Pamlico

The Pamlico, also called Pomouik were an Indian tribe whose tribal area was located in what is now the state of North Carolina in the southeastern United States. They are considered the southernmost tribe of the Algonquian language family.

Tribal area

The Pamlico lived at the time of first contact with Europeans to 1584 in villages along the lower reaches of the Pamlico River, a tidal power in North Carolina, which is called in its upper reaches, without tidal range Tar River. Their tribal territory lay to the west of present-day Beaufort counties. The climate is humid and subtropical, leading to an annual growth period of about 250 days. In addition to various salt and freshwater fish, there are also oysters, edible clams, sea turtles and American alligators in the rivers and lakes on the coast. The last village was at 1708 Indian Iceland Pamlico River.

Language

The members of this force to be extinct since 1712 the tribe spoke the dialect of the North Carolina Algonquian from the Algonquian language family. In 1701 John Lawson studied their language and the vocabulary used on the basis of only 37 words. In addition to local and tribal names less than 100 words were written from other dialects of English colonists and supplies. However, both lists of words are sufficient for an assignment to the Algonquian language family.

Life and culture

The life of the Pamlico was essentially determined by the procurement of daily food, which was covered by hunting, fishing and gathering wild herbs, most of the demand, while the rest came from garden cultivation. Fish could be preserved by smoking on racks made ​​of thatch over an open fire or in the sun. It was important to the cultivation of corn, which formed the basis of the sedentary life in the villages. In addition, the Pamlico built et al Beans, cucumbers, pumpkins, sunflowers and tobacco to. The annual long growth period allowed often two crops from the same field. Weirs and fishing facilities from thatch were placed in rivers and estuaries. Another method of fishing was the spears of the fish from a canoe, or wading in shallow water. Little is known about methods of hunting, although the hunting of mammals, birds and reptiles must have significantly contributed to the diet. In the fall of various roots, nuts and berries were collected in the woods.

Around ten to thirty houses formed a village that was sometimes surrounded by wooden palisades. It usually lay on a river, lake or pond. The approximately 11 to 14 meters long houses were rectangular and had rounded roofs of curved bars. They only had one room for sleeping and were raised platforms along the walls. Chief houses and temples were significantly larger, but resembled in form and construction the normal houses. The Pamlico were skilled canoeists and undertook long journeys with their dugout canoes that could carry up to 20 people and were moved by paddling or punting forward.

History

At first contacts with Europeans occurred after the founding of the Roanoke Colony on August 17, 1585th She was the first colony of the English in North America, however, had to be given up a few years later and now bears the name Lost Colony (German Lost colony). It was not until 120 years later, the British took a new but successful attempt to found on the coast of North Carolina colony. As a result of European diseases came to the Indians, against which they had no resistance forces. Reported a large mortality in the villages of Pamlico from 1696. To 1709, the population was so shrunk that only 40-50 tribesmen in one small village lived on an island in the Pamlico River.

In the Tuscarora War (1711-1713) fought Tuscarora and allied North Carolina Algonquian, including the Pamlico warriors, against the English colonists. In 1712 the Indians were beaten and more than 300 of them killed. About 100 Indians, mostly women and children, were taken captive and sold into slavery. There is no reliable information about their descendants, so that the Pamlico since then are considered extinct.

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