About the Haudenosaunee Confederacy
Also known through history as the Iroquois League or the League of Five Nations (and later Six Nations), the Haudenosaunee is a confederation of six Nations whose traditional lands include much of modern day New York State. As stated on their website, "Often described as the oldest, participatory democracy on Earth, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy’s constitution is believed to be a model for the American Constitution." The Haudenosaunee Confederacy includes the Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, the Seneca, and the Tuscarora.
Colgate University as well as the township of Hamilton, NY are built upon traditional Oneida lands. These lands were seized as part of the Treaty of Fort Schuyler in 1788, under the guise of protecting the lands from speculators (McLester & Hauptman, 42). The Oneida were among America's first allies in the Revolutionary War, the only Nation of the Confederacy to do so.
Note: Iroquois is a derogatory term.
To find books in the Colgate Libraries, you may need to use these subject headings/keywords.
- Iroquois Indians
- Iroquois (used as an adjective)
- Haudenosaunee Confederacy - Use Five Nations or Six Nations
- Mohawk Indians
- Saint Regis Mohawk Indian Reservation (N.Y.)
- Akwesasne Indian Reserve (Québec and Ont.)
- Oneida Indians
- Oneida Nation of New York
- Onondaga Indians
- Cayuga Indians
- Seneca Indians
- Tuscarora Indians
- New York Indians of North America
- Native Americans - Use Indians of North America
McLester III, L. Gordon and Laurence Hauptman, eds. The Oneida Journey from New York to Wisconsin 1784-1860. Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press, 1999.
Confederacy webpages
Pronunciation is approximate. Seek out Native speakers of the individual Nation's languages in order to better learn how to pronounce their names. Some suggested resources: Mohawk (YouTube video), Oneida (YouTube video), Onondaga (audio file), Cayuga (YouTube video), Seneca (YouTube video), Tuscarora (YouTube video).
- Haudenosaunee Confederacy HomepageHodinöhsö:ni´ (approximately pronounced "ho-di-no-SHO-ni"), People of the Longhouse
- Saint Regis Mohawk TribeKanienʼkehá꞉ka (approximately pronounced "gah-nyen-geh-hah-ga"), NYS- and US- recognized tribal council, People of the Flint, Keepers of the Eastern Door.
- Mohawk Nation Council of ChiefsKanienʼkehá꞉ka (approximately pronounced "gah-nyen-geh-hah-ga"), Sovereign Mohawk Nation, People of the Flint, Keepers of the Eastern Door.
- Oneida Indian Nation of New YorkOnyota’a:ká (approximately pronounced "oh-nyo-DA-aw-GA"), the People of the Upright Stone
- Onondaga NationOnöñda’gegá’ (approximately pronounced "ohnen-DA-geh-GA"), the People of the Hills, the Keepers of the Central Fire
- Cayuga NationGayogo̱hó꞉nǫ' (approximately pronounced "guy-yo-KO-no"), People of the Great Swamp
- Seneca Nation of IndiansOnöndawá'ga (approximately pronounced "Oh-nown-da-WA-gah"), Great Hill People, Keepers of the Western Door
- Tuscarora Nation of North CarolinaSkarù:ręˀ (approximately pronounced "ska-ruh-reh"), the hemp gatherers, the Shirt Wearers. Joined the Confederacy as the sixth nation in 1722, under the sponsorship of the Oneida Nation.
Land Acknowledgement Resources
- Colgate Land Acknowledgement Guide [.DOCX]Colgate University Land Acknowledgement Guide, created by the Land Acknowledgement Working Group, 2021.
- Honor Native Land: A Guide and Call to Acknowledgement"Acknowledgment is a simple, powerful way of showing respect and a step toward correcting the stories and practices that erase Indigenous people’s history and culture and toward inviting and honoring the truth. Imagine this practice widely adopted: imagine cultural venues, classrooms, conference settings, places of worship, sports stadiums, and town halls, acknowledging traditional lands. Millions would be exposed—many for the first time—to the names of the traditional Indigenous inhabitants of the lands they are on, inspiring them to ongoing awareness and action."
- Native Land"Native Land Digital strives to create and foster conversations about the history of colonialism, Indigenous ways of knowing, and settler-Indigenous relations, through educational resources such as our map and Territory Acknowledgement Guide."
- âpihtawikosisân's Beyond Territorial Acknowledgements"When I think about territorial acknowledgments, a few things come to mind that I’d like to explore. First, what is the purpose of these acknowledgments? Both what those making the territorial acknowledgments say they intend, as well as what Indigenous peoples think may be the purpose. Second, what can we learn about the way these acknowledgments are delivered? Are there best practices? Third, in what spaces do these acknowledgements happen and more importantly, where are they not found? Finally, what can exist beyond territorial acknowledgements?"
- Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack of Settler Privilege"People who do not have ancestral connections to Native communities are all either settlers or immigrants. People with ambiguous “Native ancestry,” like Elizabeth Warren, are so disconnected from whatever Native roots they may have had that they can no longer be considered Native. Settlers are people whose ancestors who came to acquire recently dispossessed Indian lands, such as recipients of the homesteads of the nineteenth century and earlier land speculators. Immigrants are people who came later to cash in on the benefits of American citizenship that didn’t necessarily include land (but might have if they came with enough money to invest in American land). Most are settlers (also “colonizers”) or immigrants by choice, with the exception of Blacks who are descended from slaves who were settled here without their consent."
- Settler Fragility: Why Settler Privilege Is So Hard to Talk About"Settler fragility stems from settler privilege, which is similar to white privilege in that it is systemic, structural, and based on white supremacy, making it difficult to identify. Only in some ways, settler privilege is far more covert and cunning. The reason is because of the ubiquitous ways the US is normalized; that is, the US settler state is the “water we swim in.” US citizens of all races and ethnic groups have been indoctrinated their entire lives with messages designed to foster a sense of national pride and belonging in the making of what has been called an “imagined community,” which always occurs on Indigenous lands. Their citizenship and their very identity are taken for granted without critical consciousness about the US’s contradictory foundational structures and narratives."
A short 2 minute sketch from the CBC show Baroness Von Sketch show, starring Carolyn Taylor & Aurora Browne. This sketch shows the importance of moving from just acknowledging land to actively supporting Native peoples.
- "This is Not a Land Acknowledgement" by Heather Georgepoem published March 2, 2022 in Collections: a Journal for Museum and Archives Professionals, vol 18, Issue 1, pg 3-4.
Resources about the Oneida by Oneida Authors
- Oneida: Origins oral history projectOral history collected by Kalhakú McLester
Being Again of One Mind: Oneida Women and the Struggle for Decolonization by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 S867 2011Publication Date: 2010-11-21
Chief Daniel Bread and the Oneida Nation of Indians of Wisconsin by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 B74 2002Publication Date: 2002-09-09
Fluffs and Feathers: An Exhibit on the Symbols of Indianness: A Resource Guide by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E98.A7 D655 1992Publication Date: 1992
Glimpses of Oneida Life by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PM2073.Z77 G55 2016Publication Date: 2016
Laura Cornelius Kellogg: Our democracy and the American Indian and other works by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E99.O45 K45 2015Publication Date: 2015
Oneida-English/English-Oneida Dictionary by Call Number: CASE Ref. (3rd floor) PM2073.Z5 M53 2002Publication Date: 2002-05-11
The Oneida Creation Story by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 E45 2000Publication Date: 2000-06-01
The Oneida Indian Journey: From New York to Wisconsin by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 O56 1999Publication Date: 1999-06-04
The Oneida Indians in the Age of Allotment, 1860-1920 by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 H38 2006Publication Date: 2006-08-21
Oneida Lives: long-lost voices of the Wisconsin Oneidas by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E99.O45 O53 2005Publication Date: 2005-11-01
Our democracy and the American Indian : a comprehensive presentation of the Indian situation as it is today by Call Number: Request from LASRPublication Date: 1920
Rebel Poet: More Stories from a 21st Century Indian by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3603.L36526 R43 2019Publication Date: 2019-08-14
When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS591.I55 W47 2020Publication Date: 2020-08-25
The Wisconsin Oneidas and the Episcopal Church: a chain linking two traditions by Call Number: ebookPublication Date: 2019-05-02
- The Oneida: The Oneida Indian Nation NewsletterRequest from LASR. Library owns v.1 (1998) - v.7 (2004), and v.9 (2006) - v.12 (2010)
- The Oneida Indian Nation (newsletter)Request from LASR. Earlier version of The Oneida. Library owns v.4 (1993), and v.7 (1996) - v.8 (1997)
- Oneida WPA StoriesOver 800 short stories were collected on the Oneida Reservation in Wisconsin by interviewers working for the Works Progress Administration. Subjects included stories on alcohol, animals, food, health, history, hunting, names, religion, schools and the supernatural. Available as Word documents on CD.
Oneida Iroquois folklore, myth, and history: New York oral narrative from the notes of H.E. Allen and others by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.O45 W75 2004Publication Date: 2004-12-01
How to Be an Indian in the 21st Century by Call Number: ForthcomingPublication Date: 2017-02-01
- Tribal Histories, Oneida HistoryVideo from PBS Wisconsin, tribal members tell their own history in their own words. This video features elder Randy Cornelius, Bear Clan.
Cicadas: New & Selected Poems by Call Number: ForthcomingPublication Date: 2013-05-28
Resources by and about the Haudenosaunee
Some resources drawn from the Haudenosaunee-authored book list from Cornell University.
