They were horticulturalist meaning they did not hunt or gather. Iroquois women produced about 65% of all products. The women were valued by the community for their labor and for their contribution to village subsistence. Iroquois found most of their food in the forest. Iroquois hunted deer, bear, duck and turkey.
Throughout the culture there is no social stratification but respect was given to those who were able to hunt and gather more than others. But by being generally egalitarian no one was poor or rich. For many hunter-gatherer societies their diverse ecosystem is the deciding factor for their survival. Many cultures alter their habitat for a better chance of survival but the native Inuit people were not able to do such due to the in climate weather. The Inuit, that inhabited Northern America within the Artic region, are almost pure hunters due to the fact that there is hardly any edible plant life.
Each one had their own laws, government, police, and services. Kind of like they were a small country. They still had to obey Canada's laws though. Kwakiutl Indians were artists known for their basketry and wood carving art. They made Totem poles thinking they were religious carvings.
Through logic, reasoning and spiritual means, he inspired the warriors to bury their weapons and planted atop a sacred Tree of Peace." Here's a description of the Great Law of Peace, from the Official Six Nations Web Site. Peace was more than the absence of war - the Iroquois considered it as harmony with nature, one's surroundings, and one's brothers. Here's the text of the Great Law of
He further writes that the reason which they settled without many disputes was pocahontas and she being married to John Rolfe deserves respect and honor. John Smith was interested to govern Indians with great outcomes. His ways were not that harsh. He wanted to settle matters with the Indians. Whereas John Martin had a different point of view.
However they have not real leader or Chief. On the other hands, there would be a band chief who was supported if the band could catch enough game for food, and deal with the outsiders in the Assiniboine. Generally the leader is wise and patient or shows other qualities of leadership. According to Getty “Leadership was earned by superior hunting skills, through personal achievement in battle or attacks on an enemy, and by showing kindness and generosity to others” (par.9). The Assiniboine bands only come together in the summer because of Buffalo herds are concentrated together a tribe can perhaps perform a buffalo
Instead of relying on the land to supply food for us, people can go to their local grocery store and buy pre packaged, ready to cook meat. This is much easier and ethical than sitting and waiting hours at a time in the wilderness for an animal to walk by. People know that they will not starve because all they have to do is drive a mile or two down the road to pick up some food at the store, unlike in the past when people had to hunt for their survival and didn’t know when the next time they would eat or if they would eat at all. Today, almost no one is involved in hunting only, because hunting for survival is no longer a concern. If people hunted just for the meat, then no one would do it.
Due to the comparable harsh environments faced by indigenous peoples in these circumpolar regions, cultural similarities have arisen and remain with regards to the importance and role of the shaman. The initiation of novice shamans, the kind of spirits they possess and communicate with, and their ability to heal and aid in the hunt are comparable in hunter-gatherer tribes of both northern Siberia and northern North America. Similarly, the Inuit, Inupiat and Yup'ik people of the circumpolar regions of North America acquired the majority of their food through hunting of sea mammals, fishing and the hunting of caribou (Klevan, & Sonne, 1985). The circumpolar indigenous peoples of North America did not domesticate reindeer/caribou, but used dogs as the main draught animal. In the circumpolar tribes of both continents, the social status and expectations of a shaman were the same.
Traditionally, bragging was believed to tempt the animals to avoid that hunter and anyone who hunts with him and will potentially deprive the family and community in which they live from food. The men of the Inuit people were the hunters for their meat supply which was their main source of food. The Inuit men did most of the work like hunting and building. The women cooked, sewed, made fishing nets, and took care of the children. The women also made roofs for the houses by tanning hides and harvested food and preserved it.
The first people of the Arctic, hunted walrus and eat dogs when they went hungry, they also hunter caribou and fish in small groups. The Inuit followed the wales, seals and caribou. The technology was a great difference between the native groups. The people of Atlantic Canada for example constructed fish traps, made bows and arrows, they also made spears, clubs and long stemmed pipes. They made birchbark canoes, show shoes and the unique technology of the toggle head spear.