Mohawk First Nations

1. Mohawk First Nations A Presentation by Liam Mason

2. What are the roles of the men, women, children and elderly in the Mohawk first nations tribe? The Mohawk people were great hunters and great warriors. Also known as “people of the flint”, Mohicans hunted in groups. They mainly hunted rabbit, geese, wild turkey, buffalo and deer. The Mohawk people made war on anyone with whom they did not have an alliance with. Their most common enemy were the Wendat (Huron). They battled with power and ferocity. Some believe they ate there enemies.

3. The Mohican Men The Mohican men were mainly hunters, but they also helped build the longhouses. The men also went to war and protected their families. Mohican men were responsible for trading with Europeans or other tribes. Mohicans mostly traded fur and food.

4. The Mohican Women The Mohican women cooked, cleaned, made clothes, took care of the children, helped build the longhouses (everyone who was going to live in the longhouse helped build it) and cleaned the animals that the men hunted. The women had many jobs to do. The chief was always a man but the women chose the chief. If the women did not like the chief or he did not follow the rules he would be kicked out from chief position and the women would chose another chief. The women were very well respected by Mohican men.

5. The Mohican Children The main role of the Mohican children was to learn. The girls would learn from watching and helping her mother. They would learn how to cook, clean, make cloths and whatever else she would have to know how to do in the future. The boys would learn to hunt by going on hunting trips and watching and helping their fathers. The boys would also learn how to build long houses and other things by watching their fathers.

6. The Mohican Elderly The elderly had a very important role and that was story telling. At evening, it was the elderly’s role to tell stories of the Mohican ancestors and spiritual stories. Storytelling was the way that the children and Mohican people learned about there ancestry.

7. Moral The Mohicans teach us the importance of building a strong and healthy community and everyone is respected evenly. Like the men who respect the women as equals and how everyone respects their elders. The Mohicans also teach us the value of learning by watching others that are more experienced.

8. Any Questions? Thank you for watching!