What was life like for native peoples in present-day North America before their lives were disrupted by European conquest? What was their day-to-day existence? How often did they wage war on other tribes? What did they use in religious ceremonies? Did they farm the land or hunt for food? What crops did they grow? How was it that certain civilizations died out while others created social structures that lasted thousands of years? Unocver the answers to these and other questions in this vibrant exploration of the material, social, political, religious, and economic structures of the diverse cultures of native North America. This volume presents the daily lives of Native Americans, from prehistoric migrants to the victims of European conquest, and demonstrates the ways in which they were as similar to modern peoples as they were different.

Learn how Iroquoian tribal politics operated democratically, with all key tribal elders nominated by women. Discover how the Thule tribe in the Artic hunted seal in 8-hour time stretches, in temperatures of fifty degrees below zero. Explore the lost village now known as Snaketown, in the Sonoran Desert, where a central plaza with a ballcourt was the center of village life. See how the communal ties of the Great Plains tribes supported a culture of bison hunting-on foot-to subsist for thousands of years. Supplemented by a chronology of events from 28,000 B.C. until 1470, a bibliography of print and nonprint sources, and revealing photos of tools, excavation sites, and artist renderings of scenes from daily life, this volume is a must-read for any student of American pre-history.

CLARISSA W. CONFER is an Assistant Professor in the Department of History and Political Science at California University of Pennsylvania.