Social Organization
Members of a Northern Cree group.
The people of the Subarctic lived semi-nomadic lives. They pursued animals that they heavily relied on for hunting and thus food as they migrated from season to season. Due to the harsh conditions of life, local bands had only a small extended family, usually anywhere from 10 to 70 people, enough to carry out effective hunts while maintaining life. Oftentimes, these bands or groups were not permanent; members could switch groups or choose to go solo for a while if their views collided with that of the rest of the band. Being hunting groups, the leader was only in his position until the end of the hunting cycle. The leader himself, usually a man, was chosen of his personal merit as a skilled hunter as well as his knowledge and wisdom.
When several local bands of an area decided to meet together and temporarily combine for hunting or ceremonial purposes, they became a regional band. A regional band could have anywhere from 100 to 500 people that would cooperate with each other to serve the purpose of merging together. Most bands of the Athapascan people of the Subarctic were matrilineal and matrilocal; in other words, descent was identified through the female line, and married couples would live for at least some time with the wife's parents. Algonquian people were generally patrilineal and bilateral, as decent could be identified through either line.
When several local bands of an area decided to meet together and temporarily combine for hunting or ceremonial purposes, they became a regional band. A regional band could have anywhere from 100 to 500 people that would cooperate with each other to serve the purpose of merging together. Most bands of the Athapascan people of the Subarctic were matrilineal and matrilocal; in other words, descent was identified through the female line, and married couples would live for at least some time with the wife's parents. Algonquian people were generally patrilineal and bilateral, as decent could be identified through either line.
Ojibwa women stretching hides.
Couples married young, during their teenage years of 13 to 14. Courtship occurred for a year while the man lived with the woman's family and proved his skill. Girls undergoing their first menstruation were secluded inside a special hut, where they were served special food and wore special clothes, preparing to become adults. Boys prove hemselves by hunting by themselves, and shared their first kill of game with the rest of the camp to celebrate. In the family, men were always responsible for hunting and fishing, but they also made hunting equipment as well as snowshoes, toboggans, and canoes for travel. Women used the animals caught to dress the hides and make clothes, gather firewood, cook, and sometimes catch smaller game and fish.
Men hunted the animals for women to treat and work.
Due to the harsh conditions of life, babies often got sick and died soon after coming into the world. Women giving birth were secluded, and when the baby was born, he or she was not named until it was certain that they would survive.
Kinship names were used in most tribes, but they were more of a general term. So the elders of a group would be called "Grandfather" or "Grandmother," whether they were blood relatives or not.
Kinship names were used in most tribes, but they were more of a general term. So the elders of a group would be called "Grandfather" or "Grandmother," whether they were blood relatives or not.
Education and Games
Chipewyan children on the field.
Children did not go to school in the original Subarctic cultures. From a young age, they were raised to know the surviving lifestyles of their people, and participated in many daily activities with adults when they could. Boys began to hunt at the age of 8 to prepare for the rest of their lives of hunting. Children learned to paddle, snowshoe, read animal tracks, know and recognize trails, streams, trees, and plants, process hides and food, and make clothing, traps and snares, and utensils and tools of stone, wood, and bone. No physical punishment was applied to those who did wrong; as an alternative, the group ridiculed and gossipped about the child so they could learn of their wrongs by themselves.
Missionaries schools were built to educate Native children.
With the entrance of European missionaries into North America, they began to set up schools near local bands. Forcing children into their system of education, children were practically kidnapped into schools to be taught English and European customs. Being
forbidden to have any kind of tradition or language of their Native groups, children lacked communication with their family and people. Over time, many ways of old life were forgotten because of this separation from their own cultures.
Games reflected the people's way of life. There were many games that utilized hunting weapons and tools and emphasized accuracy. People threw axes to hit the axe of the last thrower. They speared bone rings on a pin. They had shooting games and a famous game called Snow Snake, where a stick was thrown under the snow. Guessing games were also popular throughout the entire Subarctic region, called "Moccasin games" in the west and "hand games" in the east. One team would guess for a hidden object using hand signs. Score was kept with sticks and pegs.
forbidden to have any kind of tradition or language of their Native groups, children lacked communication with their family and people. Over time, many ways of old life were forgotten because of this separation from their own cultures.
Games reflected the people's way of life. There were many games that utilized hunting weapons and tools and emphasized accuracy. People threw axes to hit the axe of the last thrower. They speared bone rings on a pin. They had shooting games and a famous game called Snow Snake, where a stick was thrown under the snow. Guessing games were also popular throughout the entire Subarctic region, called "Moccasin games" in the west and "hand games" in the east. One team would guess for a hidden object using hand signs. Score was kept with sticks and pegs.
Playing Mocassin (or hand) games using signs.
