Well, one must look at the religion that was prominent in the Mesoamerican culture, and compare that to the religion of Christianity. The Mesoamericans believed in the one Sun god as their most powerful god. Christianity believes in oneGod. The Mesoamerican religions would often involve human sacrifice, thus is comparable to the notion of Jesus sacrificing himself for the sake of humanity. This was easier for them to comprehend than it was for the Native Americans. However, most of the inhabitants of the Mesoamerican area were forced to convert, one must recall that prior to the Mesoamerican and South American invasions, the Spanish had just finished their Inquisition, which forced all non-Christians to convert or face expulsion or death. So the ability to convert and spread Christianity was still fresh when they landed in the Americas. Also, when the Europeans landed in North America, they were escaping religious persecution and were looking for religious freedom, they had no intention of converting the "uncivilized" peoples who inhabited North America.
The indigenous peoples of the Americas call it Mesoamerica, but the two terms really cover the same area. Its all of matter of ideology and culture.
The arrival of Spanish invaders affected the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica greatly because a lot of them died and the Spanish took a lot of their stuff such as land and gold. Also, the natives lost their religion and traditions and were forced to work as slaves for the Spanish.
Christopher Columbus is widely accepted to be the first European to meet North America's indigenous peoples. Native Americans are the indigenous peoples of North America. I don't know how to properly refer to the indigenous peoples of Australia.
Find goldConvert the indigenous peoples to Christianity
When the first Europeans arrived in North America their system of government differed from that of the indigenous peoples. The Europeans used a hierarchy of government. The indigenous people had a cultural government.
Yes, the Mayans and Aztecs were indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica, but the term "Indian" is typically used to refer to the indigenous peoples of the Americas as a whole, not specifically to these groups. It's more accurate to refer to them as Mayans and Aztecs.
Native peoples can be called indigenous.
They are the aboriginal, indigenous peoples of North, Central and South America.
Yes, "Native American" is a proper adjective for indigenous peoples of America.
Indigenous peoples in America are descendants of the earliest settlers who migrated to the Americas over thousands of years ago from Asia via the Bering land bridge. They established distinct cultures, languages, and civilizations across North and South America.
Mestizos are descended from Europeans, frequently Spanish, and indigenous peoples of Latin America
American Indians are called "indigenous peoples," meaning they belong to the continent of North America. Historians estimate that American Indians have been living in North America for at least 15,000 years.