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For Native Americans, play is serious business.
Games and sports are often played in a sacred way to benefit the whole tribe. A game might be played to honor the dead or to gain favor with spirits. It also might be played to heal illnesses, to gain favorable weather, or to change an unwanted situation.
In the past, games also provided training for the important jobs of hunting and warfare. In addition, games strengthened the social ties of a tribe. Not just because they were open to all members, but also because most games were team sports that stressed the value of cooperation.
Native American games fall into two major categories: games of chance and games of skill. Gambling was a key element of games of chance. Far from undercutting the spiritual nature of the game, gambling actually boosted a game’s sacred purpose. According to an Iroquois teaching, the purpose of a game of chance was to remind players that the things around them did not belong to them, but rather to the world. Playing a game and taking the chance of losing material possessions sends a message to the Creator that one is grateful for the use of things and willing to share them with others. Despite their spiritual and social significance, however, games are also fun. Come join Native Americans—at play.
▲ Little Brother of War is what Indians of the Southeast called stickball, which developed into the modern game of lacrosse. A stickball game might go from midmorning to late afternoon without a break. Pushing, pulling, butting, and biting were allowed, and bloodshed and broken bones were common. Versions of stickball were played all over America.
▲ Hoop and pole games were played all over America north of Mexico. In the game, two males shoot spears, arrows, or darts at a hoop. Points are scored based on where they enter the hoop. The game sharpens a player’s aim, which improves his skill at hunting food.
In the East and on the Plains, only women played double ball, but in northern California, men played the game. Players used a stick with a crook on one end to throw two balls that were connected by a strip of hide. The object was to toss the balls over the opponent’s goal. ▶
◀ There are many versions of the hidden ball game, also called the moccasin game. An object is either hidden in one of four hollow tubes, under a piece of buckskin, or under one of four moccasins. Players try to guess where the object is located, sometimes by pointing to it with a stick. After the arrival of Europeans in the Americas, the hidden object was often a bullet.
Among Native Americans, cat’s cradle wasn’t just a game for young people. Skilled weavers could create animals, birds, butterflies, or fish. They also could make household objects or show humans involved in various activities. ▶
Native Tongue
Here are some Native American words (with their tribal source) that are used in English.
◀ The World Eskimo-Indian Olympics were founded in 1961. They re-create ancient tests of skill and endurance. These were once used to prepare young men for the harsh conditions of Arctic hunting. Today’s games open with the Race of the Torch, and their logo is six interlocking rings. The rings represent the six main Alaska Native tribes: Aleut, Athabascan, Eskimo (made up mostly of Inupiat and Yupik), Haida, Tlingit, and Tsimshian. The games’ events include the Alaskan High Kick and the Blanket Toss. They also include the Ear Weight, in which contestants walk with 16 pounds of lead hanging from an ear until they can no longer support the weight.
▲ For centuries, Native Americans ran to train for warfare and hunting. They also ran to carry messages over large areas, to enact certain myths, and to keep in touch with the forces of nature. In 1992, a group of mostly Native Americans ran toward the Pyramid of the Sun, in Mexico. A similar group of South Americans met them there. Their meeting was a protest of the 500th anniversary of Columbus’s landing in America.
◀ Through attendance at boarding schools, Native Americans began to participate in modern American sports. Jim Thorpe was of Sac and Fox-Potawatomi heritage. He won two gold medals at the 1912 Olympics—in the pentathlon and the decathlon. The International Olympic Committee later took his medals from him. Why? Because in 1909 and 1910, Thorpe had unknowingly given up his amateur standing. He had taken $2.00 a day in expense money for playing minor league baseball. Thorpe didn’t try to get his medals back. But in 1982, the Jim Thorpe Foundation was set up to try to restore his medals. In 1983, the Olympic Committee presented replicas of Thorpe’s medals to his heirs.
Check It Out!
There are 26 U.S. states that got their names from Native American languages. How many of them can you name?
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
