English colonization of North America.
The difficulties of the first settlers.
Reasons for the colonization of America by Europeans. Relocation conditions.
The first black slaves.
Mayflower Compact (1620).
Active expansion of European colonization.
Anglo-Dutch confrontation in America (1648-1674).
Map of European colonization of North America in the 16th-17th centuries.
Map of the American pioneer expeditions (1675-1800).
English colonization of North America. The first English settlement in America arose in 1607 in Virginia and was named Jamestown. The trading post, founded by crew members of three English ships under the command of Captain K. Newport, simultaneously served as a guard post on the way of the Spanish advance to the north of the continent. The first years of Jamestown's existence were a time of endless disasters and hardships: disease, famine and Indian raids took the lives of more than 4 thousand of the first English settlers of America. But already at the end of 1608, the first ship sailed to England, carrying a cargo of timber and iron ore. Just a few years later, Jamestown turned into a prosperous village thanks to the extensive plantations of tobacco, previously cultivated only by the Indians, founded there in 1609, which by 1616 became the main source of income for the residents. Tobacco exports to England, which amounted to 20 thousand pounds sterling in monetary terms in 1618, increased to half a million pounds by 1627, creating the necessary economic conditions for population growth. The influx of colonists was greatly facilitated by the allocation of a 50-acre plot of land to any applicant who had the financial ability to pay a small rent. Already by 1620 the population of the village was approx. 1000 people, and in all of Virginia there were approx. 2 thousand people. In the 80s XVII century tobacco exports from the two southern colonies - Virginia and Maryland (1) increased to 20 million pounds sterling.
The difficulties of the first settlers. Virgin forests, stretching for more than two thousand kilometers along the entire Atlantic coast, abounded in everything necessary for the construction of homes and ships, and the rich nature satisfied the food needs of the colonists. The increasingly frequent visits of European ships to the natural bays of the coast provided them with goods that were not produced in the colonies. The products of their labor were exported to the Old World from these same colonies. But the rapid development of the northeastern lands, and even more so the advance into the interior of the continent, beyond the Appalachian Mountains, was hampered by the lack of roads, impenetrable forests and mountains, as well as the dangerous proximity to Indian tribes that were hostile to the newcomers.
The fragmentation of these tribes and the complete lack of unity in their attacks against the colonists became the main reason for the displacement of the Indians from the lands they occupied and their final defeat. The temporary alliances of some Indian tribes with the French (in the north of the continent) and with the Spaniards (in the south), who were also concerned about the pressure and energy of the British, Scandinavians and Germans advancing from the east coast, did not bring the desired results. The first attempts to conclude peace agreements between individual Indian tribes and the English colonists settling in the New World also turned out to be ineffective (2).
Reasons for the colonization of America by Europeans. Relocation conditions. European immigrants were attracted to America by the rich natural resources of the distant continent, which promised rapid provision of material wealth, and its remoteness from the European strongholds of religious dogma and political predilections (3). Unsupported by the governments or established churches of any country, the exodus of Europeans to the New World was financed by private companies and individuals driven primarily by an interest in generating income from the transportation of people and goods. Already in 1606, the London and Plymouth companies were formed in England, which actively began to develop the northeastern coast of America, including the delivery of English colonists to the continent. Numerous immigrants traveled to the New World with families and even entire communities at their own expense. A significant part of the new arrivals were young women, whose appearance the single male population of the colonies greeted with sincere enthusiasm, paying the costs of their “transportation” from Europe at the rate of 120 pounds of tobacco per head.
Huge plots of land, hundreds of thousands of hectares, were allocated by the British crown for full ownership to representatives of the English nobility as a gift or for a nominal fee. The English aristocracy, interested in the development of their new property, advanced large sums for the delivery of compatriots they recruited and their settlement on the received lands. Despite the extreme attractiveness of the conditions existing in the New World for newly arriving colonists, during these years there was a clear lack of human resources, primarily due to the fact that the sea voyage of 5 thousand kilometers covered only a third of the ships and people embarking on the dangerous journey - two a third died along the way. The new land was not particularly hospitable, welcoming the colonists with frosts unusual for Europeans, harsh natural conditions and, as a rule, a hostile attitude of the Indian population.
The first black slaves. In late August 1619, a Dutch ship arrived in Virginia bringing the first black Africans to America, twenty of whom were immediately purchased by the colonists as servants. Blacks began to turn into lifelong slaves, and in the 60s. XVII century slave status in Virginia and Maryland became hereditary. The slave trade became a permanent feature of commercial transactions between East Africa and the American colonies. African leaders readily traded their people for textiles, household items, gunpowder, and weapons imported from New England (4) and the American South.
