Wampum and the Meaning of Belts

Haudenosaunee Indians made beads out of white and purple quahog shells through a difficult process of carving and hollowing them out with a bow drill. These beads, called wampum, were then woven into belts, not to be worn but instead as a way to represent treaties, meetings with other cultures, and other important stories of their history. This wampum belt, known as the Hiawatha belt, is the most famous. The design represents the five original Haudenosaunee nations that the leader Hiawatha helped to unite. From west to east across New York they are the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk. The tree in the center not only represents the Onondaga but also the Great Tree of Peace, where leaders of the five nations buried their weapons. This belt, known as the ‘two-row belt,’ features two parallel lines that represent two boats sailing down a river, one boat representing the Haudenosaunee, and the other boat representing the Dutch, one of the first European groups to settle in the area in the 1600s. The belt is meant as a reminder of a treaty in which the two groups promise to live side-by-side, without conflict. The Dutch and other Europeans traded glass beads with the Haudenosaunee, which were much easier to make than the shell beads. It’s important to know that while European settlers used the term wampum to mean any kind of bead, to the Haudenosaunee wampum were special beads that were never used for money or trade.

[@artiks7240]

Anyone else here from their Civics and Careers class?

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yes 😭

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yeah

[@rickz2696]

I love you artiks

[@Mr.Black_Edits113]

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[@rileywestbrook3012]

It's 2022. Please reframe from using the word "indian" when referring to any Indigenous population. More appropriate terminology would be "Haudenosaunee Peoples". The word "indian" is considered disrespectful as it has deep roots linked to colonialism.