North America Star lore of the Ojibwe

The Ojibwe are one of the largest native nations in North America. The live presominantly in southern Canada and the northern Midwestern United States. Most of the star lore presented in this section is the result of the dedicated work of a group of professional astronomers, artists, language and cultural experts, educators, community members and Native American elders called Native Skywatchers. The group is dedicated to the preservation of star lore and astronomical knowledge of Native American nations. Their findings have been published by the St. Cloud State University and by UC Santa Barbara. In 2012, the group published an Ojibwe Star Map. Click on the picture to the right for a larger image.

Ajiijaak In Ojibwe astronomy, the stars of Cygnus form the constellation Ajiijaak, the crane. The crane is one of the leaders in the Ojibwe clan system. Crane and loon lead the people to stay strong. This constellation is overhead a few hours after sunset in the summertime. Another word for the constellation is Ineshi Okanin, the skeleton bird. Source: Ojibwe Constellation Guide

Ajiijaak © Native Skywatchers

Biboonkeonini On the Ojibwe Star Map, Aldebaran (α Tau), together with Procyon (α CMi) and the stars of Orion, are called Biboonkeonini, the Winter Maker, as their presence in the night sky heralds winter. Wintermaker is a strong Ojibwe canoe man and an important mythological figure in Ojibwe culture. His outstretched arms rule the winter sky. Wintermaker is seen overhead during the winter months. Sources: St. Cloud State University Planetarium, sciencefriday.com Ojibwe artist Carl Gawboy tells a story of parents making bows and arrows for their young children to come out into the late winter night to shoot at Wintermaker, whose sash is the belt of today’s constellation called Orion. The arrows let the children believe that they were hastening Wintermaker on his way and helping to bring spring. For the Ojibwe, the constellations of Biboonikeonini, Mishi Bizhiw, Nanaboujou and Mooz heralded the arrival of winter, spring and summer and fall. Source: Ojibwe Cosmos

Biboonkeonini © Native Skywatchers Shooting the Wintermaker © Carl Gawboy

Jiibay Ziibi The Ojibwe people called the MilkyWay Jiibay Ziibi, the River of Souls. Souls, it was said, would find a waiting canoe to paddle to the great beyond along the shining flow of the Milky Way. Source: Ojibwe Cosmos

River of Souls © Carl Gawboy

Maang On the Ojibwe Star Map, Ursa Minor is depicted as Maang, the Loon. The loon is one of the Ojibwe clans and is seen as a very important messenger. Loon and crane are both leaders in the clan system, they work together. The loon stands at the doorway between the water and the land or the material and the spirit world. Source: Ojibwe Constellation Guide

Maang © Native Skywatchers

Madoodiswan & Noondeshin Bemaadizid To the Ojibwe, the stars of Corona Borealis formed Madoodiswan, the Sweat Lodge, while the stars of Hercules were seen as Noondeshin Bemaadizid, the Exhausted Bather, a person who just participated in a sweat lodge ceremony. The sweat lodge is a purification ceremony. It is returning to the womb and remembering/renewing our spirit. The person is exhausted after participating in the sweat. He/She is exhausted on the outside but full of life and strong on the inside. The Sweat Lodge is seen overhead in late Spring and the Exhausted Bather is an early summer constellation. Source: Ojibwe Star Map

Sweat Lodge © Native Skywatchers

Mishi Bizhiw To the Ojibwe, the stars of Cancer and Leo formed Mishi Bizhiw, Curly Tail, Great Panther, a mountain lion that was once more abundant in Minnesota. The big spirit cat is lives at the bottom of lakes and can cause flooding or water danger. Curly Tail is overhead in Spring. It rises in late winter. People knew that when the great cat was overhead the lakes would not be frozen and would be dangerous to cross. People knew it was time to move from winter camp to sugar bush camp.

Curly Tail Panther © Native Skywatchers

At sugar bush, feasts and prayers were offered for the water spirits (like Curly Tail) and to all those relatives that did not survive the winter. Source: Ojibwe Constellation Guide

Mooz Native Skywatchers identified the constellation Mooz, the Moose, consisting of the stars of Lacerta and Pegasus, as part of Ojibwe astronomy. This constellation is another animal of the Ojibwe clan system. The moose provides food, clothing, shelter for the people, much like deer or caribou. Source: Ojibwe Constellation Guide

Moose © Native Skywatchers

Nanaboujou On the Ojibwe Star Map, the constellation Scorpius is depicted as Nanaboujou, the Sleeping Giant. He is a hero figure and a spirit that had many excursions on Earth a long time ago. He helped the people by creating dry land after the last flood. The constellation shows Nanaboujou shooting an arrow at the Great Panther, represented by the constellations Leo and Cancer. Source: Ojibwe Constellation Guide

Nanaboujou © Native Skywatchers

Ojiig The Ojibwe envisioned the Big Dipper as Ojiig. a fisher (Pekania pennanti), a mamal belonging to the weasel family. A popular Ojibwe legend is called "How Fisher went to the Skyland." An extended version of the story can be found at ojibwe-dakota-in-mn.com. Here is a shortened version, told on WPXR.org: "In the days of perpetual winter, the days were cold and the food was scarce. One day, Ojiig the Fisher and his strongest friends, Otter, Lynx, and Wolverine, decided to climb the highest mountain and break through the barrier around the Skyland and return the warm weather to the earth. After several tries, Wolverine and Fisher broke through the sky and found the warm weather hoarded by the sky people. While there, he heard the beautiful songs of caged birds, and he realized if he freed these birds, and they flew down to earth, they would provide good food. As he was releasing the birds, the sky people returned and tried to stop him from escaping. Rather than dive back through the hole, he waited and chewed the hole in the sky larger to let as much warm air out as possible. The Fisher had magic that protected him from the arrows the sky people fired, but eventually they hit the one vulnerable part of his body, the tail, and he started to fall from the sky.

Fisher with the arrow in his tail Ojibwe Star Map by Native Skywatchers Fisher; Wikipedia

The spirits took pity on him, and caught him before he hit the ground, and gave him a place of honor in the sky. That place is the visible constellation we were raised to call the big dipper, and the handle is the tail. Every year, he makes his journey up into the sky, and every winter he breaks through to free the songbirds and the warm weather. And, every winter he is struck by the arrow and begins to fall back first from the sky. But then, as he brings an end to winter, he returns to earth and the journey begins anew." Sources: WPXR.org, Stewart, Williamson: They dance in the sky

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