THE COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE Celeste Jones Jasmine Morgan Gage

THE COLUMBIAN EXCHANGE Celeste Jones, Jasmine Morgan, Gage Ross, Nathan Rogers The Columbian Exchange refers to a period of cultural and biological exchanges between the New and Old Worlds. Exchanges of plants, animals, diseases and technology transformed European and Native American ways of life.

v The Columbian Exchange influenced technological advances in the late 15 th and early 16 th centuries. Europe was an economic and technological power compared to the Native Americans they encountered in the New World. Yet, they still benefited from the exchange of ideas and cultures. Native Americans were impacted profoundly by the technological transition. When Europeans crossed the Atlantic and colonized the New World they sparked a flow of changes in Native American culture. The most notable of these changes were: v A Written Alphabet v New Farming Capabilities v New Firearm and Weapon Capabilities

A WRITTEN ALPHABET v The written alphabet is notable because of how it was used by the Europeans. Since Native Americans had no formal written language, Europeans knew that establishing relations by way of treaties would be difficult. Europeans educated Natives by teaching them to read and write a European language, this would help break down barriers, thus integrating cultures. At first the natives were skeptical about the written language, because Natives never followed a written agreement, blood oaths were their highest form of agreement. Europeans did not just try and teach them language for the purpose of trade. Europeans used their alphabet to "educate" Natives as well, by trying to convert them to Christianity. They believed that unless natives accepted Jesus they would be damned, also a common religious belief among them, would bond them greater then any written code. Europeans held Christianity to the highest standard in social importance, and considered conversion an evolution. To the left is a key of An early 17 th late 16 th century Dutch alphabet. Below is a syllabary of an original Cherokee language. This written syllabary is a key step in the technological movement and the intellectual growth of the Native Americans by way of the Columbus Exchange.

NEW FARMING CAPABILITIES v New Farming equipment like the plow seen to the left ignited the New World economy and improved health on a long term basis. The plow was highly important because it cultivated large areas of land creating a surplus of plants for both Natives and Europeans. Animals such as horses and oxen would pull the plows across the land, this helped to cultivate more land. The vast farming land rich soil were transformed into crop fields, which then lead to the establishment of towns. Because crops could be grown and the land could be cultivated, towns began to be established near farms. Natives created villages giving evidence of them moving away from the hunter-gatherer society. Europeans experienced greater crop output in the New World because of the rich soil that they did not have in Europe. The plow as seen to the left, was regarded as the main factor in the surge of agricultural output in Colonial America. This specific plow was taken from a Pennsylvania museum, we know that it was built in Europe because of the use of metal and its structure. This specific plow was used to cultivate lands by being pulled by horses and other large animals.

NEW FIREARM AND WEAPON CAPABILITIES v Guns and knives facilitated hunting and fishing for the Native Americans. While Natives already had knives, what they used were very malleable because they were made of obsidian and could not be used over and over like the European knives made of steel and iron. Before guns, spears, hatchets and bows and arrows were the most common used weapons of the Native Americans. A bow and arrow allowed for hunting from greater distances, but they did not do the same amount of damage as a gun. Some animals required more than one arrow to be killed. When Natives witnessed the destructiveness of guns they realized that they could use them for hunting larger animals. Natives now because of the migration of Europeans also had horses to ride. Natives could now chase down large herds of animals quicker and with the guns, they could kill them quicker.

ANIMALS v The passage from the Old Word to the New World in the Columbian Exchange was made by animals as well as humans. Both the non-domesticated and the domesticated animals made an impact on the New World. For example some of these impacts were the transformation of the grasslands and revolutionizing of labor. Overgrazing by enormous herds of sheep was the reasons for the transformation of the grasslands and the availability of horse and ox were responsible for the new power force for the land. The cattle were another very important animal to the New World. They were brought to Mexico in 1521. They also were brought by Columbus on his second voyage in 1493. They were both domestic and wild. Many of the arriving colonists were already cattleman so they adapted well. The cattle were killed for their hides and also their meat. Their hides were shipped back to Europe and sold. Cattle were one of the biggest assets of the new world because of the exports and the meat. Their meat supplied the explorers with the nourishment they needed. One of their downfalls was they destroyed the native’s crops because of trampling and grazing.

PLANTS v Sugarcane: v Sugarcane is an essential form of sucrose and is used in the diet of almost every culture. It is also a very significant crop historically. the domestication of sugarcane dates back to 10, 000 years ago when it originated in New Guinea. v Maize: v Maize (American Corn) is possibly the most important of all the New World crops involved in the Columbian Exchange. It was always important to the Amerindian diet because it could be stored (dried) almost indefinitely. v Potatoes: v The potato is an amazing example of a New World crop which became essential to European diet. Potatoes came from the Andes of South America and were important because they could resist cold and grow in thin soil. Used as cheap food for sailors, once the potato reached Europe, it's value became obvious.

DISEASE v The Columbian Exchange is often times praised for the positive things that it brought about such as the exchange of new animals, foods, and plants between the Old World and the New World. However, not all of the aspects of the Columbian Exchange were positive. It is also important to realize that the Columbian Exchange can also be credited for the transmission of diseases which had adverse effects on both the Old and New World alike. Diseases were transferred from Europeans to Native Americans as well as vice versa. Common Old World Diseases included: v Smallpox v Measles v Malaria v Yellow fever v Influenza v Chicken Pox Common New World Diseases include v Syphilis v Polio v Hepatitis v Encephalitis With the large numbers of disease brought by the Europeans to the New World, the Indian population was immensely impacted by these illnesses. The Indian population was devastated by the illnesses brought by the European