This Monday, October 14, marks Indigenous Peoples Day, a day to honor and celebrate the histories and cultures of Native peoples here in the United States. As of last Indigenous Peoples Day in 2023, approximately 195 cities and states recognized the holiday. Here at the American Indian College Fund, we want to take this day to highlight some of the amazing contributions Indigenous peoples have made to the world and share a preview of our upcoming Native American Heritage Month activities.
Did You Know?
Did you know that Native societies have been leaders of innovation across several fields? For millennia, Indigenous individuals and communities have utilized their traditional ecological knowledge and observations to make life better. Here are some interesting facts and fascinating figures, illustrating how Native knowledge and invention has changed the world.
Food
Who doesn’t like to eat or talk about their favorite foods? According to the National Museum of the American Indian, about 60% of the world’s diet today comes from foods indigenous to the Americas, with Native peoples having cultivated more than 300 food crops, including corn, beans, and squash.
Even as far back as the 1500s, the Inca were freeze-drying potatoes so they could be eaten up to several years later. This process is still used in parts of Bolivia and Peru today.
Want more fun, Native food facts? Visit http://go.si.edu/site/DocServer/Did_You_Know_Page_-_Printer_Friendly.pdf
Science
Mesoamericans, such as the Olmecs and Aztecs, have been making rubber since at least 1600 BCE. Don’t believe it? Just ask the Massachusetts Institute of Technology https://phys.org/news/2010-05-mesoamerican-people-rubber-years.html
You may have previously heard about Mayan astronomy, but did you know that Indigenous societies in what would become the United States also read the stars and used their knowledge of astronomy to guide their actions throughout the year? Read about Woodhenge at Cahokia, a pre-colonial metropolis in North America, https://cahokiamounds.org/explore/#tab-id-3
Navigation
And while we’re speaking of the stars, did you know that the Polynesian Voyaging Society has circumnavigated the world several times using traditional arts and sciences?. They are currently on their 15th major voyage in 50 years, and it will take 47 months and cross 43,000 nautical miles. https://hokulea.com/moananuiakea/
Long before Europeans arrived in the New World, major trade routes existed for a variety of items, such as shell, sheet mica, obsidian, maize, yaupon, and grizzly -bear teeth. In what would become the United States, some of these routes spanned from Wisconsin to the Gulf of Mexico and from the Atlantic seaboard to Oklahoma. https://www.historyhaven.com/documents/trade_americas.pdf
Medicine
It’s just brain surgery. By roughly 400 BCE ancient Incans had begun trepanning, drilling a hole into the skill to treat head trauma, headaches, convulsions, or other disorders. Known as a craniotomy today, the Inca perfected the science by 1000 AD with long-term survival rates being as high as 91%. In comparison, survival of brain surgery during the U.S. Civil War was 46%-56%. Trepanation Reveals the Success of the Incas
Don’t worry about the pain of surgery though, because Native peoples were pioneers of pain relief. From topical analgesics to the precursor to aspirin, Indigenous patients had a variety of options at their disposal. https://www.history.com/news/native-american-inventions
Governance
You may have known that the founding fathers were influenced by the Iroquois Confederacy when creating the American model of governance, but did you know they also took inspiration from other tribes, such as the Cherokee? https://www.history.com/news/iroquois-confederacy-influence-us-constitution
The rights and leadership roles maintained by Indigenous women inspired suffragettes in their fight for equality. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/how-native-american-women-inspired-the-women-s-rights-movement.htm
And if you want to learn more about what Indigenous communities and individuals are focused on these days, check out any of our upcoming Native American Heritage Month activities, including two Epicurean Award to Support Scholars events where you can sample Native cuisine.
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