CALENDAR STICK
A way of marking the passing of time, a calendar stick was notched or marked in such a way that it would act as a reminder of prominent events in the history of a tribe.
See also Winter Counts
CALUMET
The origin of this word is French, from chalumeau, originally referring to the reeds that were used to make pipes, and later coming to mean “pipe stem.”
Most people are familiar with the concept of the so-called Peace Pipe, the ceremonial pipe that’s passed around the circle of tribal members in a sun-wise direction, the tobacco shared and smoked as a symbol of concord, or to seal a treaty or pact. Although the ceremonies involving the smoking of a pipe extend far beyond this particular use, the pipe itself is known as the calumet. The pipe used by the Native Americans in Canada was first seen by the French settlers from Normandy, and that’s the name they gave it. “Calumet” now refers, in general, to the highly decorated ceremonial Native American smoking pipe.
A specific type of mineral—called pipestone, pipeclay, or alternatively catlinite after the great painter and explorer George Catlin—is commonly used to make the bowl of the calumet. The catlinite is easy to work, since it has a claylike texture and friability. The importance of this pipe clay is evidenced by the fact that the quarries where the stone is found—in particular the great pipestone quarries in Minnesota—have generally been accepted as neutral territory by warring tribes. Stone from this quarry has been mined and used by the Native peoples to make pipes and other artifacts for at least 3,000 years.
The Lakota people believed that the pipe and its smoke formed a bridge between the world of man and the world of spirit, and therefore another very important aspect of the pipe is the material that’s smoked in it. The smoking mix varies from region to region and from tribe to tribe, but in all cases the smoke created by these sacred herbs was believed to carry the prayers, thoughts, and good wishes of the smoker up to the heavens. Often, various herbs were blended together; this is traditionally called kinnikinnick, meaning “mixture.”
The pipes themselves are ornamented in accord with their sacred status, decorated with beading, fur, hair, quills, feathers, and carvings.
The pipe has been described as a “portable altar,” and using the object is carried out with a great deal of ceremony and respect.
CALUSA
Also known as the “Shell Indians,” the Calusa originally lived on the southwest coast of Florida and controlled most of the area. The name Calusa means “fierce ones,” and by all accounts they were a warlike people who caused alarm among the smaller tribes in Florida. The early Spanish explorers, too, became the target for attacks by the Calusa, who were one of the first Native American peoples encountered by the Spanish in around 1513.
Living along the coast and inland waterways, the Calusa constructed houses on stilts with palm frond roofs and no walls. They did not need to farm, but could subsist entirely on the food they found along the waterways. Skilled fishermen, the Calusa made nets from palm and used them to catch catfish, mullet, and other fish. They made spears with which to catch eels and turtles, and also hunted for small game including deer. Children learned from an early age how to catch various shellfish. Sailing, too, came naturally to the Calusa, as did boat-building. Cypress trees, hollowed out, made dugout canoes which were able to travel long distances, even as far as Cuba. The canoes were also used to scavenge the shores for booty from shipwrecks, and from which to stage attacks on other tribes.
The Calusa, like most other Native American peoples, were incredibly skilled at adapting any resources that came their way, and, living as they did by the water, shells provided an abundant natural material. They used shells as utensils and in weaponry (including spear tips) as well as for ornamentation and in ritual use. The shells were also used in mound-building. These shell-and-clay constructions are now under the preservation of environmentalists and historians. The artifacts that have been found there are considered an important indication of how the Calusa lived, and are preserved in museums.
The Calusa themselves suffered, as did many indigenous peoples, from the illnesses brought by the Europeans. In particular, smallpox and measles were responsible for wiping out entire Calusa villages. Those Calusa who had not succumbed to illness or being captured for the slave trade are believed to have left their homelands in or around 1763, emigrating to Cuba when Florida changed hands from the Spanish to the British.
CAMAS
The scientific name for this plant is Camassia quamash; it is also known as Wild Hyacinth, Indian Hyacinth or Pommes des Prairies (Apples of the Prairies). Growing wild in damp meadows, it is an important foodstuff for many Native Americans, including the Bannock, Shoshone, Nez Perce, Cree, and Flatheads.
The plant was ready to harvest in the fall after the flowerheads had withered. The roots provided the edible part, and these were prepared by being roasted in a pit dug into the ground. Camas cooked this way is a little like sweet potato, but more fibrous. The bulbs were also dried out and roasted before being ground into flour.
The white settlers turned their animals out onto the camas prairies, drastically reducing the crop. This caused tension between them and the Native peoples.
The importance of camas as a food source is reflected in various place names, including Camas, in Washington state.
CAMP CIRCLE
Among the peoples who favored the tipi as their dwelling place—this included the Plains tribes—the Camp Circle was the term used to describe the circular formation of tipis which, through how the dwellings were placed, showed the political status of the owners and their relationships to one another.
CANOE
A word that we take for granted, “canoe” is Native American in both its name and invention. And the canoe itself has proven a very useful tool, not only for the white settlers but for the rest of the world. Often made from the bark of the birch tree, the canoe was strong and waterproof, yet light enough to be carried distances between stretches of water. The canoe also disturbed the water very little because of its shallow shape, and so the Native Americans could travel relatively silently and stealthily. The boats could be built to fit just one or two people, or could carry several passengers and their goods; these canoes could be up to 40 feet long. This sort of canoe was used on the Great Lakes. The smaller type was used on smaller rivers and lakes.
The frame of the canoe was constructed from springy pine with a covering of flexible birch bark. The rough side of the bark faced outwards, as the toughest part of the wood and the sheets of bark were stitched together. The vessel was made watertight with a coating of pitch, especially concentrated around the area of the stitching.
CANONICUS
A chief of the Narragansett,