Southeast Indian

Southeast Indian

Any member of the aboriginal North American Indians who inhabited what is now the southeastern U.S. The Southeast was one of the more densely populated areas of native North America; agricultural practices there created surplus food and in turn supported hierarchical and centralized social, political, and religious structures. Most Southeast tribes resided inland, where advantage could be taken of extensive game resources, wild plant foods, and an abundance of arable land, although a number of groups in south Florida engaged in a maritime way of life. Groups within the Southeast culture area included the Caddo, Catawba, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, Natchez, and Seminole.