Early Years of IndependenceEarly Years of Independence

People of the Prairies

Who First Lived in the Prairie Region? Who First Lived in the Prairie Region?

First Nations lived in the Prairie region for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. Their way of life was very different from the Europeans in the East.

The expansion to the West would bring many changes to the lives of the First Nations people

The First Nations People and ways of lifeThe First Nations People and ways of life

First Nations people had a deep connection to the land and a respect for the natural world.

They had many legends revolving around people’s responsibility to preserve the environment.

Each First Nation group evolved differently Lifestyles were dependent on the region, environment,

and resources that were available. In Southern Alberta there were three distinctly different

groups.

Prairie First Nations were NOMADIC people, meaning they moved wherever they could find resources they needed.

As a result, they developed a close knowledge of nature and animal life. This would be a key feature of their culture.

Roles were commonly assigned by gender.

Men – Hunters and Trappers Women – Gatherers and Made clothing or tents

The Blackfoot were regarded for their high-quality pemmican. They traded with groups further north where bison were not common.

In return they received antelope and caribou hides

European Contact European Contact The first contact between Europeans and the

Blackfoot people took place around 1754 Alexander Henday (an HBC explorer) tried

unsuccessfully to persuade the Blackfoot to trade with the company

The Blackfoot felt they had everything they needed trading locally

As the expansion west continued, that eventually changed

The HorseThe Horse

The wild horse lived in North America until them became extinct about 10 000 years ago

They were re-introduced when the Spanish began exploring Mexico in the 1520’s

There moved northward through trading and escape

The First Nations captured and tamed some of them, using them to assist in hunting and trading

Blackfoot ConfederacyBlackfoot Confederacy

The Blackfoot Confederacy was an alliance between several different groups or ‘Clans’ of Blackfoot people. Mostly a military alliance, it was greatly feared by its enemies on the Prairies.

It was in place and actually controlled much of the Prairie region before European contact.

The Métis The Métis The Métis were descendants of European fur

traders and First nations. By 1750, they had a large enough population to be recognized as a separate group of people.

They were different than the French and First nations:

Bilingual: spoke French and Cree or BlackfootReligious: Roman Catholics, but celebrated Aboriginal traditionsBoth farmers and hunters

They were different than the Eastern Settlers as well

They were different than the Eastern Settlers as well

Time to Think!Time to Think!

Read pg H 77 from the text as a class: “Metis Culture and Lifestyle”.

In pairs, discuss Q#2 in THINKING it Over (bottom, right corner of the page).