Image taken from http://www.shadowwolf.org/What is the Green Corn Ceremony (also called the Green Corn Festival)?
The Green Corn Festival was celebrated by many Indian tribes in one form or another. These early people were very grateful for their harvests. Tribes held several festivals each year to say prayers of thanks to their gods. One of the most important was the Green Corn Festival. This festival was held in late summer or early fall, when the corn they had planted had ripened on the stalk. The expression "green corn" refers to ripened sweet corn, corn you could eat.
These early people were great farmers. They depended on three staples - corn, beans, and squash. In the Woodland areas, these food items were so important that they had a name. They were called "The Three Sisters". The Three Sisters were mixed together to make a vegetable dish called succotash. But corn was always special.
Even after the Green Corn Festival, some corn was left on the stalk to additionally ripen, to help the drying process. Dried corn and dried corn meal were both very important staple items to help these early people eat well through the long winter ahead.
Make a Delicious Native American Meal using Corn. The following website offers a number of Native American Recipes: http://www.manataka.org/page175.html
Image taken from http://www.kitchen.apartmenttherapy.com/
Play an ancient Native American game called the Peach Pit Game. The following website has details and directions for this game, along with other activities: http://nevadaculture.org/docs/nsla/lpd/literacy/summer-reading/people/chap4d.htm
Make corn husk dolls by following the directions on this website: http://www.snowwowl.com/naartcornhuskdolls2.html
Westport, Conn.: Praeger, ©2007.
Contents: A comprehensive description of various Native American religious beliefs and practices, including the Muskogee Green Corn Ceremony.
2. Yuchi Ceremonial Life: performance, meaning and tradition in a contemporary American Indian community, by Jason Baird Jackson.
Lincoln, Neb.: University of Nebraska Press, ©2005.
Contents: Describes the ceremonies of a contemporary Native American tribe.
3. The Green Corn Festival: A ceremony of the Seminole, by Ernesto Franco and Benhur Sanchez Suarez.
Austin, TX: Voluntad, ©1979.
Contents: Although this book is out of print, it contains valuable information about the history and practice of the Seminole Green Corn Ceremony.
4. Indian dances of North America: Their importance in Indian life, by Reginald Laubin and Gladys Laubin.
Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, ©1977.
Contents: This book includes information about the Green Corn dance, among many others.
5. The Cherokee full circle: A practical guide to sacred ceremonies and traditions, by J.T. Garrett and Michael Tlanusta Garrett.
Rochester, VT: Bear & Company, ©2002.
Contents: The authors present methods of adopting Native American spiritual beliefs.
New York, NY: The Columbia University Press, ©2001.
Contents: The history, cultures, and ceremonial traditions of Native American tribes of the Southeast United States are detailed in this book.
Richmond Hill, Ontario: Firefly Books, ©2007.
Contents: The Cherokee Green Corn Dance is described in this book.
Children's Reading List:
(Image taken from http://www.manataka.org)1. The Seminole: patchworkers of the Everglades, by Rachel A. Koestler-Grack.
4. If You Lived With The Iroquois, by Ellen Levine. New York : Scholastic, ©1998. Contents: The text and colorful illustrations bring to life the traditions, customs, and everyday life of the Iroquois tribe.
Useful Websites:
The Green Corn Festival: MrDonn.org (cited in the overview at the top of this page) illustrates lesson plans and recipes for celebrating the Green Corn Festival in the classroom.
