American Indians. History of original people

The indigenous population of America is by right considered to be a small number of Indian tribes. This name is due not only to the fact that they first settled and mastered this territory, but also because the American Indians managed to preserve their centuries-old traditions, passing them from generation to generation. And this is not just an expression of a sense of respect for one's past, it is a true spiritual connection with the spirits of ancestors and the great legacy of times.

The official opening date of the American continent is October 12, 1492. But it was not until a century later that the English conquerors were able to subordinate local lands to their power, and for almost a century they had to challenge their rights with the Spanish troops. The beginning of the active development of the territory and rapid colonization is considered to be the year 1620, when a famous ship called "May Flower" came to the shores. The next historical milestone is the struggle of the new state for independence.

Throughout all these stages, the attitude of the conquerors to the Indians remained approximately the same. The savagery of the Spaniards is still legendary, they say that many of them preferred to feed the dead bodies of the local inhabitants of their dogs, and the generally recognized fact was that for the life of a Spanish senor, he killed at least one hundred Indians. The famous Columbus introduced a truly titanic tax with gold, which could not be met, hunger and disease came to the local settlements.

The American Indians also suffered from the British. Those are ruthless, dealt with them, burning whole villages, often with living people, connected them to the struggle for independence, ruthlessly drinking and exchanging in battles.

At the end of the 16th century, the struggle with the local population took on the greatest scale. People were forcibly baptized into someone else's faith, resettled to undeveloped territories on reservations, exterminated the animals on which it was customary to hunt.

Such cruelty is noted only on the part of the conquerors. American Indians treated the first settlers with all possible breadth of their souls. No wonder their hospitality formed the basis of one of the most beloved holidays in the United States, namely Thanksgiving.

On the territory of two continents lived not one tribe of American Indians. In total, there were more than two thousand nationalities speaking more than five hundred different languages. The genus of their activities differed depending on the geography of residence. The main occupations could be hunting, fishing and gathering. Primitive art also developed. A number of peoples were widely known for clay molding, others were engaged in weaving and processing wood.

Indians of South America in many respects are not similar to their northern brethren. The most famous are the Incas, Maya and Aztec tribes. The Incas lived in the territory of modern Peru, Chile and Ecuador. At the heart of their culture lay the worship cult of the sun. Indians of the Mayan tribe are famous throughout the world for the legendary calendar that foretold the end of the world. In their culture, astrological cults and the worship of heavenly bodies also played a huge role. The Aztecs worshiped different planets, in particular the cult of Venus was developed.

American Indians today are still an original people. The laws of the United States do not apply on the reservation territory. They observe traditions and worship earthly elements. They sincerely believe that it is not the land that belongs to people, but people to the earth. Unfortunately, not everything is as unclouded as it may seem, most Indians do not have permanent work, education and comfortable housing. The main sources of income are the gambling allowed in the reserves and subsidies allocated by the state.