Muskogean

The Creek Warrior Class

The geographic position of the Creeks in the midst of warlike and aggressive nations was a powerful stimulant for making “invincibles” of their male offspring. The ruling passion was that of war; second to it was that of hunting. A peculiar incentive was the possession of war-titles, and the rage for these was as strong among the younger men as that for plunder among the older. The surest means of ascending the ladder of honor was the capture of scalps from the enemy, and the policy of the red or bloody towns was that of fostering the warlike spirit by … Read more

The Creek Language

The Creek Dialect of Maskoki is a harmonious, clearly vocalized form of speech, averse to nasalization. In forms it is exceedingly rich, but its syntax is very simple and undeveloped. An archaic form, called the female language, exists outside of the common Creek, and mainly differs from it in the endings of the verbs. Creek possesses all sounds of the general Maskoki alphabet; but here and in Hitchiti the gutturals g, k, χ are often pronounced with the tongue resting upon the fore or alveolar part of the palate. The alternating processes observed here also occur in most other Indian … Read more

Creek Indian Tribe

The Creek Indians or Maskoki proper occupy, in historic times, a central position among the other tribes of their affiliation, and through their influence and physical power, which they attained by forming a comparatively strong and permanent national union, have become the most noteworthy of all the Southern tribes of the United States territories. They still form a compact body of Indians for themselves, and their history, customs and antiquities can be studied at the present time almost as well as they could at the beginning of the nineteenth century. But personal presence among the Creeks in the Indian Territory … Read more

Creek Ethnographic Notes

Abundant material for the study of ethnography is on hand for the earlier and later periods of the Creek nation; but here we have to restrict ourselves to some points which are especially adapted to the illustration of the migration legends. The relation of husband to wife and family being the foundation of all tribal, social and political life, should certainly be treated as fully as it deserves, but in this context only incident notes can be given on this subject. Condition of Females. Although succession among all Maskoki tribes was in the female line, the females occupied a subordinate … Read more

Chicasa Indian Tribe

The northern parts of Mississippi State contain the earliest homes of the warlike tribe of Chicasa Indians which historical documents enable us to trace. Pontotoc County was the centre of their habitations in the eighteenth century, and was so probably at the time of the Columbian discovery; settlements of the tribe scattered along the Mississippi River, in West Tennessee and in Kentucky up to Ohio River, are reported by the later chroniclers. In the year 1540 the army of Hernando de Soto crossed a portion of their territory, called by its historians ” Chicaça provincia,” and also visited a town … Read more

Other Muskogee Towns and Villages

Besides the recognized tribes or towns of major importance and such of their offshoots as can be identified, the literature of this region contains many names of towns or villages which can not be definitely connected with any of those given. In some cases it may be that we have to deal with ancient divisions in process of decline which were never connected with the rest, but in at least nine-tenths of the cases they are nothing more than temporary offshoots of the larger bodies. Opilłåko (“Big Swamp”) seems to have been one of the most ancient and important of … Read more

Muskogee Tribes

The dominant people of the Creek Confederacy called themselves and their language in later times by a name which has become conventionalized into Muscogee or Muskogee.

Coweta Tribe

The Coweta were the second great Muskogee tribe among the Lower Creeks, and they headed the war side as Kasihta headed the peace side. Their honorary title in the confederacy was Kawita ma’ma’yi, “tall Coweta.” Although as a definitely identified tribe they appear later in history and in the migration legends which have been preserved to us the Kasihta are given precedence, the Coweta were and still are commonly accounted the leaders of the Lower Creeks and often of the entire nation. By many early writers all of the Lower Creeks are called Coweta, and the Spaniards and French both speak … Read more

Chickasaw Indians

The Chickasaw Indians, linguistically related to the Choctaw, were one of the main tribes of the Muskhogean group. Their ancestral location was northern Mississippi. As per tribal history, the Chickasaw believed they had come from the west and had once lived in northern Alabama. First encountered by Europeans under De Soto, the tribe was notably warlike. They were steadfast allies of the English during the colonization of North America. After the establishment of the American Government, land pressures led them to cede their territories and move to what is now Oklahoma between 1837 and 1847

Muskogee Indians

Yoholo-Micco. A Creek Chief, from History of the Indian Tribes of North America

The Muskogee, often referred to as the Creek tribe, are a Native American group whose name’s origin is uncertain, possibly deriving from Shawnee language referring to swampy ground. The Cherokee called them Ani’-Gu’sa, meaning “Coosa people,” and they were known by various names among different tribes. The Muskogee language belongs to the Northern division of the Muskhogean language family. Historically, the Muskogee inhabited areas from the Atlantic coast of Georgia to central Alabama, with numerous towns and villages. Their significant role in regional history includes interactions with European explorers and settlers, alliances, and conflicts, culminating in their forced relocation to Oklahoma in the 19th century. The Muskogee population has fluctuated over time, with early estimates in the thousands and later censuses reflecting both decline and dispersal. Their cultural and historical impact is notable, especially in the formation of political confederacies and mound-building traditions.

Linguistic Groups at the beginning of the Sixteenth Century

The groups of tribes continued to move, and by the beginning of the sixteenth century they were located approximately as indicated on tile last map.

The groups of tribes continued to move, and by the beginning of the sixteenth century they were located approximately as indicated on tile last map. The Iroquoian tribes had moved far eastward, and some occupied the country south of the St. Lawrence. The Hurons had settled north of Niagara, and the Eries remained south of the lake that bears their name. The Cherokee had become established far south in the Alleghenies, with Uchean tribes to the west of them. The Siouan peoples had scattered far from their ancient homes in the valley of the Ohio Some had traversed the mountainous … Read more

Iroquoian and Muskhogean Tribes after arrival East of the Mississippi

After the Iroquoian and Muskhogean Tribes had arrived East of the Mississippi.

The fertile valleys of Tennessee and Kentucky present more convincing evidence of having been occupied by a great number of tribes, at different times, than does any other section of the southeastern United States. Many of the tribes differed in manners and customs, as indicated by the great variety of archeological material recovered front the innumerable sites. During the migratory movements as theoretically expressed on the maps, the present States of Tennessee and Kentucky were crossed and re-crossed by many tribes, representing the historic Siouan, Uchean, Iroquoian, and Muskhogean stocks, while probably at an early time, and certainly at a … Read more