Hello, Camus, or as it's said in Mohawk, Sekoh Camus,
Let's see what we can do here. I've found many good websites to help
you with your research. Some are general in nature while others focus
on more specific topics. From them all you should be able to compile
the answers you need. Official information about boys' rights of
passage wasn't readily available, although I did find reference to the
'dream feast' and have listed it below. I also, in some of the General
Information links, ran across the tidbit that boys were not able to
join the hunting parties until they had personally killed a deer on
their own. You will no doubt be interested in the website which
provides Handsome Lake's writings, predictions and information about
traditional Iroquois religious rites and ceremonies.
In matters of social and political organization, warfare and
self-preservation, and wise alliances (until they sided with the
British in the American Revolution) they had few equals. I was
particularly interested in their beliefs concerning dreams.
Thank you for the question. I had thought to be quicker with my
answer, but like a good book is hard to put down, many of these
websites were nigh unto impossible to leave. I hope I've given you
'everything' you need.
Best regards,
revbrenda1st
This first site is most comprehensive, providing several pages of
information about the Iroquois Confederacy (also known as the Six
Nations) collectively and by individual nation. Each of the almost 12
dozen articles is easily accessed from the front page:
Iroquois Indians
http://iroquoisindians.freeweb-hosting.com/index.htm
Some of the articles are first hand reports, such as:
Dutch Minister Describes the Iroquois (1644)
http://iroquoisindians.freeweb-hosting.com/webdoc1.htm
Some are quite scholarly, such as:
Iroquois Gens
http://iroquoisindians.freeweb-hosting.com/webdoc113.htm
Others use language suitable and informative for all grades and are
illustrated, such as:
About the Longhouse
http://iroquoisindians.freeweb-hosting.com/webdoc111.htm
BELIEF SYSTEM:
Getting into the area of religion, I've found this -- its name is a
bit misleading, as no stories are presented. What you will find are
descriptions of Iroquois ceremonies and festivals. The chosen text and
background colours make the information a bit unsettling to read (at
least for me).
Iroquois Myths
http://www.runningdeerslonghouse.com/webdoc197.htm
Dreams were a big part of Iroquoian culture. The Dream Feast was a
rite of passage for young boys. There's a brief description of it
here.
Iroquois
http://www.uwec.edu/greider/HonorsWorld%20REligions/Rituals%20of%20the%20World/Rituals_of_the_World/Rachel/rach5.htm
The author of this page combines Iroquois and Huron information,
saying that both shared the same festivals and beliefs.
Habits, Customs, Beliefs and Traditions
http://www.saskschools.ca/~lumsdenel/firstnations/hibeliefs.htm
The first three paragraphs of this encyclopedic article provide
information about the importance of dreams and traditional practices
concerning them in the Iroquois culture. The rest of the page deals
with other tribal dream practices.
Encyclopedia of North American Indians -- Dreams
http://college.hmco.com/history/readerscomp/naind/html/na_010600_dreams.htm
"The False Face Curing Society was an integral part of the Iroquois
belief system." Although the information is excellent, there are no
images of any masks here.
False Face Society
http://www.snowgoose.ca/native/false.htm
There images of two types of masks on this page, which also contains a
simply-worded overview of food, masks, the Confederacy and festivals.
Iroquois
http://iroquoisindians.freeweb-hosting.com/webdoc55.htm
This image you see here is of a wooden mask.
False Face (Iroquois Mask)
http://www.yasserhassan.com/false_face.shtml
This next site provides an overview of a man's role in the Confederacy.
Iroquois Man
http://www.iroquoisdemocracy.pdx.edu/html/iroquoisman.htm
You can get a feel for the Iroquois peoples' view of their world from
the many stories linked to here.
Iroquois Stories - Tales of Humor, Myth, & Morality
http://www.coolpetsupply.com/iroquois.html
From that page you can follow the link to get the official position
taken by the Iroquois concerning cultural patrimony and repatriation.
"The non-Indian public does not have the right to examine, interpret,
or present the beliefs, functions, and duties of the secret medicine
societies of the Haudenosaunee."
Haudenosaunee Confederacy Policy On False Face Masks
http://www.peace4turtleisland.org/pages/maskpolicy.htm
"Handsome Lake (1735-1815) was a religious reformer among the
Iroquois, the prominent alliance of New York tribes. His 'Code',
presented in this book in full, attempted to simplify the spiritual
practices of the Iroquois, preaching temperance, a strict moral code,
and self-determination... This book also contains invaluable
descriptions of Iroquois religious rituals and myths at the turn of
the twentieth Century."
Code of Handsome Lake Index
http://www.sacred-texts.com/nam/iro/parker/
SOCIETY:
The Iroquois had a matrilineal society. On this page which is part of
a webquest for a lesson plan, you'll find an excellent list of 18
facts about how life was structured.
