dance. By
George Catlin The Ojibwe have traditionally organized themselves into groups known as
bands. Most Ojibwe, except for the Great Plains bands, have historically lived a settled (as opposed to nomadic) lifestyle, relying on fishing and hunting to supplement the cultivation of numerous varieties of
maize and
squash, and the harvesting of
manoomin (wild rice) for food. Historically their typical dwelling has been the
wiigiwaam (
wigwam), built either as a
waginogaan (domed-lodge) or as a ''nasawa'ogaan'' (pointed-lodge), made of birch bark,
juniper bark and
willow saplings. In the contemporary era, most of the people live in modern housing, but traditional structures are still used for special sites and events. They have a culturally-specific form of pictorial writing, used in the religious rites of the
Midewiwin and recorded on birch bark scrolls and possibly on rock. The many complex pictures on the sacred scrolls communicate much historical, geometrical, and mathematical knowledge, as well as images from their spiritual pantheon. The use of
petroforms,
petroglyphs, and
pictographs has been common throughout the Ojibwe traditional territories. Petroforms and
medicine wheels have been used to teach important spiritual concepts, record astronomical events, and to use as a
mnemonic device for certain stories and beliefs. The script is still in use, among traditional people as well as among youth on social media. Some ceremonies use the
miigis shell (
cowry shell), which is found naturally in distant coastal areas. Their use of such shells demonstrates there is a vast, longstanding trade network across the continent. The use and trade of
copper across the continent has also been proof of a large trading network that took place for thousands of years, as far back as the
Hopewell tradition. Certain types of rock used for spear and arrow heads have also been traded over large distances precontact. During the summer months, the people attend
jiingotamog for the spiritual and ''niimi'idimaa'' for a social gathering (
powwows) at various reservations in the Anishinaabe-Aki (Anishinaabe Country). Many people still follow the traditional ways of harvesting wild rice, picking berries, hunting, making medicines, and making
maple sugar. The jingle dress that is typically worn by female pow wow dancers originated from the Ojibwe. Both Plains and Woodlands Ojibwe claim the earliest form of dark cloth dresses decorated with rows of tin cones - often made from the lids of tobacco cans- that make a jingling sound when worn by the dancer. This style of dress is now popular with all tribes and is a distinctly Ojibwe contribution to Pan-Indianism. The Ojibwe bury their dead in
burial mounds. Many erect a
jiibegamig or a "
spirit house" over each mound. An historical burial mound would typically have a wooden marker, inscribed with the deceased's
doodem (clan sign). Because of the distinct features of these burials, Ojibwe graves have been often looted by grave robbers. In the United States, many Ojibwe communities safe-guard their burial mounds through the enforcement of the 1990
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. Several Ojibwe bands in the United States cooperate in the
Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission, which manages the treaty hunting and fishing rights in the Lake Superior-
Lake Michigan areas. The commission follows the directives of U.S. agencies to run
several wilderness areas. Some Minnesota Ojibwe tribal councils cooperate in the
1854 Treaty Authority, which manages their treaty hunting and fishing rights in the
Arrowhead Region. In Michigan, the Chippewa-Ottawa Resource Authority manages the hunting, fishing and gathering rights about Sault Ste. Marie, and the resources of the waters of lakes Michigan and Huron. In Canada, the Grand Council of Treaty No. 3 manages the
Treaty 3 hunting and fishing rights related to the area around
Lake of the Woods.
