Final answer:
The Five Civilized Tribes - the Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole - originally lived in the southeastern United States before being forcibly removed to present-day Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears after the Indian Removal Act of 1830.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Five Civilized Tribes lived in the southeastern United States prior to their forced relocation west. These tribes included the Cherokee, Creek (Muskogee), Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole. They acculturated in many ways to American society, adopting similar governmental structures, becoming literate, and even owning plantations. However, due to their desirable lands, they faced intense pressure for removal by white settlers eager to expand economic development in states like Georgia and Tennessee.
Though theoretically, the removal was supposed to be voluntary, in reality, the tribes were coerced into relocating. The Indian Removal Act of 1830, under President Andrew Jackson's administration, led to the infamous Trail of Tears, where thousands of Native Americans were forcibly driven from their ancestral homelands to designated 'Indian Territory' primarily in present-day Oklahoma.