Book

The Iroquois ceremonial of Midwinter

Syracuse University Press • Syracuse, N.Y. • Published In 1970 • Pages:

By: Tooker, Elisabeth.

Abstract

Traditionally the Midwinter Ceremonial was the largest and most complex of Iroquois rituals. This study is divided into three major parts. In part I the author describes some of the basic principles of Iroquois ritualism, which are then interpreted in terms of the various components of the ceremonial itself (part II). In this section Tooker discusses cultural variations between different members of the Iroquois League (e.g., Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga), and changes that have been introduced in the ritual during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Part III of this work presents the Midwinter Ceremonial in historical perspective. Here, through the eyewitness accounts of Halliday Jackson, Mary Jemison, Thaddeus Osgood, Lewis Henry Morgan, and J. V. H. Clark the Midwinter Ceremonial is described in detail as it was originally performed during the eighteenth through nineteenth centuries.

HRAF PubDate

1996

Region

North America

Sub Region

Eastern Woodlands

Document Type

Book

Evaluation

Creator Type

Ethnologist

Document Rating

4: Excellent Secondary Data

5: Excellent Primary Data

Analyst

John Beierle ; 1994

Field Date

1958-1966 (p. xi)

Coverage Date

variable

Coverage Place

United States and Canada

Notes

Elisabeth Tooker

Includes index.|Bibliography: p. 179-183

LCCN

70119873

LCSH

Iroquois Indians