Study of the great Oregon basin

Study of the great Oregon basin

The study of the great Oregon basin dates back in the 1930s in which many researchers gained interest in the area regarding the kind of life the inhabitants lived. Markedly, these people preferred an ancestry live, as evidenced by some of the oldest sites found there.  Therefore, this paper seeks to discuss the cultural chronology of the Great Northern basin regarding various aspects of the lives of the inhabitants of the area.

The inhabitants of the Great Northern basin comprises of indigenous people who have led an ancestry life even more evident in the 19th century (Simms, 2016). The ethnographic and archeological evidence backs this.  According to Simms (2016), those people hunted the same type of animals, used comparable tools and gathered leaves from similar plants. Although there are notable changes in the similarity of these events, prehistoric evidence is useful in the study of ancient people and their lifestyle in the area. Dating back in the 4000bp, March was the month in which groundhog used to appear. In this period, people used to eat stored foods, including game foodstuffs. In April and early May, green shoots used to emerge through the snow in which marked the spring trek as one of the major economic events of the area. Men used to go to the springs for fishing while women would join them later in the day after they completed their other tasks.

9,000 BCE to 400 CE marks a period in which the basin was inhabited by hunter-gatherers and agriculturalists (Froment, 2017). These people belonged to the so-called Fremont culture in which the majority were the speakers of the Numic language. The first Europeans entered the area in 1776 through the Utah Delta. However, the region was free from non-native settlers until 1847.  Culturally, the inhabitants of the region used to take advantage of the foodstuffs that were available in different seasons, thereby developing the so-called desert culture. Woven baskets were used to store water, cook and also store food. They were also used for winnowing.

The most indigenous Oregonians lived in the Pleistocene in which climatic change was ranging from cold to warm regarding glacial and post-glacial eras, respectively. Pluvial lakes even went dry as in the Catlow Valley. Notably, many animals also went to extinction, including camels and horses. However, some animals such as the deer, bear, rabbits, mountain sheep and the antelope survived the glacial age. In 9000 bc, there is evidence that some trees such as fir, whitebark pine and the spruce covered the area. Also, in this time, trees that could withstand cold covered the upper parts of the terrain. Importantly, in 7500 to 4500bc, many lakes in the area dried

entirely.

The culture of indigenous people in a region is defined by the kind of tools they made in their ancient times. In this area, the inhabitants seem to have had the knowledge to create lanceolate and leaf-shaped points of flaked stones in which they used as tips for heavy thrusting spears ( Pratt, Goebel, Graf & Izuho, 2020). Between 11,600 and 10, 500 bc, Clovis fluted points were highly used in the area. In 8,000-3000 BP, the tips had been reduced in size and could be used as tips for light javelins bows and arrows.

The l

andscape of the area had significant impacts on the people who lived there. Notably, topography, fauna and flora form vital aspects that have a considerable influence on the lives of the inhabitants of a region. The diversity of topography in an area also influences the types of plants and animals in a field. Besides, topography also affects the temperatures of different places within the zone. Higher points tend to be colder, limiting the number and types of plants and animals that are likely to survive while lowland to be more warmer. The warm climate favours the growth of diverse plants as well as the survival of many species of animals.

In conclusion, the Great Northern basin is an area in the world in which many cultural practices have been preserved over time. These events are usually beneficial to learners and research that is related to diverse fields in archeology.

References

Froment, A. (2017). Human biology and the health of African rainforest inhabitants. In Hunter-gatherers of the Congo basin (pp. 147-194). Routledge.

Pratt, J., Goebel, T., Graf, K., & Izuho, M. (2020). A Circum-Pacific Perspective on the Origin of Stemmed Points in North America. PaleoAmerica, 6(1), 64-108.

Simms, S. R. (2016). Ancient Peoples of the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau. Routledge.