The People

[Guest guest]

Before the Europeons came here, there were millions of people

already inhabiting this land. They were grouped in families, whose

blood ties went back for thousands of years.

Way back, they all mostly referred to themselves as "The People"

in their own languages. They had names that they referred to different

peoples that were based on an their "outsider" perception of others.

For thousands of years, they moved, grew, conquered, intermarried,

blended and adapted, they were evolving.

The early expeditions into this country by Cortez and DeSoto were

prompted by greed, and the search for gold. What was done to the

"native" peoples during this time is more than I care to go into at this

time. If anyone is interested in a more "realistic" history, I would

suggest reading "The American Holocaust" by David Stannard.

Once the Euros came, and began to colonize, their mentality needed

"organization", and a way to "manage relating" to all of these diverse

people who populated this land.

So, by this time, through interaction, there were already perceptions

fostered based on distinct differences between the Peoples and the

different European people who had come here, namely the Spanish,

French, and English.

Many names and terms that are used today are really bastardized

misinterpretations stemming from the difficulty in communicating.

Terms such as "squaw" are French misinterpretations of a native

language, and the French used it to refer to the female sex and

genitalia in a very derogatory manner.

Most of the names that the different nations and tribes are referred

as today are names that the "conquerors" made up, or mispronounced

in another nations language. These are not the names that these people

knew themselves as. Souix is a French name that is also derogatory.

So, today, we have the Cherokee, Choctaw, Ishanibe, Ojibway, Six Nations

of Iroquios, Oglala, Lakota, Cheyenne, Dineh, Apache, Muskagee, Cree,

and many, many others. Some of these tribes and nations have blood ties

to eachother from way back, and share a common root language.

I tell you this because when one says indian, American indian, or native

american, or even indigenious american, there is really no such thing!

It's a misnomer, and implies that we were all the same people, with a

similiar culture, language, and belief. This could not be further from the

truth!

The only one recurring theme that runs through all of the different peoples

that is the same is their dependance on the geography of the place where

they lived! The earth, the land and all it's creatures (including rocks,

rivers,

weather and plants, etc) were revered as an extension of the family. The

earth

is the Mother, as she provides and supports life, and all else were honored

for

the continuance of life.

This is right to the core of the beliefs of every people. But, those who

lived on

the plains had a different relationship with the geography than say those

who

lived in the eastern woodlands.

For instance, the plains people subsisted mainly on the buffalo, and they

moved with the seasons. These people lived in the hideskin "teepees",

because they were mobile. But the Eastern Woodland tribes were

stationary, they lived in wooden houses in towns throughout the eastern

portion of the land.

 

So, this is a bit of an introduction in order to open the view that there

was never a "homogenous" civilization of people living here. We were

all very different from eachother in culture, language, and beliefs.

I am Cherokee, referred to by some as Tsalagi, Chalakee, Charakee,

and many other forms. We called ouselves Ani Yvwiya- the Real People.

Even this was an adaptation in certain dialects of the root language.

I am also mixed blood, and because of the relocation, the Trail of Tears,

I am not enrolled on the Federal Rolls. But that is another long story.

 

So, I will stop here. I can post on the beliefs of the Cherokee, and I can

make reference to other peoples ceremonies and beliefs only as much as

I know of them. I can dispell many of the myths that have been propagated

about many different aspects of the people who were here before the

Euro "Manifest Destiny" movement.

I thank you for opening your hearts with compassion and understanding.

I won't overwhelm this list with this subject, but will post occasionally

with what I feel guided to share, or may even fit in with other discussions

that may be going on, as a point of contrast or similiarity, if that is ok

with you all. Your questions are welcome too.

wado utsadv (thank you for your kindness)

aisv nvwadohiyada ale nvwatohiyadv (walk in peace and harmony)

atsila aktahi (fire eyes)

We were contented to let things remain as the Great Spirit made them.

Chief Joseph 1873

[Guest guest]

Hi Aksila,

>Before the Europeons came here, there were millions of people

>already inhabiting this land. They were grouped in families, whose

>blood ties went back for thousands of years.

>Way back, they all mostly referred to themselves as "The People"

>in their own languages.

