What is a pow wow?!
Pow Wows are social gatherings of hundreds of Native Americans who follow dances started centuries ago by their ancestors and that continually evolve to include contemporary aspects. These events of feasting, drum music and dance are attended by Natives and non-Natives, all of whom join in the dancing and take advantage of the opportunity to see old friends and teach the traditional ways to a younger generation.
Pow Wows have deep historical roots, going back to the early to mid-19th century when huge summer gatherings of tribes were held on the plains, according to Richard West, Director of the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) . The Heluska society of the Omaha in Nebraska had a certain dance with a lively step that it would perform, and other tribes began to notice it. As the concept spread, tribes embraced the tradition of dancing and singing in different ways, adding their own variations. The roots of modern Pow Wows date back 50 to 70 years. From the small gatherings held on college campuses to large urban areas, today's powwows are contemporary intertribal versions of those 19th-century Pow Wows.
They also serve to unite Indians. "One of the things the federal government did in the dog days of adverse Indian policy was to separate us Indian communities from one another," says West, Director of the NMAI. "Pow Wows are a powerful contemporary device for getting together as Indians; and, in that respect, they are a potent cultural and social connector among contemporary Indian communities."
-source and more info
This subforum is a place to have group activities like races and hunting.. more will be added. any ideas? PM soquili
Pow Wows are social gatherings of hundreds of Native Americans who follow dances started centuries ago by their ancestors and that continually evolve to include contemporary aspects. These events of feasting, drum music and dance are attended by Natives and non-Natives, all of whom join in the dancing and take advantage of the opportunity to see old friends and teach the traditional ways to a younger generation.
Pow Wows have deep historical roots, going back to the early to mid-19th century when huge summer gatherings of tribes were held on the plains, according to Richard West, Director of the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) . The Heluska society of the Omaha in Nebraska had a certain dance with a lively step that it would perform, and other tribes began to notice it. As the concept spread, tribes embraced the tradition of dancing and singing in different ways, adding their own variations. The roots of modern Pow Wows date back 50 to 70 years. From the small gatherings held on college campuses to large urban areas, today's powwows are contemporary intertribal versions of those 19th-century Pow Wows.
They also serve to unite Indians. "One of the things the federal government did in the dog days of adverse Indian policy was to separate us Indian communities from one another," says West, Director of the NMAI. "Pow Wows are a powerful contemporary device for getting together as Indians; and, in that respect, they are a potent cultural and social connector among contemporary Indian communities."
-source and more info
This subforum is a place to have group activities like races and hunting.. more will be added. any ideas? PM soquili
