March is designated as Women’s History Month; thus, it seems
appropriate to explore the role of women in our archaeological and cultural
heritage. While it is important to have
a focus on significant women in our past and present, a woman is much more than
a historic figure to honor once a year. In
some Native American society’s women are viewed as the giver of life and Mother
Earth as the giver of all things on the earth. She is a sacred figure and has
garnered respect and acknowledgement of her significance.
Native American tribes such as the Lenape (Delaware) and
Haudenosaunee (Iroquois and Tuscarora) are matrilineal societies instead of the
typical patrilineal societies from Europe. Meaning that you descended from your
mother’s clan, not your father’s. It also meant that women were involved in the
decision-making process for the greater good of the tribe.
Nora Thompson Dean (left) and Lucy Parks, 1977.
Image courtesy of Jim Rementer, Delaware Tribe of Indians
Nora Thompson Dean was
a member of the Delaware Tribe of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and an important
keeper of their cultural heritage. Nora wrote about the role of Delaware women in
a matrilineal society stating, “the children belong to the clan or group of the
mother, and therefore, even if one was the son or daughter of a chief, they
would not be a prince or princess as was the case with European royalty. The
successor to the chieftaincy was the chief’s sister’s son, or the nearest male
relative to the chief within the same clan. This gave women a powerful voice in
tribal matters, but in spite of this ‘voice,’ it was the tradition for women to
not speak out at public gatherings such as councils.” (delawaretribe.org/blog/2016/08/07)
In Haudenosaunee culture (Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca,
Tuscarora) the chief and clan mother share leadership roles. The clan mother
chooses and advises the chief, placing and holding him in office. The clan
mother also has the responsibility of removing a chief who doesn’t listen to
the people and make good decisions, giving due consideration to seven
generations in the future. To be chosen as a chief, the man cannot be a warrior
(since it is a confederacy based on peace), nor can he have ever stolen
anything or abused a woman. Women live free of fearing violence from men. The
spiritual belief in the sacredness of women and the earth — the mutual creators
of life — make abuse almost unthinkable.
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Indigenous women planting |
Not
unlike the Native Americans who lived here when Europeans began arriving in
North America, settler women were often responsible for domestic chores-
cooking, cleaning, gardening, and raising children. Each group practiced their methods of planting
and harvesting- often embedded in their cultural practices of following
celestial signs, seasonal change, and traditional stories. Haudenosaunee gardening of corn, beans and
squash are commonly identified as the three sisters- significant for their
ability to grow together in mounds of soil. Nora Dean describes the Delaware practice of
cooking as done with intent- “we think that the person’s mind when they are
cooking has something to do with the health of the ones who eat the food. The
cook must be in a good frame of mind during the food preparation, not angry, or ill, and have an inside prayer
to the Creator that what she prepares will bring strength and happiness to the
consumer of the food”.
How often have we heard the expressions made with love, homemade
is best, lovin from the oven, or my favorite- no one makes it like my mom. Recipes
that have been handed down through multiple generations don’t have a byline to “make
while in a good frame of mind” but the act of cooking heritage dishes by women
is a powerful expression of cultural traditions. The consumption of these
dishes connects families to the past and to memories of the ancestors who
shared the recipes and traditions for future generations.
A mother’s words are often the first that a child hears. The significance
of language to the Indigenous community in retaining their cultural heritage
has been an important initiative for many women. Nora Thompson Dean worked with Jim Rementer in
recording and developing the Lenape
Talking Dictionary. Francine
Patterson (1952-2020), a previous clan mother of the Tuscarora learned the
language from elders, she later recorded the language to develop a
comprehensive Tuscarora dictionary. The work of these women and other members
of the Native American tribal community are working to preserve their language
and culture for future generations. Teaching children their native language is important
in identifying with their heritage and is a practice continued today by cultures
around the world.
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Francine Patterson, of the Tuscarora Nation sharing cultural heritage with a class of high school students. Image from the collection of The State Museum of Pennsylvania.
Women in Indigenous cultures made pottery from clay, sand, shell,
and grit; all by hand while teaching their daughters the craft and skill
required to make a cooking or storage vessel. They cleaned and scraped animal hides to sew garments,
gathered reeds and grasses to make baskets, collected fruits and nuts in
addition to tending gardens and they were the caretakers of the elders. The
definition of multi-tasking was unknown to them, but their tenacity gave them
the ability to do all these tasks.
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Native American pottery. |
This same tenacity has been demonstrated by women from all
cultures and times. Farm laborers and domestics became the factory workers of
the Industrial era. Women working in the
mills were controlled by company rules and long hours of work at minimal wages.
These are the women who led the way for labor laws, voting rights, and access
to advanced education. Sacrifices of
those before us opened up opportunities to be mechanics, soldiers, fire
fighters and scientists. Women are clan mothers, union leaders, caregivers,
teachers, and librarians whose contributions to society are heralded. Some of these women are among those
highlighted in the many articles surrounding Women’s History Month, but of
equal significance are the autonomous women, often silent, who continuously labor
to preserve their heritage and cultural traditions.
Archaeologists examine the artifacts
of the past- broken pottery, hide scrapers, porcelain dish fragments, canning
jars, and sewing implements as items of material culture to aid in interpreting
daily activities of the people who made or used these objects. As such, we look
for patterns of distribution to examine movement across the landscape, we
search for changes in technology- shape or size of a projectile point, temper
or design of the pottery, dietary remains- all tools for reconstructing the
past. Examining these remains, the tangible evidence of past cultures, and putting
them in the proper context can be challenging. Making the connection to their cultural
significance often relies on the keepers of cultural heritage. Thank you to the
women of the world who continue to practice your cultural traditions and share your knowledge with others. We hope
you’ve enjoyed this post in celebration of women and invite you to visit our Women of
Archaeology blogs on this site as well as the on-line collections
of The Pennsylvania
Historical and Museum Commission.
References
Kraft, Herbert C.
1983 The
Lenape, Archaeology, History, and Ethnography. New Jersey Historical
Society.
Parker, Arthur C.
1989 Seneca Myths
and Folk Tales. Introduction by William C. Fenton. Lincoln: University of
Nebraska Press.
Snow, Dean R.
1994 The Iroquois
(Peoples of America). Blackwell Publishers, Malden.
3/14/2023
https://www.haudenosauneeconfederacy.com/historical-life-as-a-haudenosaunee/family-structure/
For more information, visit PAarchaeology.state.pa.us or the Hall of Anthropology and Archaeology at The State Museum of Pennsylvania .
