American: Did you mean...?

On the eve of the American Revolution (1765-1789), the Thirteen Colonies had a population of roughly 2.1 million people. Around 500,000 of these were African Americans, of whom approximately 450,000 were enslaved. Comprising such a large...

Buffalo and Eagle Wing is a legend of the Plains Indians culture of North America, which is part origin myth and part cautionary tale on the importance of keeping one's promises. Although scholars agree on the general provenance of the tale...

The Native Peoples of North America raised cities, built roads, and developed highly sophisticated cultures which encouraged the invention of many items often taken for granted or whose origins are overlooked in the modern day, from aspirin...

Native American lore features many legendary creatures and supernatural entities that were understood as beneficial to humanity but just as many that posed serious threats to be avoided. These beings, although frightening, often served an...

The Native American concept of land ownership differs significantly from that of the European settlers who colonized the Americas or their descendants in that land could not be owned, only stewarded and lived with. The Earth is understood...

In Colonial America, women were discouraged from taking an interest in politics and were instead expected to focus only on traditionally 'feminine' matters, such as homemaking and childrearing. However, such gender roles were challenged during...

The Native American understanding of the land as a living thing, providing for, guiding, and speaking to the people, is expressed in many of their stories, legends, and lore and, among these, in the Sioux legend of The Mysterious Butte in...

The Native Americans of Pre-Colonial North America built thousands of mounds across the continent which served various purposes and sometimes reached heights over 100 feet. Many of the mound sites were thriving urban centers – such as Cahokia...

The most important cash crop in Colonial America was tobacco, first cultivated by the English at their Jamestown Colony of Virginia in 1610 CE by the merchant John Rolfe (l. 1585-1622 CE). Tobacco grew in the wild prior to this time and was...

Colonial American currency was a work in progress from the time of the earliest English settlements of the 1600s until the United States of America minted its own money in 1783. The monetary system was far from standardized, and trade within...