Longhouse
A longhouse is a distinctive architectural structure that is found in various cultures around the world, including native North America, Africa, Micronesia, and Scandinavia. Characterized by its elongated shape, a longhouse typically measures between 50 to 70 feet in length and 12 to 15 feet in width. Inside, multiple fires are arranged along the central axis, with each fire serving a nuclear family, which is often part of a closely-knit matrilineal extended family. In North America, longhouses hold particular significance for the Iroquois people and several tribes from the Northwest Coast. For the Iroquois, the longhouse symbolizes traditional values and has historically been a site for various religious ceremonies. While modern Iroquois families may live in single-family homes, the longhouse continues to play a role in their cultural and religious practices, particularly in the Longhouse religion founded by Handsome Lake. Similarly, many Northwest Coast tribes utilize longhouses primarily for ceremonial purposes, such as potlatches. This architectural form serves as a reflection of community, family ties, and cultural heritage.
Longhouse
Tribes affected: Iroquois, Northwest Coast tribes, others
Significance: The longhouse is a distinctive architectural structure used by various tribes for housing in traditional times and used as the setting for religious ceremonies today
The longhouse is an architectural form that occurs widely throughout the world, including native North America, Africa, Micronesia, and Scandinavia. The longhouse is, as the name implies, relatively long and narrow, often reaching 50 to 70 feet in length and 12 to 15 feet in width. Longhouses usually have several fires for cooking and heating arrayed along their central axis, each maintained by a nuclear family. The nuclear families within a longhouse usually are closely related and form a matrilineal extended family. In North America, longhouses have been traditional for the Iroquois and various tribes in the Northwest Coast cultural area. Among the Iroquois, the longhouse is a symbol of traditional values and, when it was the primary form of housing, was the site of various traditional religious ceremonies. Though the twentieth century Iroquois live mostly in single-family housing, the religious association of the longhouse has been continued. The religion of Handsome Lake, commonly called the “Longhouse religion,” holds its ceremonies in a longhouse dedicated to that purpose. Most twentieth century Northwest Coast tribes use longhouses solely for potlatches and other ceremonies.