Cuisine There is renewed interest in nutritious eating among the Ojibwe, who have been expanding community gardens in
food deserts, and have started a mobile kitchen to teach their communities about nutritious food preparation. The traditional Native American diet was seasonally dependent on hunting, fishing and the foraging and farming of produce and grains. The modern diet has substituted some other types of food like
frybread and "Indian tacos" in place of these traditionally prepared meals. The Native Americans loss of connection to their culture is part of the "quest to reconnect to their food traditions" sparking an interest in traditional ingredients like
wild rice, that is the official state grain of Minnesota and Michigan, and was part of the pre-colonial diet of the Ojibwe. Other staple foods of the Ojibwe were fish, maple sugar, venison and corn. They grew beans, squash, corn and potatoes and foraged for blueberries, blackberries, choke cherries, raspberries, gooseberries and huckleberries. During the summer game animals like deer, beaver, moose, goose, duck, rabbits and bear were hunted. One traditional method of making granulated sugar known among the Anishinabe was to boil
maple syrup until reduced and pour into a trough, where the rapidly cooling syrup was quickly processed into maple sugar using wooden paddles.
Kinship and clan system Traditionally, the Ojibwe had a
patrilineal system, in which children were considered born to the father's
clan. For this reason, children with French or English fathers were considered outside the clan and Ojibwe society unless adopted by an Ojibwe male. They were sometimes referred to as "white" because of their fathers, regardless if their mothers were Ojibwe, as they had no official place in the Ojibwe society. The people would shelter the woman and her children, but they did not have the same place in the culture as children born to Ojibwe fathers. Ojibwe understanding of kinship is complex and includes the immediate family as well as extended family. It is considered a modified
bifurcate merging kinship system. As with any bifurcate-merging kinship system, siblings generally share the same kinship term with
parallel cousins because they are all part of the same clan. The modified system allows for younger siblings to share the same kinship term with younger cross-cousins. Complexity wanes further from the person's immediate generation, but some complexity is retained with female relatives. For example,
ninooshenh is "my mother's sister" or "my father's sister-in-law"i.e., my parallel-aunt, but also "my parent's female cross-cousin". Great-grandparents and older generations, as well as great-grandchildren and younger generations, are collectively called
aanikoobijigan. This system of kinship reflects the Anishinaabe philosophy of interconnectedness and balance among all living generations, as well as of all generations of the past and of the future. The Ojibwe people were divided into a number of
doodemag (clans; singular:
doodem) named primarily for animals and birds
totems (pronounced
doodem). The word in the Ojibwe language means "my fellow clansman." The five original totems were
Wawaazisii (Bullhead),
Baswenaazhi/"
Ajiijaak" ("Echo-maker", i.e., Crane), ''Aan'aawenh
(Pintail Duck), Nooke
("Tender", i.e., Bear) and Moozwaanowe'' ("Little" Moose-tail). The Crane totem was the most vocal among the Ojibwe, and the Bear was the largest – so large, that it was sub-divided into body parts such as the head, the ribs and the feet. Each clan had certain responsibilities among the people. People had to marry a spouse from a different clan. Traditionally, each band had a self-regulating council consisting of leaders of the communities' clans, or
odoodemaan. The band was often identified by the principal
doodem. In meeting others, the traditional greeting among the Ojibwe people is, "What is your 'doodem'?" ("
Aaniin gidoodem?" or "
Awanen gidoodem?") The response allows the parties to establish social conduct by identifying as family, friends or enemies. Today, the greeting has been shortened to "
Aanii (pronounced "Ah-nee").
Spiritual beliefs The Ojibwe have spiritual beliefs that have been passed down by
oral tradition under the Midewiwin teachings. These include a
creation story and a recounting of the origins of ceremonies and rituals. Spiritual beliefs and rituals were very important to the Ojibwe because spirits guided them through life. Birch bark scrolls and petroforms were used to pass along knowledge and information, as well as for ceremonies. Pictographs were also used for ceremonies. The
sweatlodge is still used during important ceremonies about the four directions, when oral history is recounted. Teaching lodges are common today to teach the next generations about the language and ancient ways of the past. The traditional ways, ideas, and teachings are preserved and practiced in such living ceremonies. (1929). The modern
dreamcatcher, adopted by the
Pan-Indian Movement and
New Age groups, originated in the Ojibwe "spider web charm", a hoop with woven string or sinew meant to replicate a spider's web, used as a protective charm for infants. According to Ojibwe legend, the protective charms originate with the
Spider Woman, known as
Asibikaashi; who takes care of the children and the people on the land and as the Ojibwe Nation spread to the corners of North America it became difficult for Asibikaashi to reach all the children, so the mothers and grandmothers wove webs for the children, which had an
apotropaic purpose and were not explicitly connected with dreams.
