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You are here: Home / History / Why were Winter Ceremonials performed by Northwest Native Americans?

Why were Winter Ceremonials performed by Northwest Native Americans?

June 16, 2020 by Karen Hill

In the spring and summer, most Northwest Native Americans could catch and preserve enough fish to feed them throughout the rest of the year.

This left groups such as the Kwakiutl, Bella Bella, and the Tsimshian free to devote winter months to staging elaborate ceremonies. Through these ceremonies, the Native Americans performed dances that told stories about the supernatural beings they believed controlled the universe.

Winter ceremonials were staged to create high drama and often made use of special effects that rival modern theater productions. Menacing ghost spirits that seemed to dance without human assistance were in fact marionettes, their strings invisible in the soft, ceremonial light.

The eyes of the evil, child-eating Dzonkwa, which seemed to pop out of her face, were actually sheep eyes that before the ceremony had been planted in the hair of the dancer depicting her. And one spirit-creature suddenly appeared to turn into another with the help of brilliantly designed “transformation masks,” whose moving parts allowed dancers to reveal one mask hidden behind another.

Winter ceremonials featured spirited dances that relayed stories of the supernatural. Noted photographer Edward Curtis immortalized a dramatic moment in the Hamatsa Dance, depicting the Cannibal emerging from the woods.

Related Facts

  • Why was contact with non-Native Americans good for Northwest Native Americans?
  • When did Northwest Native Americans first meet non-Native Americans?
  • What language do Native Americans speak and Do Native Americans still speak Indian languages?
  • How did the fur trade affect northeastern Native Americans?
  • Who was the Cannibal at the North End of the World and How is the Hamatsa Dance ritual performed?
  • What types of foods did Northwest Native Americans eat and How did they catch fish?

Filed Under: History

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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