Mayflower Compact (1620). In December 1620, an event occurred that went down in American history as the beginning of the purposeful colonization of the continent by the British - the Mayflower ship arrived on the Atlantic coast of Massachusetts with 102 Calvinist Puritans, rejected by the traditional Anglican Church and who later did not find sympathy in Holland. These people, who called themselves pilgrims (5), considered the only way to preserve their religion to move to America. While still on board a ship crossing the ocean, they entered into an agreement between themselves, called the Mayflower Compact. It reflected in the most general form the ideas of the first American colonists about democracy, self-government and civil liberties. These ideas were developed later in similar agreements reached by the colonists of Connecticut, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, and in later documents of American history, including the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States of America. Having lost half the members of their community, but surviving on a land they had not yet explored in the harsh conditions of the first American winter and the subsequent crop failure, the colonists set an example for their compatriots and other Europeans who arrived in the New World ready for the hardships that awaited them.
Active expansion of European colonization. After 1630, at least a dozen small towns arose in Plymouth Colony, the first colony of New England, which later became the Massachusetts Bay Colony, in which newly arriving English Puritans settled. Immigration wave 1630-1643 delivered to New England approx. 20 thousand people, at least 45 thousand more, chose the colonies of the American South or the islands of Central America for their place of residence.
Over the course of 75 years after the appearance of the first English colony of Virginia in 1607 on the territory of the modern United States, 12 more colonies arose - New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Northern Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. The credit for their founding did not always belong to the subjects of the British crown. In 1624, on the island of Manhattan in Hudson Bay [named after the English captain G. Hudson (Hudson), who discovered it in 1609, who was in the Dutch service], Dutch fur traders founded a province called New Netherland, with the main city of New Amsterdam. The land on which this city was built was purchased in 1626 by a Dutch colonist from the Indians for $24. The Dutch were never able to achieve any significant socio-economic development of their only colony in the New World.
Anglo-Dutch confrontation in America (1648-1674). After 1648 and until 1674, England and Holland fought three times, and during these 25 years, in addition to military actions, there was a continuous and fierce economic struggle between them. In 1664, New Amsterdam was captured by the British under the command of the king's brother, the Duke of York, who renamed the city New York. During the Anglo-Dutch War of 1673-1674. The Netherlands managed to restore their power in this territory for a short time, but after the defeat of the Dutch in the war, the British again took possession of it. From then until the end of the American Revolution in 1783 from r. Kennebec to Florida, from New England to the Lower South, the Union Jack flew over the entire northeastern coast of the continent.
(1) The new British colony was named by King Charles I in honor of his wife Henrietta Maria (Mary), sister of the French King Louis XIII.
(2) The first of these treaties was concluded only in 1621 between the Plymouth Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indian tribe.
(3) Unlike most English, Irish, French and even Germans, who were forced to move to the New World primarily by political and religious oppression in their homeland, Scandinavian settlers were attracted to North America primarily by its unlimited economic opportunities.
(4) A map of this region of the northeastern part of the continent was first drawn up in 1614 by Captain J. Smith, who gave it the name “New England.”
(5) From Italian. peltegrino - lit., foreigner. Wandering pilgrim, pilgrim, wanderer.
Sources.
Ivanyan E.A.. History of the USA. M., 2006.
Since school years, everyone knows that America was settled by Asians who moved there in small groups across the Bering Isthmus (at the site of the current strait). They settled throughout the New World after a huge glacier began to melt 14-15 thousand years ago. However, recent discoveries by archaeologists and geneticists have shaken this harmonious theory. It turns out that America was populated more than once by some strange peoples, almost related to the Australians, and besides, it is not clear by what transport the first “Indians” got to the extreme south of the New World. Lenta.ru tried to figure out the mysteries of the settlement of America.
The first one went
Until the end of the 20th century, American anthropology was dominated by the “first Clovis” hypothesis, according to which this culture of ancient mammoth hunters, which appeared 12.5-13.5 thousand years ago, was the oldest in the New World. According to this hypothesis, people who came to Alaska could survive on ice-free land, because there was quite a bit of snow here, but then the path to the south was blocked by glaciers until the period 14-16 thousand years ago, because of which settlement in the Americas only began after the end of the last glaciation.
