What the United States might look like now if Europeans had never found it

Have you ever thought about what might have happened if Europe had never come to America and colonised it? Because they were interested, a Reddit user started to imagine a plan of the continent that would have looked different if Indigenous nations had been allowed to decide its fate.

The map, which was first posted by Reddit user liminalsoup on the “Imaginary Maps” subreddit in July 2015, is very interesting because it shows an America that has no European impact. Some people at first thought it showed Native American tribal places before they were settled, but fact-checkers, like Snopes, quickly disproved this idea.

Based on one author’s interesting ideas about how America might have changed culturally, politically, and historically without the effects of European discovery and colonisation, the map is a work of speculative fiction. It’s important to remember that this creative project isn’t trying to be accurate or realistic. Instead, it wants people to discover a different timeline that is based on their imagination.

The map’s made-up borders don’t take into account how Indigenous countries might interact with other parts of the world, like Asia, Africa, or Oceania. Furthermore, they oversimplify the rich variety of Indigenous languages and cultures that thrived before European invaders came.

This creative map has sparked a lot of argument and discussion online, with some people praising its uniqueness and the chance it gives them to think. But critics have come forward to point out mistakes and complicated issues that are oversimplified in this work of fiction.

Additionally, the YouTube show “What If” explores this interesting idea by asking: What would the borders of the United States be like if Christopher Columbus had never found it? This video gives us another view on the making-up scenarios that circle the unknown future of the American continent.

In the end, these creative projects, whether they’re maps or movies, make us think about how important historical events were and how many different cultures might have done well without European influence. They are based on true stories, but they make you think about the effects of colonisation and how resilient Indigenous people are in changing the story of their own places.