>snip<

>So, today, we have the Cherokee, Choctaw, Ishanibe, Ojibway, Six Nations

>of Iroquios, Oglala, Lakota, Cheyenne, Dineh, Apache, Muskagee, Cree,

>and many, many others. Some of these tribes and nations have blood ties

>to eachother from way back, and share a common root language.

>I tell you this because when one says indian, American indian, or native

>american, or even indigenious american, there is really no such thing!

>It's a misnomer, and implies that we were all the same people, with a

>similiar culture, language, and belief. This could not be further from the

>truth!

 

Thanks for writing this! Wasn't the word "Indian" used because Columbus

thought he was finding a western route to the East Indies?

>So, this is a bit of an introduction in order to open the view that there

>was never a "homogenous" civilization of people living here. We were

>all very different from eachother in culture, language, and beliefs.

>I am Cherokee, referred to by some as Tsalagi, Chalakee, Charakee,

>and many other forms.

 

I'm glad to know that... I was going to ask you, because I didn't

recognize the language of your name.

>We called ouselves Ani Yvwiya- the Real People.

>Even this was an adaptation in certain dialects of the root language.

>I am also mixed blood, and because of the relocation, the Trail of Tears,

>I am not enrolled on the Federal Rolls. But that is another long story.

 

Your people's history is among the most tragic... a holocaust indeed.

 

I am partly Iroquois... and other than that, general European mutt. )

But I am farther from my Iroquois ancestors, and the culture has not been

passed down in the family, so far as I know... I sometimes think I see

things that have come from that heritage, but they are not labeled that

way.

>So, I will stop here. I can post on the beliefs of the Cherokee, and I can

>make reference to other peoples ceremonies and beliefs only as much as

>I know of them.

 

I would like to know more of the Cherokee beliefs and culture. And of

course, I'm always interested in learning more about the Iroquois people.

I have read some of the myths, and I know of the Iroquois Confederacy that

is said to have formed a model for the United States. But I haven't known

people still living with the tradition, so there is so much I don't know.

 

I have one question for you right now. I have read about the long strips

of beaded patterns that we hear called "wampum belts"... and I have

wondered also about the knot-tying of the Incas. The books say that

neither of these recorded any real language, but I wonder... it seems

quite possible to me that language could be "written" in knots and

especially in patterns of beads. Do you know anything about that?

 

Love,

Dharma

[Guest guest]

Dharma asks:

"Wasn't the word "Indian" used because Columbus

thought he was finding a western route to the East Indies?"

 

There is some discussion about this, and I am sure if one

went back through the history, it could be discovered what

was actually meant. Yes, Columbus was looking for a passage

to the Indies.

But the term in Spanish "Endios" En Dios, also means

"In God", and could have been a description of how the natives

were viewed as "living" in a more natural way.

So, there is a bit of controversy. I have seen some written accounts

during this time, and they suggest EnDios, but I cannot say for sure.

 

Wampum actually is the name of the beads cut from "mollusk" shells.

Wampum beads were a trade currency. The belts were not exactly

in a "language" , but a symbolic pictorial of treaties and tribal

traditions.

In ancient times, no treaty or deal was considered binding without the

delivery/receipt of such a belt. The "story" or meaning of these belts

was given by a member of the tribe whose job it was to explain to the

whole tribe usually at a special public gathering. So, the designs

were symbolic, and to understand them, one would have to have

the "story" that went with it, or the account of what it stood for.

The tribes only had oral rendition to pass along the traditions.

 

I am not familiar with the Incan knot tying, so I cannot say if the knot

itself represented words, or if the overal pattern was pictorial and

needed an oral rendition. In other words, the patterns of wampum

were infused with a story, and the patterns then were a reminder

of what was meant.

Thanks for the questions and your interest!

Oh, and it is quite a journey to uncover ones lineage, and to learn

about the cultural traditions! I have recently come in contact with an

Elder who is explaining the root families of the Cherokee people to

me, and it is really such a vast historical perspective, and puts

what is known today as the Cherokee people in such a narrow view!

atsila aktahi

We were contented to let things remain as the Great Spirit made them.

Chief Joseph 1873