Recommended Children’s Books for Shared Reading and Centers:
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Brave Bear and The Ghost: A Sioux Legend*
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Dancing Drum: Cherokee Legend
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Ka-ha-si and the Loon: An Eskimo Legend*
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Little Firefly: An Algonquin Legend*
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The Rough Face Girl: An Algonquin Legend*
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The Quillworker: A Cheyenne Legend*
*These beautifully illustrated selections, accompanied by actual photos, offer both a traditional folktale and background information on the social life and customs of each group highlighted.
Recommended Children’s Books for Shared Reading and Centers (Con’t):
This series provides valuable information concerning the dwellings in which various Native American cultures resided.
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Houses of Bark: The Eastern Woodlands
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Houses of Wood: The Northwest Coast
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Houses of Snow, Skin and Bones: The Far North
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Houses of Hide and Earth: the Plains
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Mounds of Earth and Shell: The Southeast
Native Americans in North America: A General View
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buffalo
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prairie
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woodlands
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hogan
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tipi
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wigwam
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bison
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parfleche
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mandala
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dreamcatcher
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nomadic
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nomad
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buffalo grass
Long before European explorers set foot on North American shores, a diverse group of original inhabitants roamed this vast expanse. Ecological and geographic regional differences within North America dictated the lifestyles of its original inhabitants. Despite locale, the indigenous people of North America took charge of their environs.
Native Americans who dwelt in the great plains regions (i.e., east to west from the Mississippi and Missouri valleys, to the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, and north to south from the Saskatchewan River in Canada almost to New Mexico’s Rio Grande) included such linguistic Native Americans as the Kiowa, Crow, Blackfeet, Cheyenne, and Comanche (see YNHTI Resources A, B, and C).
Tipi dwelling tribes resided in the Northern plains (these included the Blackfeet, Crow, and Sioux: further south were the Cheyenne, Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche. (Note: Tipis were most commonly used by Native Americans who resided in the North American plains [see YNHTI Resource D]. They were made by stretching tanned buffalo skins and using them to cover poles arranged in the shape of a cone. These types of dwellings were suited for the nomadic trend of many of these people. The skins were sometimes decorated with symbols representing guardian spirits, family emblems, or special meanings readily identifiable by their people.)
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Climate varied in the plains region, particularly to the west and south where limited rainfall produced arid conditions and semi-desert-like terrain, resulting in what we today refer to as the Badlands. Rainfall, however, was often higher in areas near the Mississippi and Missouri valleys resulting in prairie land where luxuriant grasslands flourished. Indigenous residents of this regionlike the Omaha and Arikaraestablished permanent villages and planted wheat, corn, beans, squash and pumpkins. As a result of the availability of these food sources, the need to hunt buffalo throughout the year was reduced. Farther west, in regions we today call North and South Dakota, Montana, and Kansas, plains animals grazed on short grasses known as “buffalo grass”. Bison, as buffalo were interchangeably called, were in abundance and dominated the region. Deemed sacred, these animals were central to many ceremonial and social organizations of tribal groups in this region. The migration of the buffalo resulted in the nomadic lifestyles of many Native Americans in the plains area.
Natural resources in the plains areas were put to great use. Various parts of the buffalo, for example, were used for food, clothing, dwellings, and bedding. Porcupine provided another source of food, utensils, and clothing. The Cheyenne decorated moccasins, breechclouts, and other wearing apparel and leather goods with quillwork, using dyed and carefully woven porcupine quills.
The Navajo, well known for their beautifully designed and hand-woven fabrics, sandpainting, pottery, and silversmithing, lived in the Southwestern portion of the country in what we today know as Arizona and New Mexico. A resourceful people, the Navajo made houses from wooden poles and sticks in the mountains and/or desert. Known as hogans, these dwellings were ingeniously reinforced with mud or stone, making life bearable in the region’s challenging terrain.
