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
Christopher Metta Bexar
The article was actually better illustrated than It was researched in some respects.
It reminded me of the games played in Central and South America in which the players were actually participating in religious ritual ,and the losers were put to death to appease the god or gods. It was literally a life and death struggle in those games.
They in some ways resembled the games of Ancient Rome, those in Central and South America and I felt the author should have tied the two together. It gave me a feeling of incomplete research.
Mariah Podwika
I find it extremely interesting that Native Americans created the sport of lacrosse. I don’t know who I thought created the sport, but that is not the origin I felt it had. This article does a fantastic job of making me want to jump into a time machine and experience one of these games just to be able to feel the atmosphere of it all. My high school had a pretty good lacrosse team, and it would have been cool to have known this background on the sport as I watched those games. I’m sure that the amount of passion that went into the game back then was on a completely different level than that of a high school game. I feel as though the history of the sport should be more widely known. It’s a shame that seemingly no one knows the actual history. As the sport continues to get more and more widely popular, the people who do know about the passionate and indispensable history of the sport should talk about it so that the Native Americans can finally get the recognition that they truly deserve for their game.
Edgar Cruz
I really appreciated the small introduction that plays at putting the readers in the perspective of playing a game of Lacrosse to the extent that the Natives played. Having that followed by an explanation of how it fit into the paper is quite Ingenius and truly captivates the attention of the reader. Furthermore, to further captivate the reader you decided to use different pictures and narratives that add a visual learning experience to this article. I also greatly admire the anecdote of the Artist George Catlin because it describes the perspective of an outsider, and it is quite beautiful. My final remark towards this comment is differentiating how Lacrosse has, today, lost much of its meaning. I believe that as Historians it is important to compare ideas and events of the past to modern age.
Sabrina Drouin
This article is great because it drew pictures in my head on what lacrosse meant to the Native Americans. From the singing and chanting for a win the night before, to the field that they were playing to, their sticks, and even when they’re playing and many of them are getting hurt. I love this story because it highlights the fact that this sport was very special to the Natives and had important meanings to them, like religion or warrior training.
Amelie Rivas-Berlanga
The author provided illustrations which really help with understanding how the game is played and set up. In the first image, it is an oil canvas painted by Charles Deas. It shows two opposing team members reaching for the ball while being held back by a member of the opposing team. The introduction is really well written! It shows what the average day that includes playing Lacrosse as a Native American is. The attention to detail when the author writes about how much the game means to their culture and religion is extremely impressive. Great article!
Carlos Hinojosa
I liked how you got straight to the point discussing the origin and importance of the game to the Native Americans. I didn’t know that much about lacrosse but when I first heard about it I assumed it was from Europe. So, it was kinda surprising to find out that it actually had a Native American origin. Overall I thought it was a pretty good article and definitely a good read.
Aidan Farrell
This was a very well done article. I learned about a sport I frankly did not know much about, and even learned of it origin. You included a lot of good details that helped me understand the origin of the sport, and I thought it was very well written. Nothing seemed out place and the ideas seemed to fit really well. If I had one minor nitpick, it would be that you could have made it much longer. Otherwise, nice job.
Maria Luevano
I did not know that lacrosse was a part of the Native American culture. I have always been a huge fan of Native American culture and I am so happy to see it get the recognition it deserves! WE as Americans tend to absorb many cultures with no intentions of fully understanding the importance or significance of this cultural practice. We need to do better and protect these cultural practices and carry on the true meaning behind them.
Santiago Sabogal
Really informative article! I didn’t know that lacrosse was such an ancient game and that it used to be so rough and violent. It’s crazy to think how a game that used to represent native American culture, religion and much more, is know days just another sport more that we play just for recreation. I personally think that the author did a great research doing this article, the use of multiple sources is flawless. I consider that’s an important aspect in an article, since the author is, in a certain way, backing up his writing in valid and relevant resources and information.
Phylisha Liscano
Very interesting article! Before now I had never thought about the history behind lacrosse and now that I know it was because of Native Americans makes me wonder about the history behind other sports. The fact that they created a concept, made their own equipment, and used the game to settle disputes is very captivating. I like the idea of playing a game of lacrosse instead of going to actual war. Very few deaths is a lot better than a massacre. Nowadays people play lacrosse as a sport for others entertainment, and I am very sure they do not know the history behind the sport only because most school don’t teach us that. It’s a little sad because Natives don’t get much recognition for their creations.