Games were generally played by men. This was because men had seasonal work and at some point in the year they had lots of their time off. Women also played some games like the "bowl-and-rice" game, the lacrosse-resembling "double-ball" game, and the cup
and pin game. Usually, though, girls spent their free time with carved wooden dolls or hide pieces for sewing.
and pin game. Usually, though, girls spent their free time with carved wooden dolls or hide pieces for sewing.
Language
Languages of the Subarctic had a wide range of variety, but they were generally classified into two language families: Athapascan and Algonquian. Many Athapascan people preferred to be called "Dene," which, in their language, meant "person" or "people." "Athapascan" is actually an Algonquian word meaning "strangers." Most tribes of the west are speakers of the Dene, or Athapascan, language root, while the east and central regions had speakers of the Algonquian root. Different tribes developed different dialects, often to the extent where some groups could not comprehend each other at all, such as in the case of the odd language of the Gwich'in or the Han.
Religion and Ceremonies
The cultural Hero was related with the sun.
The Subarctic people respected nature and all of its inhabitants. Believing that all people, animals, and places had guiding spirits, they had special rituals of children going into the forest alone in order for them to find their guiding spirits. Dreams were held highly, as they were believed to be able to give people knowledge about hunting, food, and clothing. Relationships with family and ancestors were also held valuably. The Hero was a person of old times that was believed to have allowed the life of all Subarctic cultures to prosper, for he is said to have taught the people to hunt animals, not be subjugated by them.
Shamans, or medicine people, were people that were spiritually gifted. All tribes and groups had them, and these special people, usually men, were believed to have the power to communicate with the spirits and the spirit world to ask for blessings. Even the dead could be talked to through these shamans. As all illnesses were thought to be caused through an evil, supernatural spirit entering a person's body or the leaving of his or her soul, shamans helped the sick by taking out the evil spirits or letting the person's soul re-enter his or her body. Death was caused by either old age or a bad spirit killing the person, and shamans allowed the dead person's soul to pass into the afterlife providing it with food, clothing, and tools in the afterlife. Corpses were then placed in trees, covered up, or burned to keep the living people safe from spirits, as it was impossible to bury bodies in the permafrost of the cold areas.
Shamans, or medicine people, were people that were spiritually gifted. All tribes and groups had them, and these special people, usually men, were believed to have the power to communicate with the spirits and the spirit world to ask for blessings. Even the dead could be talked to through these shamans. As all illnesses were thought to be caused through an evil, supernatural spirit entering a person's body or the leaving of his or her soul, shamans helped the sick by taking out the evil spirits or letting the person's soul re-enter his or her body. Death was caused by either old age or a bad spirit killing the person, and shamans allowed the dead person's soul to pass into the afterlife providing it with food, clothing, and tools in the afterlife. Corpses were then placed in trees, covered up, or burned to keep the living people safe from spirits, as it was impossible to bury bodies in the permafrost of the cold areas.
Shamans performed various spiritual rituals.
Most hunts that men went on were long and hard. So whenever hunters were about to set out, shamans carried out a ritual called scapulomancy. It was the reading of cracks in bones that had been thrown into the fire, which shamans used to read the person's future, fortune, or even a map of the area that the hunter would go to during the journey. Hunters then carried with them charms of shamanic powers to protect them, as well as medicine bags for men; the latter were skin pouches that held sacred items such as otters' teeth, bits of beaver tail, and animal claws. All shamans proved themselves by performing some kind of miracle, usually in a "tent-shaking" ceremony, where a shaman, tied up, would be placed in a sealed up tent and emerge from it through trembling of the tent with his bonds gone.
A Cree child dressed for a ceremony.
Ceremonies were usually held to honour family, friends, ancestors, or nature. They involved dancing, storytelling, and craft making and art. People could paint their faces with animal grease and chalky colouring, get tattoos to symbolize relationships, or wear wooden ceremonial masks of spirits or animals for the ceremony. Dancing was almost always accompanied by drums and singing, the latter comprised of much repetition of single notes or sounds. Drums were made of birchbark frames and deerskin covers, and were played with the hand or a mallet. Singing was an action committed toward the spirits to give the people good fortune.
Today, most Natives of the Subarctic have accepted Christianity as their religion. Although they believe in Christian principles and follow Christian holidays, they still retain parts of their traditional life. Merging together the two different styles, they create a unique culture of Christian Natives that take part in traditional ceremonies as well as observing their religious practices.
Today, most Natives of the Subarctic have accepted Christianity as their religion. Although they believe in Christian principles and follow Christian holidays, they still retain parts of their traditional life. Merging together the two different styles, they create a unique culture of Christian Natives that take part in traditional ceremonies as well as observing their religious practices.