Natchez Indian Culture Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Natchez Indian Culture - Research Paper Example The many traditional rituals of the Natchez people are considered â€Å"primitive and brutal† and like many other Indian tribes, the Natchez people were sun worshippers, who held on strongly to the belief that their chiefs were descended from the sun. The Natchez lived in about 6-9 villages spoke their native Natchez language, a language that has been long lost. The inhabited area of the Natchez was sought after to be colonized by the English, Spanish and the French. Research pleaded that a total of four wars broke out between the Natchez and the French between 1716 and 1729. The first three appropriately termed, first, second and third Natchez war whilst the fourth one was called the Natchez Rebellion of 1729. The Natchez Rebellion was caused by French Commander Sieur de Chepart’s order to the villagers from the White Apple Natchez Village to vacate the land so he may use it as a tobacco plantation. Presently, surviving Natchez families and communities can be found dis persed in Oklahoma and the Appalachian mountains. Natchez Indian Culture The Natchez Indians were amongst the last of the Native American populous to make a home on Mississippi’s southwestern borders (Barnett, 2007). ... This â€Å"Sun† lives across from the temple, in a big adobe constructed house atop a platform mound, which the Natchez people are famous for constructing. Living close to him, is the single most important person in his life; his Principle Advisor-his mother. She is referred to as a white woman in the Natchez culture, she dwells close to the â€Å"The Great Sun† with her other children. This â€Å"family†, is considered the highest class in the Natchez Society. Nonetheless, despite being an indigenous tribe, the Natchez Indians share distinct similarities to the southeastern Indian tribes, such as being separated into two moieties as they call it. Moitie is the French word which means â€Å"half†. Moieties provide marriage partners for each other as well as other support services. Like today’s societal classing, one moiety of the Natchez tribe is considered superior or of a more established ranking than the other moiety. The Natchez were known for t heir mass cultivation of agriculture which was their main livelihood, but they also excelled at architecture and pottery, which seem to be the basics behind their mound building. â€Å"Mounds† are erected from dirt which acts as a base for their temples and other dwellings. To augment such skillfulness, they also wove textile fabrics from the inner barks of mulberry which they used for clothing. Authors Orin Lewis and Laura Redish (1998) described the dress code of the men as breechcloths and leggings. The breechcloth is a piece of cloth made of deer skin, cloth or fur which is worn between the legs that is tucked over a belt. It doesn’t cover the legs so the men wore leggings made from buckskin or soft leather, whilst the women wore wrap skirts made from