Archaic Vs Paleo-Indians

Janelly Rios
Writing Assignment #2 Unlike the Paleo-Indians, the Archaic Indians lived in large groups which they needed to be stationary for most of the year. This being said, the Archaic Indians had to change their lifestyle. While the Paleo-Indians were known as a hunting and gathering group, the Archaic people were the ones to introduce agriculture. Agriculture was the most important feature of the Archaic tradition. Cultivating their own food required the Archaic people to gain knowledge of their environment; they learned about the seasonal cycles. Another important feature is their subsistence farming and tools. The Archaic people adapted to what their environment provided and made use of everything. In the coastal area of Arica, the Chinchorro adapted to their environment by living mainly on products from the sea. Besides the food provided from farming, the native people hunted animals for their meat, but they didn’t the other parts of the animal to go a waste. They carved the animals’ bones into tools and used their fur for clothes or shelter. These features represent environmental religions because the Archaic people wisely used their environment’s resources; this demonstrated respect to the Earth.

As stated in one of the websites, “women are central to the domestication and production of plant foods.” Men were not the only ones to provide food, women had this responsibility too. Women also hold political and religion roles. The Archaic period was also first evidence of part-time occupational specialization. In the south, women were specialized in creating pottery. This type of merchandise was sold in trading networks along with the surplus from the farming. Trading was another feature of the Archaic