The first Tribal Seal was created in the 1970s by Secretary/Treasurer Beverly Hughes. It was a black circle with “Great Seal of the Citizen Band of Potawatomi Indians of Oklahoma” inside the edge and featured a crossed Cherokee-style pipe and tomahawk over a fire with three logs. When the Tribe changed its name in 1996 to the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, …
Aside from being skilled hunters, fishermen and food gatherers, Potawatomi were successful agriculturalists. Villages used an ancient technique known as slash and burn to clear and convert forests into enriched agricultural fields. The size and pattern of fields utilized the land’s natural shape. Tools made of bone, stone and wood were used to cultivate a variety of crops. Foods planted …
Played throughout the year is a popular game reserved primarily for women called gwzegé’wen [bowl and dice]. Considered a great honor, only certain women are allowed to host games and possess equipment, a right conferred through a dream. Traditionally, women were responsible for hosting annual dodem [clan] feasts in honor of their bowl and dice set. Gaming equipment includes: (1) …
The Indian Gaming & Regulatory Act was a law passed by Congress attempting to mitigate the growing frustration states had with their inability to tax and regulate sovereign Indian nations’ gaming operations. Beginning in the 1960’s and 1970’s, tribal communities across the United States began operating bingo houses to raise money for their communities. As states also attempted to channel …
Cedar is used to bless, purify and protect. Potawatomi use cedar and its smoke in our ceremonies to defend from and combat evil spirits.
Our bmadzewen [existence] is built on a sacred principle of four. Our medicines, lifecycles, directional powers, and the creation and destruction of worlds are connected through this belief, symbolized by our medicine wheel. Color: White [each color represents the four races of man Creator placed on earth] Direction: Wech-ksenyak [North] Season: Bbon [Winter] Life Cycle: Elder Medicine: Wishkpemishkos [Sweetgrass] Element: …
In mnokme, meaning time of good rain, the spirits reawaken and life is restored. With the thunder of approaching storms, it was believed the mnedok (spirits) return home. Ceremonies were performed to thank the spirits for their winter protection and for fertility as new life emerged. In regions of the Great Lakes, the Potawatomi new year began with nmébnégises (sucker …
“You will find the path to the chosen ground, a land in the west where food grows on water.” Migrating from the east and led by our sacred Megis shell, our ancestors established a new home in the Great Lakes. Here they found the prophesized food on water, mnomen (the good seed) or wild rice. A sacred and essential food, …
One of the most prominent and competitive winter games among Bodéwadmi is the Moccasin Game. Forming two teams, each are comprised of a finder/hider, scorekeeper, drummers and singers. Using theatrics, each team is tasked with hiding a small wooden ball under one of four moccasins in an attempt to disguise its location and confuse opponents. With the ball concealed, drummers …
13in L x 8.5in W x 1.5in H The 234-page medical journal was researched and recorded by Joseph Napoleon Bourassa, who studied medicine at the Choctaw Academy and had close relationships with traditional medicine men before and after removal. Listed are health conditions and their medicinal therapies. Each treatment is recorded as a recipe, noting wild plants harvested and processed. …