Mound Builder
1
9.9
- noun
- /maʊnd ˈbɪldər/
- US
:
constructor de montículos
- However long the war of expulsion may have continued, it is evident that the final overthrow or expulsion of the Mound Builders was sudden and complete.
I'd never heard somebody talk about giants being mound builders before, that guy told me.
- I'd never heard somebody talk about giants being mound builders before, that guy told me.
Examples
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In 1885, J.P. MacLean published The Mound Builders, which featured an "investigation into the archaeology" of Butler County.
Academic text (1996) -
Archaeologists study the burial practices of the Mound Builders to learn about their culture.
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I'd never heard somebody talk about giants being mound builders before, that guy told me.
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The St. Louis Pageant and Masque of 1914, for example, used Indian figures in several scenes, beginning with the ancient Mound Builders and moving to a group of Plains Indians who were seen dancing, fighting with other tribes, and eventually reaching a peace agreement.
Academic text (2002) -
The ancient Mound Builders created large earthen structures for ceremonial purposes.
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Many mounds built by the Mound Builders still exist today and are important historical sites.
Surface Forms
Morphology
The core meaning — a person who builds mounds — is directly and transparently derived from combining 'mound' (raised area of earth) with 'builder' (one who builds). Although the term can have specific archaeological and cultural connotations, a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer the basic sense.
Etymology
Mound Builder comes from the simple picture of people long ago digging and piling earth to make big mounds for 'burial' and 'ceremony', so they were literally mound builders. That's why the term now means a member of the Native American groups known for making these earthen mounds.