Native America

Explore the rise of great American nations, from monarchies to democracies. Investigate lost cities in Mexico, a temple in Peru, a potlatch ceremony in the Pacific Northwest and a tapestry of shell beads in upstate New York whose story inspired our own democracy.

The history and mythology of Clan Mothers and continued female leadership.

Hopi elder Leigh Kuwanwisiwma has learned many life lessons from corn. These lessons are so important that he believes it is the duty of every Hopi person to be a farmer.

Ancient Amazon art suggests people have been in the Americas much longer than previously thought.

Combine ancient wisdom and modern science to answer a 15,000-year-old question: who were America’s First Peoples? The answer hides in Amazonian cave paintings, Mexican burial chambers, New Mexico’s Chaco Canyon and waves off California’s coast.

Zuni elder Jim Enote speaks on why knowing Native names is an important source of information. Native names often reflect information about a place that is based on thousands of years of observation.

Jim Enote of the Zuni uses ancient petroglyphs and contemporary art to create Zuni maps of the region.

Archaeologist Anna Roosevelt dates the cave paintings in Brazil's Amazon jungle to 13,000 years ago. Her discovery rewrites the traditional history of the peopling of the America and who those people were - not just big game hunters but also artists and scientists.

Archaeology reveals long distance trade with Chaco, including chocolate and precious metals.

Southern California Chumash continue canoe paddling traditions to connect to their ancestors.

David Carrasco illuminates the similarities of the religious beliefs shared by indigenous peoples across the Americas. These similarities include sky worship including the sun and moon, the power of water, sacrality of trees, and human relationships to animal spirits.

Native America explores the world created by America’s First Peoples. The four-part series reaches back 15,000 years to reveal massive cities aligned to the stars, unique systems of science and spirituality, and 100 million people connected by social networks spanning two continents.