HOW HAS CULTURAL CONTACT

AFFECTED PEOPLE?

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Think

On the basis of what these three speakers have said, what do you think is the single most important legacy of colonial rule?

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Support your judgment by selecting words or phrases from the three quotations, as well as information you have learned so far.

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Legacies and Patterns of Historical Change

imperial powers changed the culture of the peoples in their colonies

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official languages of a country and the makeup of the population, for example,

may be legacies of imperial rule. Language of the imperial power came to dominate:

-Indigenous peoples in colonies had the languages they spoke changed

-Today, French is spoken in North Africa

-Spanish and Portuguese are spoken in Central and South America

-English is spoken in Ireland.

-Although the official language of Vietnam, which was once part of French Indochina, is

now Vietnamese, French is still spoken in that country.

- And though English is not an official language in

India it is still widely used

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Legacies of migration

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, millions of people were on the move.

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These migrants were searching for a better life and, at times, fleeing famine or conflict in their home country

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From 1871 to 1914, for example, 30 million people migrated

from Europe to the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South America, Algeria, and South Africa

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In 1913 alone, more than 400 000 people immigrated to Canada — a record that still stands today

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40 per cent of these immigrants came from Britain. Few were of African, Asian, or South Asian origin because rules limited immigration from Africa, Asia, and South Asia. How did this limit reflect a legacy of British imperial rule?

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Legacies of displacement

Indigenous peoples were displaced — forced off their land — when colonizers needed land for settlements, railways, mining and lumbering, and large plantations.

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Traditional forms of government and community boundaries were often ignored by European colonial empires.

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The colonizers’ disregard for Indigenous people’s lives, beliefs, and traditions left legacies of civil war and starvation. It also destroyed cultures and communities

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Legacies of depopulation

Forced migration of African slaves led to the depopulation of many parts of the continent — and the effects of this population loss were devastating

- Families and communities were shattered

- Those forced into slavery were often young and strong they would have become

leaders.

- Their skills and labour would have helped support their family and community

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In 1834, the British abolitionist movement triumphed and slavery was abolished throughout the empire. As a result, colonies looked elsewhere for cheap workers. One source was indentured labour — and India, which was then a British colony with many poor and desperate people, became a source of these workers.

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From 1834 until the system was abolished in 1920, millions of Indians were recruited as indentured labourers. They were sent to work on plantations in other British colonies, such as Trinidad, Jamaica, Malaysia, Myanmar, and South Africa. When their indenture period ended, they often remained in their new land, forming large communities. What factors might have prevented their return home?

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HOW HAS THE EXCHANGE OF GOODS AND

TECHNOLOGIES AFFECTED PEOPLE?

Many of the foods and beverages you consume today — are available because of the worldwide exchange of goods, technologies, and ideas that started in the late 15th century.

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For example, the First Nations of North America’s Plains relied on the buffalo — or bison — for many of the necessities of life. As the illustration on this page shows, every part of this wild animal, which could weigh up to 900 kilograms, was used.

When the Spanish arrived in Mexico in the early 1500s, they brought horses with them. Indigenous peoples realized how useful this animal could be, and a lively trade in horses began.

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As the Plains peoples became expert riders, they were able to hunt buffalo much more efficiently

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Europeans were starting to move into the West, and guns became more and more common on buffalo hunts. These hunters had begun killing buffalo to

feed the European demand for buffalo hides, which were used as blankets

and to make leather.

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In addition, the American government encouraged the slaughter of buffalo to make way for settlements and farming on the American Plains.

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As a result Buffalo became nearly extinct — and the way of life that relied on this animal had been destroyed

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