The hypothesis was harmonious and logical, but in the second half of the 20th century some discoveries that were incompatible with it were made. In the 1980s, Tom Dillehay, during excavations in Monte Verde (southern Chile), found that people had been there at least 14.5 thousand years ago. This caused a strong reaction from the scientific community: it turned out that the discovered culture was 1.5 thousand years older than Clovis in North America.
Most American anthropologists simply denied the scientific credibility of the find. Already during the excavations, Deley faced a powerful attack on his professional reputation, it came to the closure of funding for excavations and attempts to declare Monte Verde a phenomenon not related to archaeology. Only in 1997 did he manage to confirm a dating of 14 thousand years, which caused a deep crisis in understanding the ways of settling America. At that time, there were no places of such ancient settlement in North America, which raised the question of where exactly people could get to Chile.
Recently, the Chileans invited Deley to continue the excavations. Under the influence of the sad experience of twenty years of excuses, he at first refused. “I was fed up,” explained his position as a scientist. However, he ultimately agreed and discovered tools at the MVI site, undoubtedly made by man, whose antiquity was 14.5-19 thousand years.
History repeated itself: archaeologist Michael Waters immediately questioned the discoveries. In his opinion, the finds may be simple stones, vaguely similar to tools, which means that the traditional chronology of the settlement of America is still out of danger.
Photo: Tom Dillehay/Department of Anthropology, Vanderbilt University
Seaside nomads
To understand how justified the criticism of the new work is, we turned to anthropologist Stanislav Drobyshevsky (MSU). According to him, the tools found are indeed very primitive (processed on one side), but made from materials not found in Monte Verde. Quartz for a significant part of them had to be brought from afar, that is, such objects cannot have a natural origin.
The scientist noted that systematic criticism of discoveries of this kind is quite understandable: “When you teach in school and university that America was settled in a certain way, it is not so easy to abandon this point of view.”
Image: Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center
The conservatism of American researchers is also understandable: in North America, recognized finds date back to a period thousands of years later than the period indicated by Deley. And what about the theory that before the glacier melted, the ancestors of the Indians blocked by it could not settle south?
However, Drobyshevsky notes, there is nothing supernatural in the more ancient dates of the Chilean sites. The islands along what is now Canada's Pacific coast were not covered by a glacier, and remains of Ice Age bears have been found there. This means that people could easily spread along the coast, crossing by boat and without going deep into the then inhospitable North America.
Australian footprint
However, the strangeness of the settlement of America does not end with the fact that the first reliable discoveries of the ancestors of the Indians were made in Chile. Not long ago it turned out that the genes of the Aleuts and groups of Brazilian Indians have features characteristic of the genes of the Papuans and Australian aborigines. As the Russian anthropologist emphasizes, the data of geneticists fits well with the results of the analysis of skulls previously found in South America and having features close to Australian ones. In his opinion, most likely, the Australian trace in South America is associated with a common ancestral group, part of which moved to Australia tens of thousands of years ago, while others migrated along the coast of Asia north, up to Beringia, and from there reached the South American continent .
As if that weren't enough, genetic research from 2013 showed that the Brazilian Botakudo Indians are close in mitochondrial DNA to the Polynesians and some of the inhabitants of Madagascar. Unlike the Australoids, the Polynesians could easily have reached South America by sea. At the same time, the traces of their genes in eastern Brazil, and not on the Pacific coast, are not so easy to explain. It turns out that for some reason a small group of Polynesian sailors did not return after landing, but overcame the Andean highlands, which were unusual for them, to settle in Brazil. One can only guess about the motives for such a long and difficult overland journey for typical seafarers.
So, a small proportion of American natives have traces of genes that are very distant from the genome of the rest of the Indians, which contradicts the idea of a single group of ancestors from Beringia.
Good old
However, there are also more radical deviations from the idea of settling America in one wave and only after the melting of the glacier. In the 1970s, Brazilian archaeologist Nieda Guidon discovered the cave site of Pedra Furada (Brazil), where, in addition to primitive tools, there were many fire pits, the age of which radiocarbon analysis showed from 30 to 48 thousand years. It is easy to understand that such figures caused great resentment among North American anthropologists. The same Deley criticized radiocarbon dating, noting that traces could remain after a fire of natural origin. Guidon reacted sharply to such opinions of her colleagues from the United States in Latin American language: “A fire of natural origin cannot arise deep in a cave. American archaeologists need to write less and dig more.”
Drobyshevsky emphasizes that although no one has yet been able to challenge the dating of the Brazilians, the doubts of the Americans are quite understandable. If people were in Brazil 40 thousand years ago, where did they go later and where are the traces of their stay in other parts of the New World?
