Except that marital unions depend everywhere on economic considerations,
there is such diversity in the marriage customs of the natives of North
America that no general description will apply beyond a single great
cultural group.
The Eskimo, except those tribes of Alaska that have
been led to imitate the institutions of neighboring tribes of alien
stocks, have no clan organization. Accordingly the choice of a mate is
barred only by specified degrees of kinship. Interest and convenience
govern the selection. The youth looks for a competent housewife, the
girl for a skilled hunter. Them is no wedding ceremony. The man obtains
the parents consent, presents his wife with garments, and the marriage
is consummated.
Frequently there are child betrothals, but, these are
not considered binding. Monogamy is prevalent, as the support of several
wives is possible only for the expert hunter. Divorce is as informal as
marriage; either party may leave the other on the slightest pretext, and
may remarry. The husband may discard a shrewish or miserly wife, and the
wife may abandon her husband if he maltreats her or fails to provide
enough food. In such cases the children generally remain with the
mother.
On the north coast marriage between members of the same
clan is strictly forbidden. The negotiations are usually carried on by
the parents. The Kwakiutl purchases with his wife the rank and
privileges of her family, to be surrendered later by her father to the
children with interest, depending on the number of offspring. When the
debt is paid the father has redeemed his daughter, and the marriage is
annulled unless the husband renews his payment. Among the other tribes
of the group an actual sale of the girl is rare. The Tlingit. Tsimshian,
coast Salish, and Bellacoola send gifts to the girl's parents; but
presents of nearly equal or even superior value are returned. Monogamy
predominates. In case of separation Salish parents divide their children
according to special agreement. Anton, the Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian,
and Heiltsuk the children always belong to the mother. If a husband
expels his wife from caprice he must return her dowry; if she has been
unfaithful he keeps the dowry and may demand his wedding gifts.
On the lower Pacific coast the clan system disappears.
The regulations of the Indians of California vary considerably. Some
tribes have real purchase of women; others ratify the marriage merely by
an exchange of gifts. Polygamy is rare. Divorce is easily accomplished
at the husband's wish, and where wives are bought the purchase money is
refunded. Among the Hupa the husband can claim only half of his payment
if he keeps the children. Wintun men seldom expel their wives, but slink
away from home, leaving their families behind.
The Pueblos, representing a much higher stage of
culture, shoe very different marriage conditions. The clan organization
is developed, there is no purchase, and the marriage is arranged by the
parents or independently by the young couple. The Zuņi lover, after
bringing acceptable gifts, is adopted as a son by the father of his
betrothed, and married life begins in her home. She is thus mistress of
the situation: the children are hers, and she can order the husband from
the house should the occasion arise.
Of the Plains Indians some had the gentiles system,
while others lacked it completely. They seem to have practiced polygamy
more commonly, the younger sisters of a first wife being potential wives
of the husband. Among the Pawnee and the Siksika the essential feature
of the marriage ceremony was the presentation of gifts to the girl's
parents. In case of elopement the subsequent presentation of gifts
legitimized the marriage and removed the disgrace which would otherwise
attach to the girl and her family (Grinnell). The men had absolute power
over their wives, and separation and divorce were common. The Hidatsa,
Kiowa, and Omaha had no purchase. The women had a higher social
position, and the wishes of the girls were consulted. Wives could leave
cruel husbands. Each consort could remarry and the children were left in
the custody of their mother or their paternal grandmother. Separation
was never accompanied by any ceremony.
East of the Mississippi the clan and gentile systems
were most highly developed. The rules against marriage within the clan
or gens were strictly enforced. Descent of name and property was in the
female line among the Iroquoian, Muskhogean, and southeast Algonquian
tribes, but in the male line among the Algonquians of the north and
west. Among some tribes, such as the Creeks, female descent did not
prevent the subjection of women. As a rule, however, women had clearly
defined rights. Gifts took the place of purchase. Courtship was
practically alike in all the Atlantic tribes of the Algonquian stock;
though the young men sometimes managed the matter themselves, the
parents generally arranged the match.
A Delaware mother would bring some
game killed by her son to the girl's relatives and receive an
appropriate gift in return. If the marriage was agreed upon, presents of
this kind were continued for a long time. A Delaware husband could put
away his wife at pleasure, especially if she had no children, and a
woman could leave her husband. The Hurons and the Iroquois had a perfect
matriarchate, which limited freedom of choice. Proposals made to the
girl's mother were submitted by her to the women's council, whose
decision was final among the Hurons. Iroquois unions were arranged by
the mothers without the consent or knowledge of the couple. Polygamy was
permissible for a Huron, but forbidden to the Iroquois. Divorce was
discreditable, but could easily be effected. The children went with the
mother.
Monogamy is thus found to be the prevalent form of
marriage throughout the continent. The economic factor is everywhere
potent, but an actual purchase is not common. The marriage bond is
loose, and may, with few exceptions, be dissolved by the wife as well as
by the husband. The children generally stay with their mother, and
always do in tribes having maternal clans. See Adoption, Captives, Child
life, Clans and Gens, Government, Kinship, Women.
Consult Crantz, History of Greenland, 1767; Boas,
Central Eskimo, 1888; Nelson, Eskimo about Bering Strait, 1899; Krause,
Tlinkit-Indianer, 1885; Box, Reps. on N. AV. Tribes of Can. to Brit. A.
A. S., 1889-98; Powers, Tribes of California, 1877; J. O. Dorsey, (1)
Omaha Sociology, 1884; (2) Siouan Sociology, 1897; Farrand, Basis of
American history, 1904; Goddard in Univ. Cal. Pub., Am. Archaol. and
Ethnol., t, no. l, 1903; Mooney, Calendar Hist. Kiowa, 1900; Grinnell,
(1) Blackfoot Lodge Tales, 1892, (2) Pawnee Hero Stories, 1889; Cushing,
Adventures in Zuni, Century Mag., 1883; Powell, Wyandot Government,
1881; Morgan, League of the Iroquois, 1851; Heckewelder, Hist. Manners
and Customs Indian Nations, 1876; Voth in Ain. Anthrop., ii, no. 2,
1900; Owen, Musquakie Folk-lore, 1904; Dixon in Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. hist.,
xvii, pt. 3, 1905; Kroeber in Bull. Am. Mus. Nat. Hist., xviii, pt. 1,
1902; Holm, Descr. New Sweden, 1834.
Handbook of American Indians, Frederick W. Hodge,1906
http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/tribes/history/indianmarriage.htm
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