American Indian Nonfiction: an anthology of writings, 1760s-1930s by Call Number: request from LASRPublication Date: 2007-04-15
An Analytical History of the Seneca Indians by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.S3 P2Publication Date: 2012-10-01
And Grandma Said... Iroquois Teachings: as passed down through the oral tradition by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99 I7 P668 2008Publication Date: 2008-07-01
Basic Call to Consciousness by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 B23 2005Publication Date: 2005-06-01
A Clan Mother's Call: reconstructing Haudenosaunee cultural memory by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 R63 2017Publication Date: 2017-09-01ebook and print
The Clay We Are Made Of: Haudenosaunee Land Tenure on the Grand River by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 H555 2017Publication Date: 2010-05-01ebook and print
Contemporary Studies in Environmental and Indigenous Pedagogies: A Curricula of Stories and Place by Publication Date: 2013-06-13ebook
Extra Indians by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3557.A5196 E98 2010Publication Date: 2010-11-01
From the Western Door to the Lower West Side by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3557.A5196 F76 2010Publication Date: 2009-11-01
Genocide of the Mind: new Native American writing by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E98.E85 G46 2003Publication Date: 2003-09-19
Half-Life of Cardio-Pulmonary Function by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3557.A5196 H35 2008Publication Date: 2008-02-28
Indian Summers by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3557.A5196 I5 1998Publication Date: 1998-05-31
Iroquois Corn in a Culture-Based Curriculum: a framework for respectfully teaching about cultures by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 C85 1999Publication Date: 1998-12-07- Iroquois uses of maize and other food plants byCall Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E99.I7 P37 1910Publication Date: 1910
Kayanerenkó:wa: the Great Law of Peace by Publication Date: 2018-10-26
Legends of the Iroquois by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 T45 1998Publication Date: 1998-05-01
Mending Skins by Call Number: CASE Main 4th Floor PS3557.A5196 M46 2005Publication Date: 2005-03-01
A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E78.C2 E487 2020Publication Date: 2020-08-04
Nickel Eclipse: Iroquois moon by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PS3557.A5196 N54 2000Publication Date: 2000-09-30
Original Instructions: Indigenous Teachings for a Sustainable Future by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) GF50 .O74 2008Publication Date: 2008-01-16
Parker on the Iroquois by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 P25 1968Publication Date: 1981-11-01
The River Is in Us: fighting toxics in a Mohawk community by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.M8 H66 2017Publication Date: 2017-11-01ebook and print
Roots of the Iroquois by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 T47 2000Publication Date: 2000-06-01
Sacred Song of the Hermit Thrush by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.M8 T44 1993Publication Date: 1993-04-01
Seneca Myths and Folk Tales by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.S3 P27 1989Publication Date: 1989-09-01
Shaking the Rattle: Healing the Trauma of Colonization by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E98.R53 H55 1995ISBN: 9780919441750Publication Date: 1996-07-01
Skunny Wundy: Seneca Indian tales by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.S3 P3 1994Publication Date: 1995-01-01
Smoke Dancing by Call Number: CASE Main 4th Floor PS3557.A5196 S64 2004Publication Date: 2004-04-30
Sovereign Bones: new Native American writing by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd Floor E98.E85 S68 2007Publication Date: 2007-11-02
Teachings from the Longhouse by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E98.R3 T46 1994Publication Date: 1995-02-01
Thinking in Indian: a John Mohawk Reader by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.S3 M64 2010Publication Date: 2010-10-01
This Place: 150 Years Retold by Call Number: CASE Main 4th floor PN6732 .T45 2019Publication Date: 2019-04-30- Traditional Teachings by Call Number: CASE Main 2nd floor E99.I7 T72 1984Publication Date: 1984As told by: Mike Myers, Seneca Nation; Michael Kanentakeron Mitchell, Mohawk Nation; Roy Buck, Cayuga Nation; Jake Thomas, Cayuga Nation; Richard Aroniateka Mitchell, Mohawk Nation.
Wampum Belts of the Iroquois by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 T48 1999Publication Date: 1999-10-05
Who Are These People Anyway? by Call Number: CASE Main (2nd floor) E99.I7 P69 2016Publication Date: 2016-03-08ebook and print
Words that Come Before all Else by Call Number: Case Main (2nd Floor) GE42 .W673 1992Publication Date: 1992
- Akwesasne Notes"Official publication of the Mohawk Nation at Akwesasne." Microfilm collection of the entire run of the Akwesasne Notes, Vol 1 (1969) - Vol 23 (1992) and the New Series (1995) vol 1-2
- Digitized Akwesasne Notes (1969-1976)Selected volumes digitized.
- "Yotsi'tsishon and the Language of the Seed in the Haudenosaunee Story of Earth's Creation" by Amber Meadow Adams (2020)Published in English Language Notes, vol 58, no 1, pages 111-131.