America are 33 thousand years old!

The second is the Chinchorro mummies on the Chilean coast. The earliest of them date back to… VIII millennium BC! They are the oldest in the world.

This tradition was inherited by the creators of the Paracas culture. They also became famous for experiments on skulls: they changed their shape, performed trepanations ... Their successors, the famous Nazca, stopped making mummies in large numbers, but continued to play with the skull.

The northern coast of the continent offers no less surprises. In Ecuador, another record was set - the oldest ceramics in America, dating back to the beginning of the 3rd millennium BC, were discovered. They found similarities with the Japanese one in it, and since then there has been a version about contacts between these countries.

The tradition of pottery was developed by other coastal cultures. The most striking of these is the Mochica culture that existed in Peru, near modern Trujillo.

Mochika built cities in which pyramids, residential and public buildings were erected; laid irrigation systems, aqueducts. Agriculture was based on irrigation and the use of flood lands. They grew maize, beans, potatoes, yucca, chili, tomatoes, and other plants. The fields were fertilized with guano and small fish. Fishermen in reed boats often went out to fish.

Mochika were skilled jewelers - they knew how to melt, solder, cover copper with gilding. Ornaments and some tools were made from metals.

They were engaged in mochika and weaving, but pottery brought fame to the culture - painted and figured vessels. Thanks to mythological plots and "genre scenes" on them, we learn about the life of Mochik. Their culture left no inscriptions or stone sculptures. The chronicle of this people is "clay".

"Lord of Sipan"

Mochika's "visiting card" is the so-called "portrait" vessels, with stunning realism conveying the features of people who once lived: either the kings of an ancient people, or their defeated enemies.

The wealth and power of the ancient kings is evidenced by the untouched burial of the "Lord of Sipan", dating from about 290.

On the chest of the deceased ruler were laid copper discs, several dozen gold, copper and silver nuts - elements that adorned the decayed clothes. The burial veil was embroidered with gilded copper plates and strewn with many shells. There were also nose inserts, chest and ear pendants made of gold, a feather fan with a copper handle. Loosely lay thousands of pearls.

In the right hand of the deceased were a golden bar and a scepter-knife, in the left - also a bar and a scepter, only copper. There were two knives at the neck: gold on the right, copper on the left. On top of the head was a large gold diadem in the shape of a crescent.

The king was accompanied to the afterlife by several servants or slaves and, possibly, spouses who were sacrificed and buried right there.

In historical times, the kingdom of Chimor, the most powerful rival of the Incas, was located on the lands of Mochica. The Chimorians were also skilled jewelers and potters. Who knows, maybe the Mochica are their ancestors?

The most ancient civilization of Peru is the Chavin culture, whose centers are scattered along the Pacific coast. The main one, Chavin de Huantar, is located in the mountains - 100 kilometers from the coast.

This culture flourished from 1500 BC to 400 AD and had a huge impact on all the civilizations of the Andean region. Some consider it a "progenitor culture" like the Mesoamerican Olmecs.

Here there was a theocratic society ruled by kings and priests. Chavin de Huantar was considered the ceremonial capital, and less significant centers were located on a vast subordinate territory, around which community members settled.

The land suitable for cultivation was only in the river valleys, so irrigation developed. Cattle breeding and traditional crafts - hunting and fishing were a good help.

The Chavinians also knew crafts. It was with them that the tradition of sculpting "figured vessels" depicting people and animals began. The vessel was often made in the form of the head of a jaguar or puma. The cult of cats is an Olmec trait. Maybe the two peoples were in contact? They lived at the same time...

Chavin de Huantar is an elongated rectangle, a combination of platforms, temples and squares. The most famous monuments are the “Castillo” temple complex and two mysterious steles: “Lanzon” (“Spear”) made of white granite 4.5 meters high, as well as “Raimondi Stone” with a relief of a creature with a cat's face and a wand in each hand-paw . The purpose of both these and other Chavin monuments is still unknown.

Even more questions are raised by the mysterious culture of Tiahuanaco, which existed in the Andes in the II-I millennium BC. Its ceremonial center was located on the shores of the alpine lake Titicaca - more than 3 thousand meters above sea level!