Image: USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
The history of mankind knows cases when the first colonizers of new lands almost completely died out, leaving no significant traces. This happened with Homo sapiens, who settled in Asia. Their first traces there date back to a period up to 125 thousand years ago, but geneticists say that all of humanity descended from a population that left Africa much later - only 60 thousand years ago. There is a hypothesis that the reason for this could be the extinction of the then Asian part as a result of the eruption of the Toba volcano 70 thousand years ago. The energy of this event is considered to exceed the total power of all combined nuclear weapons ever created by humanity.
However, even an event more powerful than nuclear war would be difficult to explain the disappearance of significant human populations. Some researchers note that neither Neanderthals, nor Denisovans, nor even Homo floresiensis, who lived relatively close to Toba, became extinct from the explosion. And judging by individual finds in South India, local Homo sapiens did not become extinct at that time either, traces of which for some reason are not observed in the genes of modern people. Thus, the question of where the people who settled in South America 40 thousand years ago could have gone remains open and to some extent casts doubt on the most ancient finds such as Pedra Furada.
Genetics vs genetics
Not only archaeological data often come into conflict, but also such seemingly reliable evidence as genetic markers. This summer, Maanasa Raghavan's group from the Copenhagen Natural History Museum announced that genetic analysis data refutes the idea that more than one wave of ancient settlers participated in the settlement of America. According to them, genes close to Australians and Papuans appeared in the New World later than 9 thousand years ago, when America was already populated by people from Asia.
Essay
on the topic: “North America”
Geographical position
From the history of the discovery and exploration of the continent North America is the third continent of our planet in terms of area, which is 20.4 million km2. In its outline, it is similar to South America, but the widest part of the continent lies in temperate latitudes, which has a significant impact on its nature.
Determine the peculiarities of the geographical location of North America yourself. Make preliminary conclusions about the nature of the continent based on geographical location data.
The coasts of North America are highly dissected. The northern and eastern shores are especially rugged, and the western and southern ones are much less rugged. The varying degrees of ruggedness of the coasts are explained mainly by the movements of lithospheric plates. In the north of the continent there is a huge Canadian Arctic archipelago, as if frozen into the ice of the Arctic. Hudson Bay juts out into the land, covered with ice most of the year.
The Spanish conquistadors, as in South America, were the first Europeans to discover the southern territories of North America. In 1519, the campaign of E. Cortes began, which ended with the conquest of the Aztec state, located where modern Mexico is located. Following the discoveries of the Spaniards, expeditions from other European countries were sent to the shores of the New World. At the end of the 15th century. An Italian in the English service, John Cabot, discovered the island of Newfoundland and the coast of the Labrador Peninsula. English navigators and travelers G. Hudson (XVII century), A. Mackenzie (XVIII century) and others explored the northern and eastern parts of the continent. At the beginning of the twentieth century. Norwegian polar explorer R. Amundsen was the first to sail along the northern coast of the continent and establish the geographical position of the Earth's North Magnetic Pole.
Russian studies of Northwestern America. Russian travelers made a great contribution to the exploration of the mainland. Independently of other Europeans, they discovered and developed large areas of the northwestern part of the continent. At that time, the map of this part of American soil was just being born. The first names on it were the Russian names of the islands discovered in the middle of the 16th century. during the voyage of Vitus Bering and Alexei Chirikov. On two sailing ships in 1741, these Russian navigators sailed along the Aleutian Islands, approached the shores of Alaska, and landed on the islands.
Kupets G.I. Shelikhov, who was called the Russian Columbus, created the first Russian settlements in America. He founded a trading company, promoted the harvest of fur and sea animals in the northern islands of the Pacific Ocean and in Alaska G.I. Shelikhov conducted active trade with local residents and contributed to the exploration and development of Alaska - Russian America.
Russian settlements were established along most of the northwestern coast until 380 s. sh., where the fort was built - a Russian fortress on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. This fortress in the 19th century. often visited expeditions that Russia equipped to study the World Ocean and hitherto unknown lands. The memory of Russian explorers of Northwestern America is preserved by the names of geographical objects on the map: Chirikov Island, Shelikhov Strait, Velyamnova Volcano, etc. Russian possessions in Alaska were sold to the United States of America in 1867.
Relief and minerals
The structure of the continent's surface is dominated by plains, with mountains occupying a third. The relief of the eastern part of the continent was formed on a platform, the surface of which was destroyed and leveled over a long time.
