Pan-Indianism: The New American

With the 'age of technology' in the past one hundred or so years, advances in transportation and communication abilities have also increased the rate of cultural diffusion. In some cases, such as that of the Native American cultures of the United States, the increased communication rates and overall mobility of the Native American tribal members has allowed for mixing of traditions. The powwow, in most cases an intertribal event, is one example of the means by which the Native Americans have created an amalgamate of all Native American cultures.

In terms of economic importance, pow-wows are an important source of income for a select number of people. Competitive dancers, drummers, singers, and vendors all can sometimes make their livings off of the 'pow-wow circuit', the hundreds of events around the country each year held by Native Americans to celebrate their culture. At the Cornell powwow held on April 14, for example, a powwow to be held a few weeks later in Rhode Island at Brown University was advertised throughout the afternoon. Searching 'powwow events' or some similar criteria will yield thousands of results from search engines of lists of events to attend in the coming year.

Although the powwow is still evolving, the powwow has become important to the Native Americans. As Iverson describes it, the 1980's and 1990's were an era in which "the powwow became all the more established as a national Indian institution and as a prevailing symbol of Indian identity"(Iverson 179). This sense of national identity, and not just tribal or local identity, has allowed the emergence of a 'pan-Indian' amalgamation, drawing from sources and tribal traditions across the nation.

Musicians and drummers of powwows are not expected to only know their tribe's melodies and songs. They are also expected to know the different types of songs from across the nation. Song types vary - honor songs, social songs, veteran songs, and specific dance song types like the Crow hops or Grass dances. Within these categories, there are literally thousands, perhaps more, of these songs being sung at powwows throughout the country(Drum).

Within a powwow, itself, the vendors who sell merchandise and food do not cater only to one specific tribe or group of people. Instead, a book vendor will sell books from across the country about different traditions; and a vendor selling flags will sell the Blackfeet flag right next to the Iroquois nation's flag. The food vendors will sell frybread, common at powwows, right along with cake and soda. This combination of the traditions - both 'mainstream' American culture(the cake and soda) and the various tribal traditions - provides a nice mix for Natives to learn more about their cultures, or celebrate their traditions with other, likeminded people.

The overall friendliness of the powwow gathering promotes communication between Indians and enhances cultural diffusion between tribes. A person may walk away from a powwow with a full stomach as well as a knowledge of a neighboring tribes' politics or issues. The new "Pan-Indian" amalgamate has emerged: someone knowledgeable not only in their own traditions, but also in the traditions of the powwows, and the traditions of others just like them.

Works Cited

"Drum and Song Page."

Iverson. "Contemporary Identity."