The Huari culture is even less studied. There is an opinion that two civilizations created one state with two capitals: religious - Tiahuanaco and secular - Huari ...

After the fall of Tiahuanaco, Huari culture spread to all areas - everywhere its centers with characteristic buildings.

The architecture of this culture was distinguished by correctness, symmetry, rectangular layout, symbolizing the centralization of power and strength. Streets, squares, houses were surrounded by powerful stone walls. Administrative buildings and "workshops" of hundreds of rooms were erected. Sculptures of deities were placed on the stepped platforms.

One of the cities of Huari culture was located in Cusco. At the end of the 1st millennium, it was abandoned, and a few centuries later the Incas came to the valley...

Tatiana Plihnevich

The East Indians lived in the area between the Great Lakes to the north, the Mississippi to the west, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. The northern part of this territory belonged during the period of the arrival of Europeans to various tribes of the Algonquian language group.

On the Atlantic coast, the Algonquian Indians were engaged in fishing, in other places they cultivated corn or beans. For the Algonquian Indians, the main source of livelihood was rice growing wild in the water. One of these Algonquian tribes, living near Lake Superior, wrote its name in gold letters in the history of the national liberation struggle of the Indians of North America. The Algonquian tribes included and. An important role in the Indian wars also belonged to representatives of other Algonquian-speaking tribes that united in the 17th century in the Powhattan confederation. It was these Indians that the first British settlers encountered and fought.

In the wooded northern part of the east of the current USA, we meet with another group of warlike Indian tribes - the Iroquois. These Indians were engaged in agriculture (they grew corn, sunflowers, watermelons, peas and beans), hunting forest animals (moose, beavers, and especially deer). The Iroquois-speaking tribes (Oneida, Seneca, Mohawks, Cayuga, Onondaga) created in the second half of the 16th century the strongest association in the history of North America - the Iroquois League, which in 1722 was joined by another sixth, living to the south, the tribe of the Iroquois language group Tuscarora .

The Iroquois League, surprisingly, did not actively participate in the main anti-colonial battles of the North American Indians. The merit in this, of course, belongs to the leader of moderate views, Tayendanege (the whites called him Joseph Brant), a Mohawk by origin.

Thanks to this circumstance, the Iroquois still live in their original homeland.

And many Iroquois, especially numerous Senecas, live today in America's largest city, New York.

In the south of eastern North America, at the time of the arrival of the whites, there lived less warlike tribes, to whom fate was cruel. Almost all the local Indians, with the exception of the remnants, were forced to go into exile across the Mississippi in the first half of the 19th century or were completely destroyed.

Most of the southeastern tribes belonged to the Muscon language group (Chickasaws, Creeks, Choctaws, Alabama, and others). These Indians were excellent farmers, lived in rebuilt large villages, maintained trade relations with remote areas of North America and Mexico.

Of the non-Musconian tribes of the southeast, it is necessary to recall at least the "cousins" of the Iroquois living in Georgia and the Carolinas - the Cherokee tribe. These Indians created their first written language in the 19th century, printed Indian books and newspapers, created a parliament, etc. However, they were also expelled across the Mississippi in the first half of the 19th century.

Prairie Indians

The Indians of the prairies, who showed themselves from the best side in the Indian wars, during the period when the first Europeans came to North America, in fact, did not yet live on their so famous prairies. First we must say what these prairies are.

These are endless, slightly hilly steppes, overgrown with buffalo grass. This buffalo grass was the main food for numerous herds of bison, and the bison, in turn, later became the main source of food, as well as the "clothes" and "shoes" of the Prairie Indians.

This infinitely vast territory, located approximately between the northern border of the present United States, the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, was inaccessible to the Indian on foot in the pre-Columbian period. But as soon as - somewhere in the seventeenth century - the Indians, who until that time lived on the edge of the North American prairies and were engaged in primitive agriculture (for example, the Cheyenne), or hunting (like the Kiows or popular Comanches), received horses, they were able to begin to settle down on their prairies. , roam, hunt bison.