The topography of the northern part of the continent is dominated by low and high plains composed of ancient crystalline rocks. Low hills covered with pine and spruce trees alternate here with narrow and long lake basins, some of which have bizarre shorelines. Many thousands of years ago, most of these plains were covered by a huge glacier. Traces of his activity are visible everywhere. These are smoothed rocks, flat hilltops, piles of boulders, and glacier-plowed basins. To the south are the hilly Central Plains, covered with glacial deposits, and the flat Mississippi Lowlands, much of which is formed by river sediment.
To the west lie the Great Plains, which rise with majestic steps of a giant staircase to the Cordillera.
These plains are composed of thick strata of sedimentary rocks of continental and marine origin. Rivers flowing from the mountains cut deep into them and formed deep valleys.
In the east of the mainland are the low Appalachian Mountains. They are heavily destroyed and crossed by the valleys of numerous rivers. The slopes of the mountains are gentle, the peaks are rounded, the height is slightly more than 2000 m. The Cordillera stretches along the western coast. The mountains are extraordinarily beautiful. They are dissected by deep river valleys called canyons. Deep depressions coexist with mighty ridges and volcanoes. In the northern part of the Cordillera, their highest peak rises - Mount McKinley (6194 m), covered with snow and glaciers. Some glaciers in this part of the Cordillera slide down from the mountains directly into the sea. The cordillera was formed at the junction of two lithospheric plates, in a compression zone of the earth's crust, which is crossed here by many faults. They start on the ocean floor and come out onto land. Movements of the earth's crust lead to strong earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, which often bring a lot of grief and suffering to people.
Minerals in North America are found throughout almost its entire territory. The northern part of the plains is dominated by deposits of metal ores: iron, copper, nickel, etc. There is a lot of oil, natural gas, and coal in the sedimentary rocks of the Central and Great Plains, as well as in the Mississippi Lowland. Iron ores and coal occur in the Appalachians and their foothills. The Cordillera is rich in both sedimentary (oil, natural gas, coal) and igneous minerals (non-ferrous metal ores, gold, uranium ores, etc.).
Climate
North America's position in all climate zones except the equatorial one creates great differences in its climate. Other factors also have a significant impact on climate.
The surface of land and ocean has different effects on the properties of air masses, their humidity, direction of movement, temperature and other properties. The Hudson and Gulf of Mexico, which extend deep into the land, have significant but different influences on climate.
Affects the climate and the nature of the continent's topography. For example, in temperate latitudes, sea air coming from the west meets the Cordilleras on its way. As it rises, it cools and deposits large amounts of precipitation on the coast.
The absence of mountain ranges in the north creates conditions for arctic air masses to penetrate the mainland. They can extend to the Gulf of Mexico, and tropical air masses sometimes penetrate unhindered far to the north of the continent. Large differences in temperature and pressure between these masses create conditions for the formation of strong winds - hurricanes. Often vortices arise unexpectedly. These powerful atmospheric tornadoes bring a lot of trouble: they destroy buildings, break trees, lift and carry large objects. Natural disasters are also associated with other processes in the atmosphere.
In the central part of the continent there are frequent droughts, hot winds, and dust storms that carry away particles of fertile soil from the fields. Cold air from the Arctic invades the subtropics and snow falls.
The northern part of the continent lies in the Arctic climate zone. Cold arctic air dominates here all year round. The lowest temperatures in winter are observed in Greenland (-44-50 °C). Frequent fogs, large clouds, and snow storms. Summer is cold, with negative temperatures. Under these conditions, glaciers form. The subarctic zone is characterized by harsh winters, which give way to cool summers with cloudy, rainy weather.
Most of the continent is from 600 to 400 latitudes. lies in the temperate zone. There are cold winters and relatively warm summers. It snows in winter and rains in summer, but cloudy weather quickly gives way to warm and sunny weather. This belt is characterized by significant climatic differences, which is associated with the characteristics of the underlying surface. In the eastern part of the belt, winters are cold and snowy, and summers are warm; Fogs are frequent on the coast. In the central part of the belt, weather conditions are different. In winter, snowfalls and snowstorms are common, frosts are replaced by thaws. Summers are warm, with rare showers, droughts and hot winds. In the west of the temperate zone the climate is maritime. The average temperature in winter is about 0 °C, and in summer it rises only to +10-12 °C. The weather is damp and windy almost all year, with the wind blowing sleet and rain from the ocean. The climate features of three more zones are already familiar to you.