Funeral practices Traditional In Ojibwe tradition, the main task after a death is to bury the body as soon as possible, the very next day or even on the day of death. This was important because it allowed the spirit of the dead to journey to its place of joy and happiness. The land of happiness where the dead reside is called
Gaagige Minawaanigozigiwining. This was a journey that took four days. If burial preparations could not be completed the day of the death, guests and medicine men were required to stay with the deceased and the family in order to help mourn, while also singing songs and dancing throughout the night. Once preparations were complete, the body would be placed in an inflexed position with their knees towards their chest. Over the course of the four days it takes the spirit to journey to its place of joy, it is customary to have food kept alongside the grave at all times. A fire is set when the sun sets and is kept going throughout the night. The food is to help feed the spirit over the course of the journey, while the smoke from the fire is a directional guide. Once the four–day journey is over, a feast is held, which is led by the chief
medicine man. At the feast, it is the chief medicine man's duty to give away certain belongings of the deceased. Those who were chosen to receive items from the deceased are required to trade in a new piece of clothing, all of which would be turned into a bundle. The bundle of new clothes and a dish is then given to the closest relative. The recipient of the bundle must then find individuals that he or she believes to be worthy, and pass on one of the new pieces of clothing.
Contemporary According to Lee Staples, an Ojibwe spiritual leader from the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation, present day practices follow the same spiritual beliefs and remain fairly similar. When an individual dies, a fire is lit in the home of the family, who are also expected to continuously maintain the fire for four days. Over the four days, food is also offered to the spirit. Added to food offerings, tobacco is also offered as it is considered one of four sacred medicines traditionally used by Ojibwe communities. On the last night of food offerings, a feast is also held by the relatives which ends with a final smoke of the offering tobacco or the tobacco being thrown in the fire. Although conventional caskets are mainly used in today's communities, birch bark fire matches are buried along with the body as a tool to help light fires to guide their journey to
Gaagige Minawaanigozigiwining. and
Pinus strobus, the resin of which was used to treat infections and
gangrene. The roots of
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae are smoked in pipes to attract game.
Allium tricoccum is eaten as part of Ojibwe cuisine. They also use a
decoction as a quick-acting
emetic. An
infusion of the
alba subspecies of
Silene latifolia is used as
physic. The South Ojibwa use a decoction of the root
Viola canadensis for pains near the bladder. The Ojibwa are documented to use the root of
Uvularia grandiflora for pain in the
solar plexus, which may refer to
pleurisy. They take a compound decoction of the root of
Ribes glandulosum for back pain and for "female weakness". The Ojibwe eat the corms of
Sagittaria cuneata for indigestion, and also as a food, eaten boiled fresh, dried or candied with maple sugar. Muskrat and beavers store them in large caches, which they have learned to recognize and appropriate. They take an infusion of the
Antennaria howellii ssp. neodioica after childbirth to purge afterbirth and to heal. They use the roots of
Solidago rigida, using a decoction of root as an enema and take an infusion of the root for "stoppage of urine". They use
Abies balsamea; melting the gum on warm stones and inhaling the fumes for headache. They also use a
decoction of the root as an herbal steam for rheumatic joints. They use the needle-like leaves in as part of ceremony involving the sweatbath, and use the gum for colds and inhale the leaf smoke for colds. They use the plant as a cough medicine. The gum is used for sores and a compound containing leaves is used as wash. The liquid balsam from bark blisters is used for sore eyes. A decoction (tea) of powdered, dried
Onoclea sensibilis root is used to stimulate milk flow in female patients. ==Bands==