So in the seventeenth century, the youngest Indian culture of North America, the prairie culture, was born here, and with it a new inhabitant of these endless steppes, the prairie Indian, was formed. Gradually, the North American prairies are divided among themselves by members of a number of tribes. These are, first of all, representatives of the large family of Sioux languages. In addition to the Sioux tribes proper, this language group also includes the Assiniboins, the Mandans, the well-known Ponca, Omaha, and Osaga. Of the Algonquian-speaking tribes, the Cheyenne, Atsin, and Wyoming Arapagians lived on the prairies.

The Indians of the Prairie are the creators of most of the objects whose invention we unknowingly attribute to all North American Indians.

It was they who created and wore luxurious decorations from feathers on their foreheads, built their dwellings from buffalo skin, they invented the famous horse cart - travots, wore the famous leggings - leather boots; it was they who dressed in the famous chain mail and festive, decorated with drawings, cloaks, also made of buffalo skin.

It was they who came up with a special Indian bow, reinforced with veins, used tomahawks - military axes.

Close to them in cultural traditions are representatives of most of today's few tribes living beyond the western borders of the prairies, primarily on the high plains in today's Utah and Nevada, then in the Colorado basin and, finally, in dense, coniferous forest areas adjacent to the prairies. on their northwestern borders (today's US states of Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, and Washington State).

Indians of the Southwest

In this area, which is the current American states of Arizona and New Mexico, live the famous Apache warriors, who today inhabit four reservations in the amount of 12,000 people (Jicarilla Apache, Mescalero Apache, Fort Apache and San Carlos).

At the time of the arrival of Europeans, Apaches were predominantly semi-nomadic hunters. The closest relatives of the Apaches are - also belonging to the Athabas language family - their neighbors the Navajos, who today far outnumber other Indian peoples of North America (more than 100,000 people) and live again in the largest Indian reservation of the United States.

Navajos are, above all, good pastoralists. They keep sheep and cattle. In America, their beautiful turquoise jewelry is highly valued.

In the south of Arizona, in a semi-desert region on the border with Mexico, there are about 20,000 Indians from the Papago and Pima tribes belonging to the Pama language group; in the west of this region, along the course of the Colorado River, there are several small Indian tribes of the Yuma language group. And finally, in the southwest, in a number of villages, live famous pueblos - sedentary farmers who grow corn, watermelons and other crops, often in irrigated fields arranged in terraces.

In a pueblo village, there is only one house with several floors, built of mud and stone. Separate families live in different rooms. This is the New Mexican dwelling - "pueblo".

The well-known pueblo of Zugni is occupied by almost three thousand people belonging to the same language group. Linguistically, most Pueblos belong to the Tano and Keres group. The Hopi Indians, who have three castles in the rocks - "Meses" - in Arizona, belong to the Shoshone language group, that is, they are close to the famous Comanches.

Indians of California and the Northwest Coast

California was inhabited by many small Indian tribes of various language groups. The culture of the Indians of California and the Pacific Northwest (now the North American states of Oregon and Washington) was much more primitive than that of all other Indian groups in North America.

The local Indians earned their livelihood by collecting the fruits and seeds of wild plants, lived in semi-underground dugout huts. The tribes living directly on the coast were also engaged in catching fish and sea mollusks. Numerous tribes of the Pacific coast in the XVII-XIX centuries completely died out.

Today, about thirty Indian tribes and small groups remain here, of which only the Diegen, belonging to the Yuma language group, number 9,000 people. Other local tribes have only a few families.

American Indians have a unique and tragic history. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that they were able to survive the period of settlement of the continent by Europeans. The tragedy is connected with the conflict between the Indians and the white population. Despite all this, the history of the Indian people is full of optimism, because, having lost the lion's share of their original lands, they survived and retained their identity. Today they are full citizens of the United States.

The main question of the article: where do the Indians live? Traces of this population can be traced on two continents. Many names in the US are associated with this people. For example, Massachusetts, Michigan, Kansas and the like.

