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The Role of Children in Native American Culture by Harriett K. Light

The Role of Children in Native American Culture by Harriett K. Light

While recognizing that generalizations about Native American Indians can seldom be made because tribes are different, it does appear that children occupied a very special place in American Indian Culture, were taught to respect life, and were viewed with love and caring (Gridley, 1974; Terrell and Terrell, 1974). In describing Texas Indians, Nanez Cabeza de Vaca explains that, "Those people love their offspring the most of any in the world, and treat them with great mildness" (Terrell and Terrell, 1974, p. 157). The importance of children can also be seen in the American Indian rituals that were related to children.

For instance, the kachina doll has been an important part of Hopi Indian children's lives. The kachina is real to these children and represents the source of gilts, goodness, kindness, and discipline. Respect for elders is also learned. Eventually, the child learns that the kachina is an impersonation and is not real. However, the parents and other adults have often gone through extensive efforts to maintain the kachina image and thereby socialize their children. This effort is an indication of the importance the Hopi Indians place on child guidance (Sekaquaptewa, 1976).

Among the Cheyennes, chastisement of their children is abhorred (Llewellyn, people showed devotion and concern for their children through customs and beliefs. For instance, strict sexual abstinence between the mother and father until the first child was about 10 years of age was considered ideal. Thus, the first child could grow and develop with the parents' full attention. This action was not compulsory, however. and some families had many children.

One of the first lessons a Cheyenne child learned was self-control and self-restraint in deference to the presence of elders (Llewellyn and Hoebel, 1967). If elders were talking, the child was taught to cease talking, be quiet, and listen, for the Cheyenne believed that "When there is respect for the aged, the mores are- safe" (Llewellyn, 1967).

The Cheyenne children were encouraged to play in such ways that would train them for adult responsibilities. Dolls and tiny puppies provided opportunities for little girls to learn nurturing behavior, while little boys were given bows and arrows in preparation for the hunting role they would assume. The children also learned adult responsibilities by following their parents. This was especially true of the girls and their mothers; little girls seemed to walk behind the mother everywhere she went to perform her duties. The Cheyenne believed the child could be molded from the very early months of life for the role she/he would play in adulthood (Llewellyn, 1967).

The important role of the elders, especially the grandparents, is seen in the customs of the Jicarrila Apache Indians. The parents had the main responsibility for support of their children. However, it was the grandparent who was the main disciplinarian. The belief was that the elders had lived a long time and learned much; they wanted their grandchildren to learn all that they (the grandparent) had found out in their life. Rigorous training was used to teach the children moral standards and to develop character. Respect for parents and grandparents was expected and received (Opler, 1946).

For most Native American peoples, the prenatal period and birth are religiously important. The beginning of life and the years of childhood are times when beliefs, values, and attitudes must be communicated to the child. The future of their community and the responsibility of nurturing respect for their heritage must be communicated to the children during this time period.

Thus, even though specific child-rearing customs varied among the different tribes, a common thread that links the tribes is the high degree of importance they attached to childhood as a period of development and the strong sense of responsibility they felt for their children's welfare (Gill, 1982).

From: Journall of American Indian Education