How Did The Indian Culture Affect The Lives Of Native Americans?

Imagine you're surrounded by a hot and dusty land. No matter where you look all you see is desert. Your resources are limited. Where will your next meal come from? How will you make a shelter when all you see for miles are dead trees and cacti? This is what it may have been like to live as a Native American nomadic tribe member living in the Southwest. The Apache and Navajo people had to be incredibly resourceful and resilient to live in a region that didn't have as many resources as other regions. Since the Apache and Navajo were mostly nomadic tribes, their homes needed to be easily packed up and moved. Because of this, their shelters were often made of less sturdy materials such as brush and animal hides instead of bricks or clay. …show more content…
The men and boys are the ones who hunted and the women gathered. The Southwest is a very hot and dry place so there wasn't much big game to hunt. Instead, the men hunted small game such as rabbits and wild turkeys. Though fish were plentiful, the Apache believed that eating them was taboo. They would not eat bugs, anything with scales, or any animal that ate anything other than plants or seeds. They used bow and arrows to hunt as well as spears. These tools were commonly made from wood and sharpened rock but could also be constructed from bones and other parts of large animals such as buffalo. The Apache also traded for food. They would trade meat for corn with farming tribes including the Navajo and Pueblo tribes. The Apache are known for being fierce warriors. They would often raid other tribes for food as …show more content…
The women gathered nuts, herbs and berries while the men hunted small game, some deer and antelope. The main difference between the Navajo and Apache was that the Navajo were farming people. A main staple crop was corn. They also grew beans and squash. These crops are known as the three sisters. The three sisters were essential to the diet of the Navajo and many other Native American tribes. The three sisters came to be because of how much the crops rely on each other to thrive. The beans need a strong stalk to climb up which is why they were planted next to the corn. In turn, the bean roots capture nitrogen and enrich the soil helping a large crop like corn to grow. Lastly, the squash acts as a ground cover to keep away weeds and its large leaves protect and shade the weak roots of the corn. The Navajo often traded with tribes such as the Apache and the Pueblo people. They traded not only food and other goods but they also treated aspects of their culture with the Pueblo tribe. The Navajo actually learned their crop-farming techniques from the Pueblo