Climatic conditions on most of the continent are favorable for growing various crops: in the temperate zone - wheat, corn; in the subtropical - rice, cotton, citrus; in the tropical - coffee, sugar cane, bananas. Here two and sometimes three harvests are harvested a year.
Inland waters
Like South America, North America is rich in waters. You already know that their features depend on the terrain and climate. To prove this relationship and find out the differences between the waters of North America and the waters of South America, conduct another study using the maps.
The largest river in North America is the Mississippi, with its tributary Missouri, collecting water from the Appalachians, Central and Great Plains. It is one of the longest rivers on Earth and the most water-bearing river on the continent. Rain plays a major role in its nutrition. The river receives part of its water from melting snow on the plains and mountains. The Mississippi flows its waters smoothly across the plains. In the lower reaches it meanders and forms many islands in the channel. When snow melts in the Appalachians or rain falls on the Great Plains, the Mississippi overflows its banks, flooding fields and villages. Levees and diversion canals built on the river have greatly reduced flood damage. In terms of its role in the life of the American people, the Mississippi has the same significance as the Volga for the Russian people. No wonder the Indians who once lived on its banks called the Mississippi “the father of waters.”
The rivers flowing from the eastern slopes of the Appalachians are swift, deep, and have large reserves of energy. Many hydroelectric power stations were built on them. Large port cities are located at the mouths of many of them.
A huge water system is formed by the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River, which connects them to the Atlantic Ocean.
The Niagapa River “cut through” a hilly hill composed of limestones and connected Lakes Zri and Lake Ontario. Falling off a steep ledge, it forms the world famous Niagara Falls. As the water erodes the limestone, the waterfall slowly retreats toward Lake Erie. Human intervention is necessary to preserve this unique natural site.
In the north of the mainland flows the Mackenzie River, which the Indians call the “big river”. This river receives the bulk of its water from melting snow. Swamps and lakes give it a lot of water, so in the summer the river is full of water. For most of the year, Mackenzie is frozen in ice.
There are many lakes in the northern part of the mainland. Their basins were formed as a result of faults in the earth's crust, and then were deepened by the glacier. One of the largest and most beautiful lakes in this region is Winnipeg, which means “water” in the Indian language.
Short, swift rivers flow from the Cordillera into the Pacific Ocean. The largest of them are Columbia and Colorado. They begin in the eastern part of the mountains, flow through the internal plateaus, forming deep canyons, and, again cutting through the mountain ranges, give water to the ocean. The Grand Canyon on the Colorado River, which stretches 320 km along the river, has become world famous. This huge valley has steep stepped slopes composed of rocks of different ages and colors.
There are many lakes of volcanic and glacial origin in the Cordillera. Shallow saline lakes are found on the interior plateaus. These are the remains of large bodies of water that existed here in a more humid climate. Many lakes are covered with a crust of salt. The largest of them is the Great Salt Lake.
Despite the continent's richness in water, in some areas there is not enough fresh, naturally clean water. This is due to the uneven distribution of water, as well as to its increasing use in industry, for irrigation, and for domestic needs in large cities.
Natural areas
In North America, natural areas are located in unusual ways. In the north of the continent, according to the law of zonation, they are stretched in stripes from west to east, and in the central and southern parts of the natural zones are located in the meridional direction. This distribution of natural zones is a feature of North America, which is determined mainly by its topography and prevailing winds.
In the zone of Arctic deserts, covered with snow and ice, in a short summer, sparse vegetation of mosses and lichens forms here and there on the rocky surface.
The tundra zone occupies the northern coast of the mainland and the adjacent islands. Tundra is the name given to treeless spaces of the subarctic zone, covered with moss-lichen and shrub vegetation on poor tundra-marsh soils. These soils are formed in harsh climates and permafrost. The natural complexes of the tundra of North America have much in common with the complexes of the tundra of Eurasia. In addition to mosses and lichens, sedges grow in the tundra, and in elevated areas there are dwarf willows and birches, and there are many berry bushes here. Tundra plants provide food for many animals. The musk ox, a large herbivore with thick and long hair that protects it from the cold, has been preserved here since the Ice Age. The musk ox is small in number and is under protection. Herds of caribou reindeer feed on lichen pastures. Among the predators, arctic foxes and wolves live in the tundra. Many birds nest on the islands and coast, on numerous lakes. Walruses and seals off the coast, caribou in the tundra attract many hunters. Excessive hunting causes great harm to the fauna of the tundra.
