Imagine running across a field. You’re tired and out of breath. You’ve been in what seems like an endless game. From sun up to sundown you’re running and fighting to make a goal. To some, it may seem like a game, but not to you. To you, it’s part of your culture, your religion, and, to you, the outcome matters.
Lacrosse was first played by Native American tribes in different regions of North America. There were many different versions of the game, rules, numbers of players, and sizes of the fields that would change depending on the tribe. Names of the game also varied, and included Creators’ Game, Baggataway, and Tewaaraton, which translates to “little brother of war.”1
The name that we know today as lacrosse came about in 1636 when French Missionary Jean de Brebeuf compared the shape of the sticks used by players of the game to a bishop’s crozier, which is ‘‘crosse’’ in French.2
For many Native American tribes, lacrosse wasn’t just a sport, but rather part of their culture and their religion. Since the game was very rough and people could be injured and even die while playing, the Iroquois used lacrosse as a way of training young men to be warriors, and the game was used to settle disputes without actually going to war. This is why lacrosse is nicknamed “little brother of war.”3 Lacrosse also had religious significance among some tribes. It was called the Creator’s Game, and it helped the players put their lives into perspective and teach lessons, some of the most valuable lessons being that everyone has struggles and opponents and the key to survival is friends and allies.
In the culture of the Iroquois, when a man dies, his lacrosse stick is buried with him. They believed that the first thing he would do when he wakes up in the afterlife is to take the stick from his coffin and begin playing that day.4
Native American lacrosse was often played on a stretch of land up to two miles long with sticks between 3-5 feet long made of wood and animal skin. A game could include between one-hundred to one-thousand players at a time. There was no set time to the games. The two teams would agree on a set amount of points and would play from sunrise to sunset until the amount of points was achieved.5 Violence and injuries were very common, and players would often walk away with minor cuts, broken bones, head injuries, and occasionally a death would occur.
Few people can claim to have experienced a Native American game of Lacrosse. Artist George Catlin had a passion for learning about Native Americans, and how they lived. He once said that “If my life is spared, nothing shall stop me short of visiting every nation of Indians on the Continent of North America.” He attended a major Choctaw lacrosse game in 1834. In his time there, he recorded everything that he saw and described how the game was set up from the length of the field and deciding where the goals would be places, to how each team was set up. He described how the night before the match both teams danced and chanted all night. Each team had a medicine man who chanted incantations to strengthen their team and weaken the other. He recorded his experiences through paintings and writings.6
Lacrosse is a sport that has a beautiful history and carries a meaning that many of us will never be able to understand. To Native Americans, lacrosse was a sport, a teaching tool, a religion, and a way to connect their cultures with other tribes.7 Today the history and meaning behind lacrosse has been lost, and to many it has become just another sport played for recreation and friendly competition.
- The Gale Encyclopedia of Fitness, 2012, s.v. ‘”Lacrosse,” by David E. Newton. ↵
- Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2017, s.v., “Lacrosse,” by Justin D. Garcia. ↵
- Thomas Vennum Jr., “American Indian Lacrosse: Little Brother of War,” The Journal of American Folklore 108, No. 427 (1995): 98-99. ↵
- S. L. Price, “Pride of a Nation,” Sports Illustrated 113, no. 2 (2010): 60-71. ↵
- Stanley A. Freed, “Lacrosse yesterday and today,” Cobblestone 15, no.9 (1994): 32. ↵
- Joanna Shaw-Eagle, “Catlin saves vanishing Indians on canvas,” The Washington Times, January 4, 2003. ↵
- John Seabrook, “Gathering of the Tribes,” New Yorker 74, No. 26, (August 1998): 30. ↵
154 comments
Maria Callejas
I love you the introduction! Without a doubt, it gives the reader a sense of personal connection to the text. This was a total learning session for me, I had no idea lacrosse originated from Native American tribes, a very popular sport today! You explain the origins of lacrosse in a very straightforward way, making it easier to understand. It is interesting that the purpose of lacrosse was not recreational, but rather to settle disputes. Good thing that High School across the country has changed that! Very interesting article, great job!
Erik Shannon
This was a well written article. I did not originally know that lacrosse was originally played by Native Americans. I also did not know that this was looked as a religious tradition. Lacrosse was one of the original sports dated a long time back. It was also used as a way to train men. Overall, this was a very well written article.
Morghan Armenta
Who knew that a sport so popular like lacrosse was another one of the things the Americans colonized from Native Americans. I had no clue that this sport had originated from indigenous tribes who invented this sport as a form of practicing their religion and cultural values. Sad that this is yet another thing we stole from this culture though.
Amanda Figueroa
Wow, I did not know that Native Americans played lacrosse and it was a part of their culture. I never knew the origins of this sport; however, this article was very informative and gave a small insight to the game that Native Americans would play. The introduction was also very intriguing and had me reading the rest of the article.
Karina Nanez
I don’t know much about sports nor do I follow it religiously but this was a very engaging article to read. The origins and meaning of lacrosse is varied, from tribe to tribe each game was different but it was all meant to unite the men playing and possibly the different tribes involved in the game. This was a very important and religious symbol for Native Americans that has lasted the test of time.
Crystalrose Quintero
I found it as a nice change to begin reading an article by proposing an imaginary story. It doesn’t open with facts but with a hypothetical. I thought it w as interesting that lacrosse was in use before its name used today. The paintings used to portray what active sports were part of the native american culture was interesting to see. The quotes portraying the passion for native americans and their culture was extremely interesting
Alexandria Martinez
This was a very interesting article, I personally never knew the origins of this sport. It is a sport enriched with deeper meaning than what it is now. It is interesting how the Native Americans created a way to stop war from happening, even though there was still violence going on, and that it was a way for their religion to be taught.
Cristian Medina-Lopez
I thought this article was very interesting and the way the author wrote it kept me interested the whole time. I found it interesting how they were doing something that was a part of their culture while many people now just do it as a sport/game. This changed the way that I personally saw the sport because of its great history,
Deanna Lummus
I agree with the author that the history and meaning of lacrosse has been lost. I have heard of this game before and know that it is tough but never knew it had such meaning behind it. I only really knew that it was a game that was taken seriously mainly cause it can be dangerous and not for the weak. It makes sense that the Native American are the ones who invented it because they were known to be ruthless and very good warriors in their own way.
Alejandra Mendez
In middle school and high school gym classes, we would sometimes play lacrosse, but I never thought of its origins. I always assumed it might have originated somewhere in Europe and was brought to North America through migration when explorations took place. I never would have thought that Native Americans were behind the sport. It’s interesting how Americans have taken their sport, which they took very seriously, and turned it into their own thing with our own rules and only play it “for fun”. This really makes you think about where other sports originated from.