The Ojibwe speak a language of the Algonkian language family
and constitute the largest Indian group north of Mexico. Their extensive
pre-contact territory in Canada was mainly north of Lakes Superior and Huron.
During historic times, they spread west and south and today numerous Ojibwe
bands stretch from present-day Ontario in eastern Canada all the way into
Montana. Oral traditions of the Ojibwe, Ottawa, and Potawatomi assert that at
one time all three tribes were one people who lived at the Straits of Mackinac.
From there, they split off into three different groups. Linguistic,
archeological, and historical evidence confirms that the three tribes descend
from a common ethnic origin.
Ojibwe religious life was largely personal, but was also a
daily concern with living appropriately and making one's way through a world
filled with spirits which inhabited birds, animals, rocks, and cosmic phenomena
including the sun, moon, the four winds, thunder, lightning, and thunderbirds.
On a personal basis, one of the most important spirits was an individual's
guardian spirit which was acquired via a dream or vision and could be called on
for protection and guidance. Spirits were honored through prayers and tobacco
and food offerings and could sometimes be contacted through shamans. Oral
traditions described the world of spirits and provided appropriate models of
correct behavior with regard to them.
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Picture: The Great Migration
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