Hiawatha
Mythological Narrative
An Onondaga man who, grieving the loss of his daughters, strung the first shell strings of condolence and became the Peacemaker's partner and spokesman in founding the Great Law of Peace. Not the character of Longfellow's poem, which borrowed only his name.
Academic Discussion & Critique
Exchange peer-reviewed hypotheses, comparative Indo-European etymologies, and archaeological field interpretations regarding Hiawatha.
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Jikonhsaseh
The woman who, in Haudenosaunee tradition, was the first to accept the Peacemaker's message; in recognition the Peacemaker gave the women of the nations the responsibility of choosing and removing chiefs, and she is remembered as the Mother of Nations.
The Peacemaker
The messenger of the Great Law of Peace, who in Haudenosaunee tradition crossed the lake in a white stone canoe, joined with Hiawatha, and brought the five warring nations together under one law. Many Haudenosaunee people avoid speaking his personal name outside ceremony, so this site uses his title.
Tadodaho
The feared Onondaga leader, described with snakes in his hair and a twisted body, who resisted the Great Peace until the Peacemaker and Hiawatha straightened his mind; he became the Confederacy's Firekeeper, and his title is still held today.
Aqhat
The long-awaited son of the righteous Danel, given a divine bow by the craftsman god, who refuses to give it to the goddess Anat even for immortality and is killed for it.