1. What are the different types of dances?
At a typical "Pow Wow" convention there are many different actives to do, there are booths set up, and good food, but especially there are these performances by dancers and singers. There are many different types of dancing in the Native American Culture, there are categories for dances for men and women. The women's dances include, the buckskin, cloth, jingle, and fancy shawl. The buckskin dance happens to be one of the oldest dances in the Native Culture today. This type of dancing is describes as "smooth and flowing." A very competitive dance done by the women is the Jingle dance; this is because the dancers have rows of metal cones that provides a distinctive sound, this dance is a little more upbeat than the buckskin dance.
Jingle Dancing
Buckskin Dancing
2. What drums are used at Pow Wows?
There are 5 different types of drums in the Native American Culture that I can fine, they include the Shaman drum, Hand drum, Remo drums, Hoop drums, and the Pow Wow drum. Obviously the Pow Wow drum is what is used at Pow Wow, this is because it is thought to The Pow Wow drum is so significant because it was thought to release a balance or peace as well as brings a joy to the people involved. Another reason that the Pow Wow drum and the significance it does was because it was thought that the drum had been brought here for a women, so for this reason when playing the drum, the spirit of the women resides there. The Pow Wow drum is made from a native cedar and is covered in either the rawhide of a deer, buffalo, or steer. The drum can hold 8 or more men it is a responsibility for each of them to know how to play and sing any song that the drum leader would like.
3. Why is culture so important?
Culture is important to everyone but to Native Americans especially, having a strong culture is very important because they have fought so hard to have the ability to celebrate their culture. For example, in the 1900s, thousands of young children were ripped away from their homes and taken to boarding schools, the US government called this "finding a way to disconnect." These kids were taken to a school where the founder quotes, "kill the Indian, save the man," Pratt believed that Native Americans had to renounce tribal way of life, convert to Christianity views, abandon reservation, seek education and employment from "best classes" of Americans, change their names, and were punished for speaking their native language. Not only did he force them away from their homes, kids were also suffering from mental and physical abuse. Due to the cruel way that they were treated throughout history, keeping a good sense of culture is very important to them.
Works cited
www.missiondelrey.com/native-american-pow-wow-drums/.
https://www.powwows.com/main/pow-wow-dance-styles/
https://www.missiondelrey.com/native-american-pow-wow-drums/
Grace, I really loved what how had to say about the Indian boarding schools and the video you linked just amplified how messed up our government is but, it also shows how the native american still held to some of their culture through the mist of it all.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of the buckskin dance until I came to your blog. It's so fun to watch the fringe sway as if keeping the beat with the drums. I think it's also absolutely heart breaking to hear Joanne talk about her time at the boarding school. It really proves that it was never about saving the man, it was all about killing the culture. I'm glad that they have managed to hold on to it long enough to share it with the younger generations so it lives on.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that there were so many dance categories at Pow Wows. It was really cool to see how different the Jingle and the Buckskin dances were. Also, I thought it was sad to watch the video about how Native Americans were taking from their homes. I cannot believe that Native American children were treated so badly.
ReplyDeleteI loved the part about culture. I learned so much from watching those videos the other day. Everything you had to say was 100%. Their culture is everything to them because there almost wasn't a culture left.
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