Within the Iroquois Confederacy

What was the role and status of men and women

Women – worked for the good of the village –

together with others

Planted tended, & irrigated the crops – beans, corn & squash ( Three Sisters)

Took care of the childrenCookingMade clothes In charge of croplands and

longhousesMen came to live in his

wife’s longhouseChildren born into the

mother’s clan

Hunting - partiesFishingFighting – to defend,

to expand territory, (later) control valuable fur trade with Europeans

Cutting down trees to build canoes and longhouses

In the Confederacy – traditional roles- equals political and in society – all worked for the common good. Men – rarely worked

alone- all for the benefit of the community

In the Confederacy, men and women had traditional roles. Men were responsible for hunting, fishing, fighting, and cutting down trees. To build canoes and longhouses. The longhouses were huge buildings that housed many families. Although they had the Great Peace, the Iroquois often fought against other First Nations. They fought to defend themselves, to expand their territory, or later, to control the valuable fur trade with the Europeans. The nations of the Confed3eracy, however, did not fight one another.

ROLE OF IROQUOIS WOMENIroquois women had more freedom and responsibility

than women inmost other societies. They tended the crops and the children. They were in charge of the croplands and the longhouses. When a Iroquois couple married, the name would live in his wife’s longhouse. Children were born into the mother’s clan.

Like the men, women worked with one another for the good of the village. They planted and irrigated the crops. The Iroquois grew beans, corn, and squash. These three crops were so important to the Iroquois that they called them the Three Sisters and held celebrations to honor them. Iroquois women also did the cooking and made all the clothing.

ROLE OF IROQUOIS MENIroquois men rarely worked alone. They relied upon

one another to accomplish their goals. They did not go hunting by themselves, but in large hunting parties. These hunting parties would split up into groups. One group would scare the animals by making lots of noise. The animals would panic and run from the hunters – straight toward the other groups that was waiting for them.

An Iroquois man worked for the benefit of his community, not just for himself or his family. Any profit from hunting or trade went to the community. Even powerful men, such as chiefs, were not rich. The village, clan, and nation were more important than the individual.

Although women headed the clans, men served as the chiefs on the Grand Council, which was the government of the Iroquois. The men organized cooperative hunting and fishing parties to provide meat for the village. They cut trees to make longhouses and canoes. They organized team sports such as lacrosse that were part of many seasonal celebration.

Lacrosse was a sport played for fun, but it also trained men for their other tasks in life. It built leadership skills as well as endurance, strength, and speed for hunting and warfare. Games would sometimes last for days.

Wars were fought exclusively by men, although the women often decided whether or not war was to be declared.

Once the Confederacy was formed, fighting among the Iroquois stopped. However, warfare continued with nations that did not want to be part of the Great Peace.

Although Iroquois men and women had separate and well-defined roles, they were equals in society. They were also political equals. They relied upon one another for the good of the village, clan, nation, and

Confederacy.

TOTAL EQUALS

Clan mothers were the leaders of the clan. The title of clan mother was usually passed on to her female relatives: her sisters or her daughters. The Great Law of Peace gave the clan mother ownership of the chieftainship title. This means that clan mothers had the responsibility of selecting the chiefs for their own clan. Clan mothers today have as much importance and respect as they did in the past.

The Importance of the Clan Mother

The clan mother would look for certain characteristics when choosing a chief for her clan:

Honesty and kind-heartedness

Ability to think clearlyKnowledge of traditional

ceremoniesLoyalty to familyAbility to uphold the Great

LawAbility to represent the

people fairlyAbility to withstand criticism

1. What do you think these leadership characteristics suggest about the values of Haudenosaunee society?

2. What other characteristics do you consider important in a leader?

How a clan mother chose a chief

Questions to answer

Which of the following tasks would an Iroquois man have bee least likely to perform?

a) Fishingb) Huntingc) Farmingd) Carpentry

Use a Venn diagram to compare the status of Iroquoisand Athenian women. Consider such aspects as dailyactivities, status in society, and political power.

Practice question