Anasazi Indians
The Anasazi civilization started to develop around AD 100 in North America.
They lived where the states of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado meet. It is a very harsh environment. The name Anasazi is a word from the Navajo language meaning "ancient ones". When the Anasazi first settled in the southwest of what would be the United States they were already great basket weavers, that's why they have come to be known as the "Basketmakers". They could grow maize and pumpkins but they were also hunters and gatherers. The Anasazi lived in caves or in shelters made of poles and adobe mud, the caves and shelters they lived in had special pits with roofs that they used to store food.
The Anasazi developed their agriculture to such a level that farming became their most important concern. They were so good at farming that they lived completely of what they grew such as corn, squash, beans, cotton and tobacco.
A canteen (pot) excavated from the ruins in Chaco ...
White House Ruins, Canyon de Chelly National Monum...
Anasazi pueblosThey were excellent farmers even though the environment was so dry. The "Basketmakers" also domesticated turkeys that they ate; they also hunted deer and mountain sheep with arrows that had stone points.
The Anasazi are also known as the "Ancient Puebloans" because they are the ancestors of the pueblo people, began building their houses above ground, Know they could build permanent communities. Their houses were from two to three stories high. Hunting and gathering was reduced drastically, almost none was done. Their communities became much more complicated, they had joined rooms both below and above ground. The above ground rooms were used for storage and they lived in below ground rooms, also called pit houses. The below ground rooms were also used for ceremonies. Each community had at least two kivas, they were ceremonial rooms were women...