Anthropology
Open Access

Origins of Archaeology and Ethnology

Ram Kumar^{* *}Correspondence: Ram Kumar, Department of Anthropology, Punjab University, Chandigarh, India, Email:

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Description

The history and antiquity of the earthen structures can be found all over the world, as well as the connections between the "Mound builders" and the current native tribal groups. The Institution's intellectual identity has been centered on a passion for all facets of history and culture since its inception. An unstructured, risk-free period of collecting ethnographic facts and observations that included data from other governmentsponsored expeditions as well as donations from citizens and academics led to the development of anthropology and its study of Native ancient culture. The ethnographic facts were kept in the galleries and storage areas along with constantly growing collections of rocks, mollusks, plants, and fossils. Two railroad boxcars packed with collections of natural history specimens and some of the leading naturalists of the day arrived. This drew a remarkable group of young scholars, a group of gifted naturalists with a diverse range of interests and experiences, who carried out fieldwork and gathered collections all over the world. The majority of the analyzers were ornithologists and invertebrate zoologists, and none of them had any formal training in ethnology, but they all recognized the value of gathering cultural materials.

The discipline of natural historism

Most people realized under the onslaught of growing commercial and political interests, the so-called tides of progress, toward the end of the nineteenth century. Many of the vast collections held by anthropological museums around the world were developed as a result of the work of "salvage" anthropologists who combed the countryside for any remnants of Indian culture that could be preserved in this era of the "disappearing Indian." These collections, which were heavily weighted toward materialism but also contained folklore, languages, Indian bones, were gathered, catalogued, and storedfor the fate of the groups or individuals from which they were drawn. Addressing this troublesome legacy is now more important than ever, particularly in the context of repatriation as the descendantswho resisted disappearing have grown more aware of and worried about what willbecome of their heritage housed inside museums.

Natural environment

The natural surroundings haven't changed in the different places they've lived east of the Mississippi. Even after these Indians were relocated to their current habitat west of that river, it was discovered that their environment was not significantly different enough to require them to significantly alter their way of life. In other words, agriculture was and still is the main focus of their activities, which are complemented by hunting and fishing. The purposes behind the related crafts of basketry and pottery, as well as those for warfare, hunting, fishing, and religious rituals, have all largely remained the same since removal unlike the Simian peoples, who abandoned agriculture entirely when they moved from the Mississippi basin to the Plains and became nomadic hunters and maintained their pre-migration way of life in their new surroundings and carried out their pre-existing activities in their new home in Oklahoma, they discovered arable soil, numerous rivers with edible fish, and vast forested areas and savannahs home to animals and birds similar to those in both areas that are relatively low, well-watered, and distinguished by large grassy uplands and patches of forest, The pine, oak, hickory, and boiled art are prominent examples, along with numerous other wild plants and vegetables that are used as food or medications. The two main plants used in their religious ceremonies, Red roots are found throughout both regions, so not compelled to perform religious ceremonies using plants other than those that were customarily required. However, one vegetable product of cane is not as common in Oklahoma as it is in the Southeast, and as a result, the craft of making baskets has declined and even been put in danger of extinction.

Nowadays, obtaining canes for basketry requires making lengthy trips to distant swampy areas, so surprisingly few cane baskets are visible. The two regions' flora largely resembles one another. The bison, elk, Virginia deer, black bear, wolf, fox, panther, wildcat, beaver, rabbit, squirrel, raccoon, possum, skunk, weasel, and otter were all known to and used by the Indians in both regions.

The wild turkey, partridge, quail, wild pigeon, mallard duck, teal, and wild goose are also prevalent in both areas. The appropriate feathers for ceremonial uses in the new home as well as the old were provided by eagles and herons. However, as they left the Southeast, they left the alligator behind and encountered coyotes and prong-horned antelopes. They also noticed changes in the number of species and the dispersal of their previous animal friends. Last but not least, it was discovered that the streams and rivers of Oklahoma contained the fish that had been common and useful in the Southeast, including catfish, dogfish, garfish, pickerel, mullets, and various varieties. The long, hot summers in Oklahoma are similar to those in Georgia and Alabama, but the winters west of the Mississippi are a bit colder and harsher than those in the Southeast and have suffered as a result of this climate change because it appears that their way of life is not well adapted to the harsher western winters, and most of their current sufferings are a result of exposure at this time of year.