The southwest was not conducive to agriculture. As a result, the Navajo often migrated in search of food, grazing land, and water. They thrived on small game animals and vegetation (like cactus) found in the region. Rabbit, for example, was used to create tasty meals. It was also used to create protective charms, like the mandala. Used to ensure well-being and good health, rabbit fur, eagle features, buffalo hide, and sinew were masterfully crafted and hung in or outside of the home (see YNHTI Resource E). The Navajo believed man was one with nature and as a result should protect the harmony of nature and respect the spirit of all things. They embraced a belief system in which powerful gods were responsible for ridding the world of evil. These gods and other supernatural figuresoften represented in symbolic decor on woven materials, masks, and other objectswere depicted during ceremonial dance, rituals, and storytelling.
Algonquin-speaking New England tribes in the Northeastern region who ranged down to the Southeastern Atlantic Coast, such as the Micmac, Ojibwa, and Cree, were surrounded by woodlands and coastal shores. These areas were abundant with mammalian life (muskrat, fox, rabbit, beaver, deer and moose.) Some groups were agricultural, raising corn, beans, tobacco, and squash. Edible fruits such as wild blueberries, cranberries, and chokecherries grew nearby, providing additional food sources. Maple sugar sap, collected in birch bark buckets, was a seasonal food used to make candy and beverages. Farming, fishing, wood crafting, and basketry were an integral part of everyday life. Wigwams, used by Native Americans who dwelt in the Northeastern and Eastern woodlands, served as their source of shelter. Some wigwams were dome-shaped. Others were conical, like tipis used in the Plains region. These homes, made of poles that were bent and lashed at the top, were sometimes covered with skins. More often, they were covered with woven mats, evergreen boughs, and birch bark. The Micmac often lived in conical wigwams made of birch bark and grass matting. Their foundation was usually made of lightweight poles tied together with bark. Shingle-like layers of bark or reed mats were used as outer covering.
Up Close: The Micmac
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wigwam
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mocock
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wampum
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herring
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woodlands
The Micmac resided in the Northeastern region of North America, near the Atlantic provinces of Canada and the seaboard of the United States to North Carolina, separated from the interior by the Appalachian Mountains. They are believed to have been one of the first Algonquin groups to meet European settlers.
Abundant in the region, birch trees served as invaluable natural resources for the Micmac. Used for wigwams and bedding, their bark could be rolled up, preserved, and used repeatedly should the villagers migrate. Birch bark was also used to make large, beautifully crafted canoes, and basketry. One type of basket, called the mocock, was used to collect maple sap.
The Micmac were mindful of the precious gifts provided by nature; they respected their natural surroundings and the Great Spirits that made these resources available: Expectedly, they knew how to capably remove birch bark without destroying the tree. Using a pocket knife, the outer bark of the birch was carefully cut from a place as high as one could reach down to the root portion of the tree. Using two hands, the bark was removed from the tree in a clockwise motion. The size of the bark determined its use. Thicker pieces, for example, were used to create canoes. Other durable, pliable pieces were used for wigwams. Thin, pliable grades were used to create containers, trays, and beds.
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During winter months, the Micmac were surrounded by an environment filled with beaver, otter, moose, caribou, and bear. At the onset of spring, herring, shellfish, salmon and waterfowl were abundant. Adept hunters, the Micmac made full use of these resources for food, clothing, and utensils.
The Micmac were communal: despite abundant and/or scanty periods in the circle of life, they believed in sharing with one another for the well-being of all. Micmac women made clothing, cooked, and took care of the children: the men crafted canoes and weapons and were responsible for hunting.
Central to their way of life was the belief that man was an integral part of naturenot outside of it. Because they were part of nature’s tapestry, they could not find it in themselves to exploit the environment. Rather, they made use of the earth and its natural resources and gave thanks to the great spirits for them. (According to Brother “Long Thinker” Brookman, a Micmac descendant and one who I had the opportunity to befriend, one would speak to a tree before removing its branches to create any object. During the time he shared this information, he was demonstrating how to make a dreamcatcher. He added that each object found in the dreamcatcher reflected something very close to him and his people.)
The Micmac, as did many of their Algonquin brethren, believed that all living things had a living spirit within: they also contended that each individual had a guardian spirit, and it was important to pay heed to the advice that spirit proffered. Special song and dance rituals and special ceremonies for births, deaths, the hunt, harvesting, and healing were often held on behalf of those guardian spirits. Images of these guardian spirits and other supernatural beings were often depicted in masks and ornamentation.
