Northwestern North America (1396–1539 CE)

Coastal Riches and Interior Pathways

Geography & Environmental Context

This subregion stretched from Alaska and the Yukon south through British Columbia and Washington, extending inland to the Rockies and the Columbia River. A rugged world of fjords, salmon rivers, conifer forests, and tundra valleys sustained dense coastal populations and far-ranging interior hunters.

Climate & Environmental Shifts

The Little Ice Age advanced glaciers in the St. Elias Mountains and shortened growing seasons inland. Stronger coastal storms and variable salmon runs tested food systems, but abundant rainfall kept forests lush.

Subsistence & Settlement

• Coastal nations—Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Nuu-chah-nulth, Coast Salish—built cedar plankhouses, fished salmon and halibut, hunted sea mammals, and gathered berries. The potlatch ceremony reaffirmed hierarchy and reciprocity.

• Interior and plateau peoples—Nez Perce, Carrier, Kaska, Sekani, Shoshone—followed seasonal rounds of fishing, hunting elk and caribou, and gathering roots such as camas and wapato.

• Aleut (Unangan) in the Aleutians lived in semi-subterranean barabaras and hunted seals, sea otters, and whales from agile baidarkas.

Technology & Material Culture

Cedar canoes, bentwood boxes, and carved masks embodied cosmology and clan identity. Stone, bone, and antler tools served hunting and woodworking; snowshoes and sledges sustained inland travel. The Aleut perfected composite harpoons and waterproof skin parkas for open-sea hunting.

Movement & Interaction Corridors

The Inside Passage supported trade in fish oil, copper, and shells. The Columbia River linked coast and plateau. Mountain passes ferried obsidian and hides, while the Aleutian straits connected Alaska to Siberia through limited barter.

Cultural & Symbolic Expressions

Raven and Thunderbird myths dramatized creation and transformation. Clan crests, totems, and potlatch exchanges articulated law, kinship, and spirituality. Inland, shamanic vision quests and mountain veneration affirmed ties to the landscape.

Environmental Adaptation & Resilience

Smoking and drying salmon, oil preservation, and inter-village trade buffered scarcity. Mobility between river valleys and coast distributed risk. Despite climatic volatility, abundance endured through cooperation and ceremony.

Transition

By 1539 CE, the Pacific Northwest was a thriving Indigenous maritime world. No sustained European presence had yet appeared; only distant rumors of ships in the southern seas hinted at change.