To the south, the tundra turns into open forest - forest-tundra, which gives way to taiga. Taiga is a temperate zone, the vegetation of which is dominated by coniferous trees with an admixture of small-leaved species. Soils in the taiga are formed under conditions of cold, snowy winters and damp, cool summers. Plant remains decompose slowly in such conditions, and little humus is formed. Under its thin layer lies a whitish layer, from which the humus has been washed out. The color of this layer is similar to the color of ash, and therefore such soils are called podzolic.
Black and white spruce, balsam fir, American larch, and various types of pines grow in the American taiga. Predators live: black bear, Canadian lynx, American marten, skunk; herbivores: moose, elk deer. Wood bison are preserved in national parks.
The mixed forest zone has a transitional character from taiga to deciduous forests. This is how a European traveler describes the nature of these forests: “The wide variety of species is amazing... I can distinguish around more than ten species of deciduous trees and several coniferous ones. A wonderful company had gathered: oaks, hazel, beeches, aspens, ash, linden, birch, spruce, fir, pine and some other species unknown to me. All of them are related to our European trees, and yet they are somewhat different - in various little things, in the pattern of foliage, but above all in the pulse of life - somehow stronger, more joyful, more lush.”
The soils under mixed and broad-leaved forests are gray forest and brown forest. They contain more humus than the podzolic soils of the taiga. It was their fertility that led to the clearing of these forests across most of the continent, to their replacement with artificial plantings of trees. Only small forests remain in the Appalachians.
The deciduous forests contain beeches, dozens of species of oaks, lindens, maples, deciduous magnolias, chestnuts and walnuts. Wild apple, cherry and pear trees form the undergrowth.
The forest zone on the slopes of the Cordillera differs from the forest zone on the plains. The species of plants and animals are different here. For example, in subtropical mountain forests on the Pacific coast, sequoias grow - coniferous trees more than 100 m high and up to 9 m in diameter.
The steppe zone stretches from north to south in the center of the continent from the Canadian taiga to the Gulf of Mexico. Steppes are treeless spaces of temperate and subtropical zones, covered with herbaceous vegetation on chernozem and chestnut soils. The abundance of heat here creates favorable conditions for the growth of grasses, among which cereals predominate (bearded vulture, bison grass, fescue). The transitional zone between the forests and steppes of North America is called prairie. They are everywhere altered by man - plowed or turned into pastures for livestock. The development of the prairies also affected their fauna. Bison have almost disappeared, and there are fewer coyotes (steppe wolves) and foxes.
The interior plateaus of the Cordillera contain temperate deserts; The main plants here are black wormwood and quinoa. Cacti grow in the subtropical deserts of the Mexican Highlands.
Changes in nature under the influence of human activity. Economic activity has affected all components of nature, and since they are closely interconnected, the natural complexes as a whole are changing. Changes in nature are especially great in the United States. Mainly soils, vegetation and fauna were affected. Cities, roads, strips of land along gas pipelines, power lines, and around airfields are taking up more and more space.
Scientists have concluded that active human impact on nature leads to an increase in the frequency of natural disasters. These include dust storms, floods, and forest fires.
The countries of North America have adopted laws aimed at protecting and restoring nature. The state of individual components of nature is being recorded, destroyed complexes are being restored (forests are being planted, lakes are being cleared of pollution, etc.). In order to protect nature, nature reserves and several dozen national parks have been created on the continent. Millions of city dwellers flock to these wonderful corners of nature every year. The influx of tourists has created the task of creating new nature reserves to save rare species of plants and animals from extinction.
In North America there is one of the most famous, the world's first national park, Yellowstone, founded in 1872. It is located in the Cordillera and is famous for its hot springs, geysers, and petrified trees.
Population
The bulk of the population of North America comes from various European countries, mainly from Great Britain. These are US Americans and English-Canadians, they speak English. The descendants of the French who moved to Canada speak French.
The indigenous population of the mainland are Indians and Eskimos. They inhabited North America long before its discovery by Europeans. These peoples belong to the American branch of the Mongoloid race. Scientists have found that Indians and Eskimos come from Eurasia.
The Indians are more numerous (approximately 15 million). The name "American Indian" has nothing to do with India, it is the result of the historical mistake of Columbus, who was convinced that he had discovered India. Before the arrival of Europeans, Indian tribes were engaged in hunting, fishing, and collecting wild fruits. The bulk of the tribes were concentrated in Southern Mexico (Aztecs, Mayans), where they formed their own states, distinguished by a relatively developed economy and culture. They were engaged in agriculture - they grew corn, tomatoes and other crops, which were later brought to Europe.
