Ningo Gikinonwin: Anishinaabe Four Seasons
Biboon (Winter)
In winter, the Anishinaabe left the large summer planting villages with their rectangular bark houses, and moved into much smaller family groups in the woods. Winter wigwams, a framework covered with bark, mats, brush insulation and a thick cover of dirt, would be where the women, children and elders lived. While the men hunted and ran their traplines, women's main winter activities included scraping and tanning the thick hides winter animals have. The elders would tell stories to the children. When the lakes froze and the snow fell, the people struggled to survive through the long winter. They moved to their winter camp using snowshoes to walk on top of the snow. They hunted, fished, and trapped to get food for the community. They also found the rice that was stored in the Fall to eat now in the winter months. Soon, it will become spring again and the traditional activities will continue through the four seasons.
Ziigwan (Spring)
When the snow and ice thaw, it is the beginning of a new year for the Anishinaabe as they moved their camp into the forest to harvest maple sap for making sugar. The whole family participated in the work. They used birch-bark baskets to gather the sap. At night time they went fishing in the shallow waters and used a burning torch to see the fish in the lakes. It was a happy time of year after the long winter.
Niibin (Summer)
The green leaves on the trees and lush forest come alive in the short summer, which is the warmest time of the year. Long ago, the Anishinaabe peeled birch bark from the trees to make baskets, houses, and canoes in the summer. They also fished, picked berries, gardened, and gathered the food that they needed. Summer tasks included; working in the cornfield, gathering and drying of berries, crushing berrycakes, the main source of winter nutrients -- especially vitamin C -- not supplied by meat and grain. There were raspberries, cranberries, blueberries, sarsaparilla vine and butternuts. The Elders were the teachers of the children and were respected in the community. Summer is the time for celebrations and families gather for the traditional powwow, to dance and visit with relatives.
Dagwaagin (Fall)
When the leaves turn red and orange, the Anishinaabe moved their camp to gather the wild rice from the lakes and rivers. The men would harvest wild rice and the women would process the rice. They had to dry, roast, and winnow the rice for this was the staple food throughout the year. It was also the time to dry deer meat and fish to store for the long winter months ahead. The children helped with these activities and also gathered firewood to stay warm - they also had time to play games like LaCrosse.