Rest Of Algonquin example essay topic

What North American Native tribe had the biggest impact on North America? The Algonquin, of course. They introduced the words "canoe" and "toboggan" to the English language, they were the first to befriend the French, and spread out along the entire northeast region of North America. They were also one the northern most tribes, therefore making the way that they lived special. They even caused some of the French to accept their customs. No other North American Native tribe had this big of an impact on North America.

One reason why the Algonquin were so widespread was because they were divided into about 10 clans, or groups. Each clan had hundreds of people living in it. An Algonquin Indian is a person who lived in one of these clans, and spoke the language Algonquian. Every time some big event occurred, not all the Algonquin would have been affected. At one point, 9 of the groups would get in trouble, but 1 wouldn't. This was key to their survival.

From when the Algonquin were created, to the mid-seventeenth century, the Algonquin thrived. This occurred until they ran into an aggressive tribe called the Iroquois. The 2 tribes fought a war, which the Algonquin lost, therefore forcing them to head south. Of course some of the clans did not participate in this war, therefore staying in the same place.

The rest of Algonquin moved along the Atlantic Ocean, running into more peaceful settlements of the Sioux, and more Iroquois. Around 150 years ago, the Algonquin started returning to Canada, the place were they started. They have been there ever since, and are still there today. There is about 8,000 of them today, double that of 500 years ago. They are divided into 10 first nations, 9 in Quebec, and 1 in Ontario. Since the Algonquin lived up north, they had to dress warmly all year.

They would wear relatively thin toboggans during the summer, riding on their canoes, along the Ottawa and St. Laurence rivers. During the winter, they wore very thick toboggans, but with the addition of snowshoes to prevent frostbite from walking with bare feet. Another thing that the Algonquin did differently than other tribes because they lived more up north was the way they gathered food. They had to become semi-nomadic people to feed themselves. This means that they traveled from place to place to have enough food to support themselves. They gathered food by hunting, trapping, fishing, and picking various plants.

Their wigwams (homes) were made from animal skins, like their clothing. Another thing that some of the French took up from the Algonquin was their beliefs. The Algonquin believed in spirits. There was always a great spirit, or supreme being in control of everything. There were lesser spirits that were in control of the elements (fire, ice, etc.

). There were evil spirits that caused illness and misfortune, and on the other side of the spectrum, benevolent spirits, that had control over good heath, and fortune. They also had a great healer, and dream interpreter that they called the shaman. They also believed that when they died, they would go to a place where their spirits would hunt the spirits of dead animals. They firmly believed in Witchcraft, therefore they were reluctant to give their names because they thought an evil force would use it for their purposes. The Algonquin people were a very impact ful tribe, showcasing it's beliefs, customs, and methods with the rest of North America.

They were unique in their openness, and widespread ness throughout North America. They were among the first tribes to develop a way to live in the north, and befriend foreigners. The most interesting thing that I learned about the Algonquin people was that there are more of them today, compared to what their population was 500 years ago, in their prime. They were important geographically, because they help develop Canada to what it is today.