Cultural Differentiation

The various peoples inhabiting North America gradually developed many different and unique cultures. Each culture was heavily influenced by the land, and natural resources around the people. These cultures included their traditions, religious practices, and their everyday lives and customs.

As this happened, the various cultures became regionalized. That is to say that the cultures of different groups of people were very similar to one another in the same region, but very different from the cultures of the peoples in another region. The process of cultures developing in a specific region is known as cultural differentiation.

The regions that developed in North America were the Arctic, the Northwest, the California region, The Great Basin, the Southwest, the Great Plains, and the Eastern Woodlands.