Up Close: The Yup’ik
Vocabulary:
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Eskimo
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karmak
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mukluk
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tundra
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waterproof
waterfowl
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caribou
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walrus
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whale
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sea lion
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kayak
The Yup’ik-speaking inhabitants of Southwestern Alaska and the Inuit of Northern Alaska and Arctic Canada, more commonly and inappropriately referred to as “Eskimos” (translated meaning “eaters of raw meat”), survived on or near extensive coastlines and tundra, land masses that offered rich feeding grounds for caribou, reindeer, fish, whale, seal, walrus, sea otter, but also icy challenges during winter months. These indigenous people adapted to the grueling environment, making ingenious use of its resources.
Depending on the season, and whether they resided along riverbanks or in the Arctic’s icy interior, the Yup’ik resided in igloos, karmaks, or tupiks. Igloos were made of carefully packed snow blocks built up in a spiral until the entire dwelling, excluding a tunnel-like entrance, was enclosed. For some, the karmaksimilar in shape to the igloowas more often used for year-round shelter: it was comprised of an excavated circular pit of specific dimensions, usually five to six feet deep. A dome-shaped wood and whalebone frame covered with turf enclosed the dwelling. The tupik, a portable tent, was made of seal or caribou skins.
The Yup’ik were adept land and sea hunters, pursuing whales, fish, and wildlife resources in the interior. Those residing in the Arctic Region experienced dramatic seasonal changes in light and migratory animal resources. During the spring, summer, and fall, the Yup’ik would travel into the interior to hunt migrating wildlife. During early autumn, as the sun disappeared, caribou, reindeer, wild geese, and ducks departed from these regions. These animals were used in various capacities by the Yup’ik, from food to clothing. Reindeer and caribou, for example, were used as food sources and to create clothing, like the well-known parka. This outer garment was made from the skin of these animals, carefully sewn together with the hair side turned in, providing warmth to the wearer. During the winter, the Yup’ik relied heavily upon reserves of stored food. In spring, upon the return of migratory animals, the Yup’ik once again skillfully hunted and captured their prey, wasting no part.
A tightly knit people, Yup’ik village societies maintained territories large enough to support their needs. Permanent villages often aligned riverbanks. Each village contained many single family homes and one or more qasgiqslarge, communal dwellings for the men. Single family dwellings were the domain of the women. There they sewed, cooked, and raised children, which constituted the bulk of their responsibilities.
At approximately age six, boys moved from the home of their mothers to the qasgiq. Moving out signaled entering adulthood. Within the confines of the qasgiq, training to take on manly responsibilities took place. Young boys learned technical skills for survivaland their place in the universe. The Yup’ik believed that ill-considered actions of an individual could offend the spirits, resulting in an imbalance between “the people” and “the universe.” According to the Yup’ik, inappropriate behavior and wrongdoing could result in illness, poor hunting, or inclement weather. A necessary and integral part of growing up, therefore, was learning correct behavior.
Like many Native American peoples throughout North America, the Yup’ik believed all objectsanimate and inanimatehad spirits (yuas) of human form. Masks were often created to please and/or appease the animal spirit that was ultimately in control of animals. Often made of bone, animal skin, feathers, and fur, masks were created to look like images of bears, wolves, and otters. They were often worn during dance ceremonies in the belief that this would cause the hunt to be fruitful. Weapons and hunting equipment made of whale bone were exquisitely carved and fashioned to please the yua of the prey, urging the animal to give itself up to the hunter. That spiritual connection was frequently conveyed in clothing sewn by the women. A hole in the palm of a thumbless hand design, for example, symbolized the game that the tunghat (potentially malevolent spirits) allowed to escape from the skyworld for the consumption of the people. Special headgear was often worn to please the spirits of the animals hunted by the Yup’ik.
Being one with the universeanother embraced philosophywas also depicted in Yup’ik attire and artifacts. A common circle and dot motif depicted on many Yup’ik items represented their oneness view of the world.
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The Yup’ik also believed in two different worldsthe visible and the invisible. They contended that these two worlds occupied the same visible space. Birth, death, and puberty marked times where the boundary between these worlds was permeable and, at times, transparent. During these transitional periods, proper rituals and dance ceremonies were held as not to release the tunghat.