Why did Native Americans have more than one wife?

Answer 1

Polygyny favored strong males. It rewarded the hard-working, wealthy male because they could afford to have many wives and many children. It allowed them to father many more children in a shorter time. The male with a large number of children had special status in the community. Polygyny also affected the status of women in the community by making them, undeniably, the property of males and subject to their control. However, senior wives had control over the younger wives.

Another aspect of polygyny was that wars reduced the male population and having multiple wives helped to replenish the tribe.

Answer 2

The plurality of wives or polygamy still dose make sense, in statistical numbers there are four women to every one man in the world, thus should every woman desire a husband the statistics will reach a calculative equal in the practice of polygamy, were a woman to have more than one husband the child would not have the confidence of a true father subject to identical blood types, where as with four or more wives and one husband there will be 100% no doubt as to who the true father will be, I am saying this from two prospective's the polytheist and the monotheist, polytheism being the generic term for all paganism covering many indo Indian/ Asian /pre-Christian Europe theologies and the monotheist covering Mormon extremists and Muslims, however the pluralities are subject to conditions, a widower not being able to find a husband who is not able to provide for herself or an female outcast rejected because of some ill mannered social curse seeing her as a pariah, polygamy are defined by social conditions? any man practicing polygamy must be able to provide for his wives in a life style suitable to the present social climate, she should have life a better life than she had previously before she wedded and there must be not inter wife sexual activity, the husband must sleep with each wife individually at all times.

Answer 3

Sometimes, yes.