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Oklahoma Delaware ceremonies, feasts and dances

Memoirs of the American Philosophical SocietyPhiladelphia • Published In 1937 • Pages: viii, 161

By: Speck, Frank G. (Frank Gouldsmith).

Abstract
This study is the result of some eight years' work among the Oklahoma Delaware and the Munsee residing in Ontario. Using the many historical documents relating to Delaware ceremonies in the past, the author tries to relate the ceremonies of today to those of the past, and tries to see how much the ceremonies have changed in the intervening two centuries. Speck covers family feasts, the Bear and Otter Rites of the Grease Drinking Ceremony, the Mask Dance Rite, the Buffalo Dance Ceremony, Rain Making Ritual, the Spring Prayer and Football Ceremony, the Corn Harvest Ceremony, Rite to Avert Thunder, Mortuary Rites and Procedures, and several other ceremonies. Some material pertaining to the culture of the Nanticoke Indians, mainly relating to witchcraft, is also included. At the time of publication, Speck was Professor of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania and a noted authority on the Algonquian Indians of the northeastern United States.
Subjects
Dance
Literary texts
Magical and mental therapy
Burial practices and funerals
Mythology
Spirits and gods
Prayers and sacrifices
Magic
Organized ceremonial
Sexuality
culture
Delaware
HRAF PubDate
2003
Region
North America
Sub Region
Eastern Woodlands
Document Type
article
Evaluation
Creator Type
Ethnologist
Document Rating
5: Excellent Primary Data
Analyst
Timothy J. O'Leary ; 1961
Field Date
1928-1932
Coverage Date
1700-1932
Coverage Place
Oklahoma, United States
Notes
By Frank G. Speck
Includes bibliographical references (p. 156-157) and index
LCCN
54040017
LCSH
Delaware Indians