Final answer:
Native American societies prior to European contact were diverse, with both highly organized empires such as the Inca and Aztecs, and smaller tribal groups with different subsistence strategies and social structures throughout North America.
Step-by-step explanation:
Prior to European contact, the Native American societies were highly diverse and culturally rich, encompassing a wide array of lifestyles and social structures. While some groups, like the Inca and Aztec, had developed vast empires with intricate political systems and large urban centers, many others like the peoples in North America were organized into tribes with varying degrees of complexity. In North America, various subsistence strategies were employed, ranging from farming, as seen with the Puebloans who grew maize, to hunting and gathering among groups such as the Inuit. The continent itself was home to an estimated seventy-five million people, speaking more than 2,000 different languages and organized into more than 500 identifiable groups, indicating a vast and complex network of societies with rich cultural heritages.