Native Americans in the United States

Native Americans lived in the Americas a long time ago.

They built big cities and made large mounds of earth. Many groups lived in different lands.

Later, people came from far away. This was a very hard time. Many people got sick from new germs. Some people were also treated very unfairly.

Over time, people worked for change. They fought for their rights. Many groups now run their own schools.

They work hard to keep their ways strong today.

Native Americans are the first people of the Americas.

Many thousands of years ago, people moved to these lands. They built large cities and made big earthworks. One city, Cahokia, had over 20,000 people by the year 1250.

Later, people from Europe arrived. This was a very hard time for Native groups. New diseases like smallpox made many people sick. Many died from these germs. Settlers also took land and fought wars. Some laws forced Native people to move from their homes.

In 1924, a law gave Native Americans citizenship. This let them vote in elections. Since the 1960s, many groups have fought for their rights. This is called self-determination. It means tribes can make their own choices. Today, over five million Native Americans live in the U.S. Many live in cities, but many also live on reservations. They work hard to keep their cultures strong.

Native Americans are the first people of the Americas.

They lived on these lands for many thousands of years. Some people arrived by crossing a land bridge called Beringia. This path connected Siberia to Alaska. Other people may have traveled by kayak along the Kelp Highway. These early groups included the Clovis and Folsom traditions. They used special spear points to hunt large animals. Over time, these people built very large and complex societies.

Many different cultures grew across the land. Some groups were Mound Builders who made huge earthworks. The city of Cahokia was a very large urban center. It had more than 20,000 people by the year 1250. Experts divide North America into ten different cultural areas. These include the Great Plains and the Southwest. Some groups lived in the Arctic or the Northwest Coast. Many of these societies shared land in common. They did not use the same property rules as Europeans.

Life changed greatly when Europeans arrived near 1492. This period is often called the Columbian exchange. It brought new plants and animals to the Americas. However, it also brought many new diseases. Smallpox was a very dangerous sickness for Native people. Many groups lost 90 percent of their people to germs. This was a very sad and hard time. Settlers also fought wars and took land from tribes. This led to many people being moved from their homes.

Laws in the United States changed how tribes lived. At first, the government treated tribes as independent nations. They signed treaties with them like they would with other countries. But the Indian Appropriations Act of 1871 changed this. The government began treating tribes as dependent nations. In 1924, the Indian Citizenship Act was passed. This law gave citizenship to Native Americans born in the U.S. It also allowed them to vote in elections. Some states still tried to stop them from voting for a long time.

Today, the Native American community is very strong. There are over five million Native Americans in the United States. About 80 percent of them live outside of reservations. Many live in big cities now. States like Alaska and Oklahoma have many Native people. Since the 1960s, people have fought for self-determination. This means tribes can make their own choices. They run their own schools and businesses. They also work hard to keep their languages and traditions alive.

Native Americans are the Indigenous peoples of the United States. This includes people in the lower 48 states and Alaska. The term can also include Americans with origins in any Indigenous group from North or South America. The U.S. Census Bureau uses the term "American Indians and Alaska Natives." They define this as people with origins in the original peoples of the Americas who maintain tribal affiliation.

The history of these peoples began tens of thousands of years ago. Early humans migrated to the Americas via Beringia. This was a land bridge connecting Siberia to Alaska. These migrations likely occurred between 25,000 and 12,000 years ago. Some groups may have arrived earlier by traveling along the "Kelp Highway" in kayaks. Early cultures like the Clovis and Folsom traditions used unique spear points for hunting.

As the climate stabilized around 8000 BCE, complex societies emerged. The Mound Builders created massive earthworks like those at Watson Brake. By 1000 BCE, the Woodland period saw advanced trade networks. The Mississippian culture later built large urban centers. One such city, Cahokia, had a population exceeding 20,000 by 1250 CE.

Anthropologists divide North American Indigenous peoples into ten distinct cultural areas. These include the Arctic, the Great Plains, and the Southwest. Each area contains groups that share specific cultural traits. Many Northeastern and Southwestern groups were matrilineal. This means their social organization was based on the mother's line. Unlike European traditions, land was often held communally by the community.

European colonization began near 1492, starting the Columbian exchange. This period involved a massive transfer of plants, animals, and cultures. However, it also brought devastating biological consequences. Native Americans had no immunity to many European diseases. Smallpox was particularly deadly. In some regions, populations fell by 90 percent or more. Pre-Columbian population estimates range from 2 million to over 18 million people. By the late 18th century, these numbers dropped to about 600,000 due to disease and warfare.

Government policies significantly altered tribal life. Initially, the U.S. treated tribes as semi-independent nations. The government signed treaties at a government-to-government level. This changed with the Indian Appropriations Act of 1871. This law ended the recognition of independent Native nations. Instead, the government treated them as "domestic dependent nations." This status preserved some tribal sovereignty. Many reservations remain independent of state law today.

The 19th century saw intense pressure through the ideology of manifest destiny. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 authorized mass relocations west of the Mississippi. This led to tragic events like the Trail of Tears. The Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 later granted citizenship to all Native Americans born in the U.S. This allowed them to vote and receive protections under the Fourteenth Amendment. However, some states continued to deny voting rights for many decades.

Modern Native American history is defined by movements for self-determination. The Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968 applied many Bill of Rights guarantees to tribes. The Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 helped tribes run their own schools. Today, there are over five million Native Americans in the United States. About 80 percent of them live outside of reservations, often in cities. Alaska, Oklahoma, and Arizona have high percentages of Indigenous residents.