About the Kwakiutl Indians

The Kwakiutl is a group of Indian tribes now living in British Columbia, whose culture is recognized for the artistic totem poles and ritualistic masks. Before coming in contact with settlers during the late 1700s, they had a complex stratified society with chiefs and nobles and slaves that included their tradition called the potlatch. The Kwakiutls traded furs with the explorers and began to incorporate the Western life into their tribal ways. In the 1800s, they started working for commercial fishing companies. All these changes plus the European diseases nearly devastated their numbers. They declined from 8,000 to under 1,000. Today, the Kwakiutl population has grown to about 3,500 and most continue to work in the fishing industry.

Function

Hierarchy was an important element of the Kwakiutls who lived in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and British Columbia. Gift giving, or a ritual that is known as the potlatch, was a way of perpetuating this social stratification. A tribal group would host a potlatch, and members would give away nearly all of their material wealth to indicate their support of the other tribes and to retain their social status. Potlatches were frequently held to celebrate a major family event, as a birth, a coming of age or a marriage. Throughout the centuries, gifts changed from blankets and furs and slaves to jewelry and cash to appliances. It was a primary way to keep a harmonious balance among tribes. Potlatches are still held today, but they are now large feasts for baby showers or namings, weddings, anniversaries, graduations and memorials.

Significance

The totem pole was another way of representing family history, social standing and important events in a chief or noble's life. The crest figures, resting one on top of another served a number of different purposes, such as a display of family ancestry, a memorial to a tribal member, or as a doorway to a house. Specific animals on the poles often related a story and were associated with the people in a clan. The painting and carvings demonstrated the power of these totems and the status of the person or group of people who owned the pole. The totem poles were adorned with bears, birds, or animals from the ocean or forest. The totem poles were carved out of a variety of woods such as cedar, maple and yew with tools that changed over time from stone, to shell and horn to steel. Artists continue to hand carve replicas of these totem poles, and the earlier ones are sometimes auctioned off to donated to museums or other organizations.

Features

Although the men hunted deer and moose, fish was the main source of food. The women contributed to the meals by gathering berries and shellfish. The Kwakiutls were excellent craftsmen, and wood carving and construction was an integral part of the society. The men built large canoes to follow the path of migrating fish and animals during different seasons of the year. Several families lived in large wooden homes, and even some of their outer clothing was made from cedar bark as well as fur. Men and women wore waterproof wooden capes with hoods to shield them from the rain, and the women's aprons combined bark and goat-hair.
The society was matriarchal, through the female line. About 30 different Kwakiutl groups lived along the western coast of the U.S. to Canada. Each group had a rank of individuals depending on family ancestry and was governed by a chief. This social status also designated who held rights and was allowed to sing certain songs, wear ceremonial masks or display personal wealth such as jewelry.

Effects

The Kwakiutls believed that most of nature was inhabited by spirits with supernatural powers, which made a number of daily activities potentially dangerous. They would often say prayers or stage rituals asking for assistance from one of these spirits for a successful outcome. A variety of different shaman, or individuals who had contact with the spiritual world, were asked to forecast the future, release the bad spirits out of the ill or cast spells. The largest religious ceremonies took place in the wintertime, because they believed that this was the time when the spirits lived among the people and passed their powers to a young tribal member. There were large dances where members of the secret society acted out contact with the supernatural to guarantee the group's spiritual renewal and economic well being.

Time Frame

Today, the Kwakiutls have eight reserves on 728 acres of land. They continue their culture through potlatches, feasts and traditional dances and performances in the summer that represent various tribes. The dances and songs are approved by the elders and remain unchanged since the earliest of tribal times. The most important of the sacred dances is called the Hamatʼsa or cannibal dance. It re-enacts a time when a cannibal spirit possesses a young man. With dance, song and rituals, the man returns to his original human self.