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Digital History>Reference
Room>Glossaries
A
Glossary of Native American History
Historical
Terminology | Kinship Terminology
| Political Organization
Religious Terminology | Forms
of Shelter
Historical
Terminology:
Beringia
During
one of the earth's periodic ice ages, water froze into glaciers,
reducing sea levels 200 to 300 feet, exposing a subcontinent
known as Beringia. This subcontinent connected Asia and
North America and formed a migration route for hunters and
animals searching for food.
Clovis
tradition
A
sophisticated form of toolmaking that appeared about 12,000
years ago.
Mississippian
cultural patterns
A
form of social organization that appeared among the Indian
peoples east of the Mississippi beginning in the seventh
century, characterized by permanent villages and towns,
political and economic stratification, specialized crafts,
and extensive trade.
Moundbuilders
Early
Indian peoples, including the Adena, Hopewell, and Mississippian
cultures, who built large earthen monuments to serve as
burial sites and as sites for temples and religious ceremonies.
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Kinship
Terminology
Lineage
A
group of persons tracing descent from a common ancestor.
Clan
Two
or more lineages claiming descent from a common ancestor.
Moiety
One
of two basic complementary tribal subdivisions. Among some
people, the members of one moiety were responsible for burying
the dead of the other moiety.
Association
An
organization whose members were not related. Among the Plains
Indians, associations were often organized according to
age.
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Political
Organization
Band
The
form of political organization customarily found among hunter-gatherers.
Bands usually have no permanent leaders; decisions are based
on building consensus. Leadership tends to be situational,
arising for short periods of time.
Tribe
Larger
than a band, tribal organization is customarily associated
with agriculture and more permanent settlements. Kinship
is generally the central organizing principle. Leaders are
usually chosen by consensus and rule by consensus.
Chiefdom
Usually
larger than a tribe, chiefdoms show the beginning of social
stratification and the emergence of a distinct ruling class.
Customarily, the chiefs must redistribute the resources
they control. Chiefdoms are often engaged in some kinds
of extensive trade.
Federation
A
union of a number of distinct tribes or chiefdoms.
State
Unlike
bands, tribes, and chiefdoms, states have a true class structure
and a distinct ruling class. It is a more extensive system
of political control, often involving rule over subjugated
groups.
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Religious
Terminology
Agrarian
Tradition
A
religious system associated with farming communities, which
was characterized by rituals associated with changing seasons.
Unlike the Hunting Tradition, which had individual shamans,
the Agrarian Tradition had organized priesthood and cult
societies.
Ghost
Dance
A
messianic religious ritual originating among the Paiute,
which later spread to the Plains, and was supposed to bring
the return of the spirits of the dead.
Hunting
Tradition
A
religious system of beliefs that emphasized the ties between
hunters and the animal world.
Kiva
A
Pueblo Indian ceremonial structure that is usually round
and partly underground.
Potlatch
A
ceremonial feast held by Indians of the Northwest Pacific
Coast marked by the host's lavish distribution of gifts.
Shaman
An
individual with a special relationship with the spirit world.
White often called shamans "medicine men" because
they were responsible for curing the sick.
Southern
Cult
A
system of religious ritual that shared many customs and
symbols with Mexican Indian religions.
Sun
Dance
A
religious ceremony among the Plains Indians to mark the
renewal of nature.
Totem
An
object, such as an animal or plant, that serves as the emblem
for a lineage or clan. The totem often serves as a symbolic
representation of a guardian spirit or an ancestor.
Totem
Pole
A
carved or painted pillar erected by Indians of the Northwest
Pacific Coast to mark an important event, such as a religious
ceremony or acquisition of a title or the death of a relative.
Vision
Quest
A
rite in which a young persons or young adults go to an isolated
place to seek, in a vision, a protective spirit.
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Forms
of Shelter
Hogan
An
earth lodge found among the Navajo, consisting of a frame
built of poles or logs covered with dirt.
Longhouse
Large,
rectangular structure found among the Iroquois. Some longhouses
were 100 feet long and housed ten or more families.
Pit
house
An
insulated structure built in a pit several feet deep and
covered with sod, dirt, or other materials.
Plank
house
Form
of housing found in the Pacific Northwest.
Pueblo
Multistoried
apartment building built out of adobe (sun-dried bricks)
found in Arizona and New Mexico.
Tipi
Cone-shaped
structure built on a pole framework. On the Plains, it was
covered with buffalo skins. Elsewhere, it was covered with
animal skins or tree bark.
Wickiups
Form
of shelter found among the Apaches and Paiutes constructed
of brush and matting.
Wigwam
A
dome-shaped structure found in the eastern woodlands that
was built on a pole framework and covered with leaves and
bark.
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