Traditional Stories of the Great Basin and Plateau Nations
CHAPTER ONE 4
NATIONS OF THE GREAT BASIN AND PLATEAU It is winter in the village The family gathers around a fire in the evening The warmth of the fire keeps the chill of the night air away The children move close to their grandfather He is about to tell a story What will he tell tonight The story begins Native American tribes have lived in the Great Basin and Plateau regions of the United States for thousands of years They settled in an area that stretches across present-day Members of the Southern Ute tribe prepare to perform a traditional dance in the winter 5
MAP OF GREAT BASIN AND PLATEAU NATIONS Several Native American Nations live in the Great Basin and Plateau regions of the United States How do you think where each tribe mainly lived affected their way of life How might that have had an impact on their oral traditions W N S E 6 New Mexico Colorado Arizona Nevada California Utah Wyoming Montana Alberta Saskatchewan British Columbia Idaho Washington Oregon PACIFIC OCEAN Shoshone Shoshone Paiute Paiute Ute Ute Ute Shoshone-Bannock Washo Nez Percé Coeur d’Alene Spokane Shuswap Okanagan Yakama Klamath Modoc Wasco
7 Washington Idaho Utah Oregon Montana Nevada Arizona California Wyoming and Colorado The Great Basin and Plateau regions have high deserts and low valleys There are tall mountains lakes and rivers Several tribes live in the Great Basin They include the Shoshone Newe the Paiute Numa and the Ute Nuciu tribes The tribes of the Plateau region include the Nez Percé Nimi ipuu and Yakama Waptailmim HUNTING FISHING AND GATHERING For thousands of years the people of the Great Basin and Plateau regions survived by hunting and gathering their food They hunted deer elk bison antelope moose and caribou They also hunted smaller animals such as jackrabbits and waterfowl The people used the skins and furs of the animals to make clothes robes and blankets They used animal bones to make tools They fished in rivers lakes and streams They caught salmon trout and sturgeon
