hi, I'm death...

[thanate]

"Consider Tisquantum, the "friendly Indian" of the textbook. [aka Squanto] More than likely Tisquantum was not the name he was given at birth. In that part of the Northeast, tisquantum referred to rage, especially the rage of manitou, the world-suffusing spiritual power at the heart of coastal Indians' religious beliefs. When Tisquantum approached the Pilgrims and identified himself by that sobriquet, it was as if he had stuck out his hand and said, Hello, I'm the Wrath of God."

--from Charles C Mann, 1491, New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, which is fascinating and everyone should read. :)

Comments

[ssdevilducky.livejournal.com]

If I'm remembering things right, Squanto had a lot to be angry about, as in his family / tribe being killed off by either a rival tribe and/or smallpox (rather wrath of God stuff).
But I've heard tisquantum in reference to Temsquatua (brother of Tekumsa, no idea on spelling of either) from Tipicanoe fame.

[thanate.livejournal.com]

Not smallpox-- they think probably Hepatitis A (food-carried) and it wasn't just his village, it was the entire proto-New England coast that got wiped out, thus making room for pilgrim habitation (and giving the chief of the remaining fractional population the bright idea of having token europeans around to scare off his untouched inland enemies)

But worse than that, Tisquantum wasn't even there when it happened-- he'd been kidnapped by some whacko Englishman (one account implies after returning from being kidnapped before) and it took him about 5 years to make his way home. And he'd been a high-status bodyguard to the leader of his tribe before that, too.

[ssdevilducky.livejournal.com]

I don't know if that is worse but better, since he is the one who survived most likely because he wasn't there. From what i heard, not sure where, it was more disease and rival tribe. Many people in his group get sick and die and their long time enemies saw it as an opportunity and finished the job.
Not sure kidnapping is the right word, from my understanding, more a semi willing kidnapping/pow/hostage.
In the South they teach more about the Civil war in the North it was more Colonists vs. Native Am.

[thanate.livejournal.com]

No, the rival tribe was what they were worried about after the epidemic, thus prompting them to allow the Pilgrims to stay (although given their vastly depleated numbers, it would have been really inconvenient to get rid of even starving interlopers.) Unfortuantely for them, there was insufficient contact between the Massachusset groups (one of which T. belonged to) and their enemy Narragansetts that whatever the plague was didn't spread inland.

Definately kidnapping. "Hi, come see our ship & trade with us" and then bashing everyone over the head (with about 50% casualties) and sailing off to Spain to sell them. Although the Church confiscated most of them before they got sold, hence Tisquantum's escape to England and eventual return to the new world.

The whole point of the book I'm reading is "what you were taught in High School is WRONG" which is to say that the popular knowledge on this hasn't changed since about the 1950s or maybe earlier, and with all the new ways of collecting evidence (and looking at what we had before) there's a lot more, often completely contradictary, that we know now.

Oh, and I'd also dispute that NoVa is part of the south, even as far as education is concerned. But that's different. :)

[fishy1.livejournal.com]

you have a copy i can borrow?

[thanate.livejournal.com]

um, the library does... although it only came out last year, and the waiting list is still about 2 months long. (My mother is thinking of getting it; I'll let you know if she does)

[fishy1.livejournal.com]

okee dokee

[skittblink.livejournal.com]

Sounds like an awesome book. I wish my name was "Wrath of God"...