Using the “population density and peoples” map, determine where Eskimos and Indians live, what part of the continent is inhabited by Americans, English and French Canadians, and blacks.
With the arrival of European colonialists, the fate of the Indians was tragic: they were exterminated, driven away from fertile lands, and died from diseases brought by Europeans.
In the XVII-XVIII centuries. Blacks were brought from Africa to work on plantations in North America. They were sold into slavery to planters. Now blacks live mainly in cities.
The population of North America is about 406 million people. Its placement depends primarily on the history of the continent’s settlement and natural conditions. The southern half of the continent is the most populated. The population density is high in the eastern part, where the first settlers from European countries settled. The largest cities are located in this part of North America: New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Montreal, etc.
The northern territories of the continent are sparsely populated, unsuitable for life and occupied by tundra and taiga forests. Mountain areas with their arid climate and rugged terrain are also sparsely populated. In the steppe zone, where there are fertile soils, a lot of heat and moisture, the population density is much higher.
North America is home to the most developed country in the world - the United States of America. Their territory consists of three parts far removed from each other. Two of them are located on the mainland - the main territory and in the northwest - Alaska. The Hawaiian Islands lie in the central Pacific Ocean. In addition, the United States owns a number of island possessions in the Pacific Ocean.
To the north of the main US territory is another large country, Canada, and to the south is Mexico. In Central America and the islands of the Caribbean Sea there are several small states: Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica, etc. The Republic of Cuba is located on the island of Cuba and the small islands adjacent to it.
List of used literature
1. “Geography of continents and oceans. 7th grade": textbook. for general education institutions / V.A. Korinskaya, I.V. Dushina, V.A. Shchenev. – 15th ed., stereotype. – M.: Bustard, 2008.
History of the settlement of America. Modern science allows us to assert that America was settled from Asia through the Bering Strait during the Upper Paleolithic period, i.e. approximately 30 thousand years ago. At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. In Veracruz and Tabasco, the Mayan-speaking Olmecs created the first civilization in Central America. In this country, almost devoid of building stone, pyramids, stairs and platforms were erected from earth and rubble and covered with a thick layer of clay and plaster. Buildings made of wood and thatch have not survived.
Unique features of Olmec architecture were monolithic basalt pillars in burial crypts, as well as mosaic pavement of cult sites with blocks of semi-precious stones. Olmec sculpture monuments are characterized by realistic features. Excellent examples of Olmec monumental sculpture are the colossal human heads discovered at La Venta, Tres Zapotes and San Lorenzo.
The height of the head is 2.5 m, the weight is about 30 tons. No body fragments were found from these sculptures. The basalt monolith from which the sculpture is made was delivered from a volcanic quarry 50 km from their location. Moreover, both the Olmecs and the Mayans did not have draft animals. Among the numerous steles found in Olmec settlements, there are images of a jaguar, a woman in peculiar clothing and a high headdress.
There are also images of rulers, priests, deities, human faces with the mouth of a jaguar or fangs of a jaguar in the mouth, a child with the features of a jaguar. In the 7th-2nd centuries. BC e. The Olmecs had a strong cultural influence on neighboring Indian peoples. In the 3rd century. n. e. they suddenly disappeared. Archaeological research in recent years and invented in the 1950s. Radiocarbon dating confirmed one of the hypotheses about natural disasters that periodically occurred in Central America.
Scientists have determined that at the beginning of our era there was a volcanic eruption here, which put an end to the further development of Indian culture. Huge areas of land were stripped of vegetation and became unsuitable for agriculture, as volcanic ash covered the ground by 20 cm or more. Many rivers disappeared, animals died. The surviving people moved north to related tribes. Archaeological finds confirm that the population there more than doubles in a short period, and features alien to local traditions appear in the local culture - new forms of ceramics, ornaments, including ceramics covered with volcanic dust. An ancient Indian manuscript, the Popol Vuh, describes events similar to a volcanic eruption. Thick tar rained down from the sky. The face of the Earth darkened, and black rain began to fall. In another manuscript, which is called Chilam-Balam of the Jaguar Prophecies, there is also information about a natural disaster. A pillar of heaven rose - a sign of the destruction of the world; the living were buried among the sand and sea waves
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This topic belongs to the section:
Mayan culture
Moreover, the boundaries between these areas of human activity are very unclear, since the greatest achievements in these areas also involve... Art, as such, in contrast to philosophy, science, religion and ethics.. Art, in contrast to all other types of activity, is an expression the inner essence of man in its entirety...
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