Tag: native

Anthropology, General History3 Comments

Truth of History

David G. Lewis, PhD

This title is nearly an oxymoron. There are historic truths, but what we known of history is an invention of mostly people who did not personally experience that history. In truth, historians write histories all the time where they assume that what they are writing is true, based on the preponderance of evidence. Mostly historians get clues as to what is history from a number of sources, and they have to assign values to those sources. Some sources are reliable, some are not based on a number of factors. These factors can include the reliability of the source, the source’s … Continue reading Truth of History

education, General History, Oregon indians, Willamette Valley4 Comments

Kalapuyans: Seasonal Lifeways, TEK, Anthropocene

David G. Lewis, PhD

Kalapuyan History (summary) From original 25,000 Kalapuyan people (estimated) in 19 tribes and bands, they were reduced to about 800 by 1850 through diseases like malaria. The loss of population caused cultural collapse and the confederation of many different villages to a very few. This left the land open to settlement from other tribes and American settlers. Americans encountered a park-like setting, a vast flat clear prairie with a mild climate and plenty of water, perfect for agriculture. The collapse of Native culture caused the collapse of most maintenance of the environment. The Tribes were removed to the Reservations in … Continue reading Kalapuyans: Seasonal Lifeways, TEK, Anthropocene

Native Issues, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Colonization in Native Country 2016: Standing Rock Encampment

David G. Lewis, PhD

Manifest Manners- Manifest Manners are the course of dominance, the racialist notions and misnomers sustained in archives and lexicons as “authentic” representations of Indian cultures. Manifest manners court the destinies of monotheism, cultural determinism, objectivism, and the structural conceits of savagism and civilization. Gerald Vizenor Americans of the United States have accomplished (extermination & deprival of rights) … with singular felicity; tranquility, legally, philanthropically, without shedding blood, and without violating a single great principle of morality in the eyes of the world. It is impossible to destroy men with more respect for the laws of humanity (Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835). … Continue reading Colonization in Native Country 2016: Standing Rock Encampment

General History, Oregon indians, Uncategorized, Willamette Valley2 Comments

We Would Prefer to Remain in Our Own Lands, The Molalla People

David G. Lewis, PhD

The Molalla tribes, North, Santiam, and Umpqua valley (southern), were traders between the Chinookans to the north, the Klamaths to the south and the Paiutes to the east and the Kalapuyans in the west of their territory.  Their name is a corruption of the Chinook Wawa word “ulali” meaning berry or huckleberry.

molalla map Continue reading “We Would Prefer to Remain in Our Own Lands, The Molalla People”