Potlatch
Potlatch is a significant ceremonial winter feast traditionally practiced among various Indigenous tribes of the Northwest Coast, including the Bella Coola, Haida, Tlingit, and Kwakiutl, among others. Originating from the Nootka word "patshatl," meaning "gift," the potlatch involves elaborate feasting and gift-giving, often serving to elevate the social status of the host. Preparation for these events can take months or even years, with hosts inviting guests through intricately crafted copper plates known as "coppers," which symbolize clan heritage and ancestral connections. The potlatch features a variety of activities, such as dancing, storytelling, and commemorative rituals, aimed at honoring both the hosts and their deceased relatives.
The scale and nature of potlatches can vary widely, from grand celebrations with large-scale gift destruction to simpler gatherings focused on communal sharing. Despite historical prohibitions imposed by colonial authorities, potlatch practices have persisted into the twenty-first century, adapting to contemporary cultural contexts while maintaining core values of community, reciprocity, and generosity. These celebrations continue to reflect the rich heritage and social fabric of the Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast.
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Potlatch
- TRIBES AFFECTED: Bella Coola, Chinook, Haida, Hupa, Karuk, Klikitat, Kwakiutl, Nootka, Salish (Coast), Tlingit, Tsimshian, Yurok
- SIGNIFICANCE: Widely practiced throughout the Northwest, the potlatch involved feasting and gift-giving, and it helped ensure or lift the status of the person giving it
The word “potlatch” is from the Chinook language, although it originated in the Nootka language as patshatl, which means “gift” or “giving.” A potlatch is a ceremonial winter feast. The details of organizing and carrying out the event vary from one area group to another. Preparation could take months or even years. Each guest invited was fed, housed, entertained, and often given many valuable gifts for the duration of the event, which could last from a few days to a few weeks, depending on the status of the hosts and the size of their community.
Invitations were sent out in the form of elaborate beaten copper plates of various shapes representing deities, ancestors, or clan symbols. These “coppers” could be from 1 to 3 feet wide and up to 4 feet tall. They were very thin and intricately engraved with stylized designs. They were sometimes referred to as the “bones of the dead” because they might depict a deceased relative. On occasion, they were broken up and given out to several members of a given family or clan and then presented and reassembled upon arrival at the host village.
Dancing, storytelling, group activities, and other (often elaborate) entertainment, including mourning the dead, commemorating deceased relatives and friends, speeches, and exchanging gratuities occurred. These would honor the host and ensure the host’s importance. Initiations into Indigenous American secret societies, tattooing, piercing of body parts for adornment, and other ceremonial and ritual activities also took place. All those in attendance would then be obligated to the host in one way or another, thus assuring that the host would improve or maintain a high social position and status.
Some potlatches were grand. At the end of these enormous festivities, the host would destroy (by burning) large quantities of goods in addition to those already given away. Toward the southern reaches of the Northwest Coast culture area, the potlatches were less dramatic and consisted only of gift-giving and an elaborate display of wealth by the host. While many Indigenous people of the Northwest coast practiced potlatches, others had traditional feasts, celebrations, and gift-giving exchanges that, while similar, fell outside the formula designation of potlatch.
After colonization, missionaries eventually managed to convince the Canadian government to prohibit the potlatch (it was prohibited from 1884 to 1951), as it appeared to them to be unnecessarily destructive and to impoverish many lower-status members of the community. These views were based on racism and a wish to assimilate First Nations people into White culture. Despite the prohibition, the practice of potlatch continued in the twenty-first century, although in a somewhat modified form, depending on the nature of the local culture. What has not changed are the values inherent in the celebrations. Potlatches remained connected to the values of community, reciprocity, sharing, and generosity.
Bibliography
Bryant, Molly. "Puyallup Tribe Celebrates Potlatch Days and k'ʷədidəɫdat (Day of Thankfulness)." Puyallup Tribe, 22 Nov. 2023, www.puyalluptribe-nsn.gov/news/puyallup-tribe-celebrates-potlatch-days-and-k%CA%B7%C9%99did%C9%99%C9%ABdat-day-of-thankfulness. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.
Gadacz, René R. "Potlatch." The Canadian Encyclopedia, 7 June 2024, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/potlatch. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.