A bit of history, or who are called Indians

In order to understand where the Indians live, you need to decide who they are. For the first time, Europeans learned about them at the end of the 15th century, when, in search of the cherished India, they reached the shores of America. The navigator immediately called the locals Indians, although it was a completely different continent. So the name was fixed and became common for many peoples who inhabited two continents.

If for Europeans the open continent was the New World, then hundreds lived here for about 30 thousand years. Newly arriving Europeans began to push the natives into the interior of the country, occupying habitable territories. Gradually, the tribes were driven closer to the mountains.

Reservation system

By the end of the 19th century, America was so populated by Europeans that there were no free lands for the Indians. In order to understand where the Indians live, you should know what reservations are. These are lands poorly suited for agriculture, where the Indians were forced out. Living in this territory under agreements with white people, they had to receive supplies. However, this was often only verbal.

Things got even worse when the government allocated 160 acres of land to each indigenous person. The Indians were not ready to farm, moreover, on land unsuitable for this. All this led to the fact that by 1934 the Indians had lost a third of their lands.

New Deal

In the first half of the last century, the US Congress made the Indians citizens of the country. This was a great push forward regarding reconciliation between peoples, although rather belated.

The places where American Indians live, like themselves, began to interest Americans not from the point of view of profit, but from the point of view of the cultural heritage of their state. The United States has developed a spirit of pride in the diversity of its population. Many had a desire to compensate the descendants of the Indians for the unfair treatment to which their ancestors were subject.

Where do Indians live?

Indians live in two main geographical areas. These are North America and Latin America. To avoid confusion, it is worth noting that Latin America is not only South America, but Mexico and a number of islands.

Territory of settlement in North America

Where do Indians live in North America? This geographical area consists of two large states - the USA and Canada.

Indian regions:

• subtropical regions;
• coastal regions of the northwestern part of the mainland;
• California is a popular Indian state;
• southeastern United States;
• territory

Now it’s clear where the Indians live, the photos of which are presented in the article. It remains to indicate that all of them are engaged in fishing, hunting, gathering, and making valuable fur on their lands.

Half of today's Indians live in major cities and rural areas throughout the United States. The other part lives on federal reservations.

Indians in California

When you hear the question of where cowboys and Indians live, the state of California comes to mind first. This is connected not only with westerns, but also with statistics. At least for the Indians.

The largest number of Indian population lives in the state of California. This was confirmed by the population census over the past decades. Of course, the descendants of the Indians of this region are of mixed origin.

How do they live on the mainland in California? Over the years, most of them have lost the knowledge of their native language. Thus, more than 70% do not speak any language other than English. Only 18% speak the language of their people well, as well as the state language.

California Indians are eligible for college admissions. However, most of them do not use them. About 70% of children from Indian families receive secondary education, and only 11% receive a bachelor's degree. Most often, representatives of the indigenous population are employed in service labor or agriculture. Among them there is also a high percentage of unemployment in relation to the average.

A quarter of California Indians live below the poverty line. Their homes often lack running water and sewerage, and many are forced to live in very cramped conditions. Although more than 50% still have their own housing.

There are also Indian reservations in California. In 1998, a court in them allowed the indigenous people to engage in gambling business. This permission from the authorities was a significant victory. But it was not connected with highlighting a favorable attitude towards the Indians, but because it was impossible to engage in the usual crafts on the territory of the reservation. The government took this step to give people the opportunity to earn a living through gambling.

In addition to such concessions, reservations in California have their own self-government, courts, and law enforcement agencies. They do not obey the laws of the state of California, while receiving state subsidies and grants.

Territory of settlement in Latin America

There is a group of Indians living in Latin America. Where the Indians now live in this geographical area, read below:

• throughout Latin America, the Aztecs and those who lived in Central America before the arrival of Europeans live;
• a separate community are the Indians of the Amazon basin, who are distinguished by their specific thinking and foundations;
• Indians of Patagonia and Pampas;
• native people

After that, it is no longer a secret where they live. They were very powerful in their development and had their own state structure long before the arrival of Europeans.

It is quite difficult to answer unequivocally where the Indians live in our time. Many of them still adhere to their traditions, principles, live together. But there are also many who began to live like most Americans, forgetting even the language of their people.