ONONDAGA

BIRTH OF THE NATION

• Onondaga Lake, in present day central New York, democracy was born.
• The Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and the Mohawk people had been warring against each other
• There was a great bloodsheld

HISTORY

• onondaga means people of the hills
• tadadaho was the most feared men of the nation
• onondagas symbolize in the great white tree of peace

FOOD

• they ate corn, beans, and squash
• these foods first given by our mother earth
• the corn was boiled to make bread

LANGUAGE

• Although the Onondaga Nation is a part of the Haudenosaunee and the Seneca, Cayuga
• Onondaga, Oneida and Mohawk nations have been joined together for centuries
• Most words are comparable to other words, no two languages are completely the same.
• The Onondaga language is very integral to all aspects of religious, political and social life.
• The Onondaga language is also present in our government.

HOMES

• Long Ago Onondagas dwelled in large bark homes which held members of a clan.
• Onondaga began to adapt to the new advances brought to their territory by their white brothers.
• Gradually the people moved from the communal “clan” longhouse to extended nuclear family cabins.