Matrilineal Society
http://gladstone.uoregon.edu/~tdeather/morethanteepees/matrilineal.html
This summary provides a look at the political and social structure of
the Iroquois Confederacy. "The organizational structure which
functioned at the level of the individual longhouse, was repeated at
the successive levels of clan, village, nation, and League."
Society-IROQUOIS
http://lucy.ukc.ac.uk/EthnoAtlas/Hmar/Cult_dir/Culture.7849
WARFARE / WEAPONS:
Click on the NEXT link at the bottom of these pages to access all
three. As well as good, overall information, page two addresses types
of weapons and methods of fighting and the changes which came about
following European contact. "Shedding their wooden armor, they
ventured forth in mobile bands to stage surprise raids on enemy
villages, hijack trading parties, and generally spread terror and
mayhem."
Iroquois and Iroquois League
http://groups.msn.com/Native-Dove/natribes21.msnw
Not exactly a warfare article, nor one about weapons. What this site
discusses is the possibility/probability that the Iroquois practiced
cannibalism on their captive enemies. You'll also find the text of a
man-eating song.
Direct Testimony
http://homepage.mac.com/rswinter/DirectTestimony/Pages/77.html
VILLAGES:
The New York State Museum at Albany provides most excellent
information about the villages and dwellings of the Iroquois people.
These pages focuses on a typical Mohawk village. Enlargeable
illustrations accompany the text, including some of tools and weapons.
Follow the links to access all pages.
Mohawk Iroquois Village
http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/IroquoisVillage/villageone.html
Not to be outdone, the Royal Ontario Museum also maintains a
wonderful website devoted to the Iroquois longhouse and village.
Underlined text will link you to more detailed information about the
topic at hand in the form of glossary definitions. Good images are
scattered throughout.
Archaeology of an Iroquoian Longhouse
http://www.rom.on.ca/digs/longhouse/
LANGUAGE:
From the language family tree presented here, you can access
demographic information for all subsequent branches.
Ethnologue Report For Iroquoian
http://www.ethnologue.com/show_family.asp?subid=1749
You can listen to Real Audio sound files and view the text for words
and phrases in Mohawk, Onondaga, Seneca, Oneida, Tuscarora and Cayuga.
Ohwejagehka: Ha`degaenage
http://www.ssila.org/links.htm
GENERAL INFORMATION:
View the image and get a detailed description of the Confederacy's
flag, called 'Hiawatha's Belt.'
Flag of the Iroquois League
http://hometown.aol.com/Donh523/navapage/iroquois.htm
Listen to samples of authentic Iroquois music Choose from 22
selections, all with a brief history of the song and dance. (You need
Real Audio.)
Iroquois Earth Songs
http://www.ohwejagehka.com/songs.htm
"Beautifully illustrated overview of Iroquois life from the Carnegie
Museum of Natural History. Topics include: living in the woods,
farming, craft work and transition to modern times." Click on the
highlighted text to access further information about the topic at
hand.
The Iroquois Nations of the Northeast
http://www.carnegiemuseums.org/cmnh/exhibits/north-south-east-west/iroquois/index.html
This centuries old game is described via firsthand reports from 1776 to 1849.
Lacrosse: An Iroquois Tradition
http://www.oneida-nation.net/lacrosse.html
The Confederacy is comprised of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga,
Seneca, and Tuscarora nations. Here you'll find essays, complete
books, and articles dealing with history and treaties and current
issues (such as the environment) facing these peoples.
The Six Nations: Oldest Living Participatory Democracy on Earth
http://www.ratical.org/many_worlds/6Nations/
It would be nice if more images appeared on this page dealing with
men's and woman's traditional clothing and recent (post-contact)
changes.
Iroquois Indian Clothing
http://www.tuscaroras.com/graydeer/pages/childrenspage.htm
Iroquois location, population, names, language, culture and history
are covered on this text only page. There's an interesting description
of their political system.
Iroquois
http://www.tolatsga.org/iro.html
SEARCH STRATEGY:
rites Iroquois
://www.google.ca/search?q=rites+Iroquois&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&start=20&sa=N
Iroquois rites of passage
://www.google.ca/search?q=Iroquois+rites+of+passage&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&meta=
Iroquois dream feast
://www.google.ca/search?q=Iroquois+dream+feast&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&btnG=Google+Search&meta=
false face Iroquois
://www.google.ca/search?q=false+face+Iroquois&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&start=0&sa=N
Mohawk initiation rites
://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=Mohawk+initiation+rites&btnG=Search&meta=
Iroquois villages
://www.google.ca/search?q=Iroquois+villages&btnG=Search&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
Iroquois language
://www.google.ca/search?q=Iroquois+language&btnG=Search&hl=en&ie=UTF-8 |
