Muskoke

Creek, Mvskoke, Muskogee, Muscoge

Archaeology, historical accounts, verbal historic memory, and ethnohistory are all combined to portray the history of the Muskoke from the earliest of times. As archaeology is a field that shows us something new and exciting every year, this history is bound to change in response to new discoveries and reinterpretations of older material.

The Muskoke are made up of survivors of groups of Kasihta (Alabama-speakers), Tuskegee (Koasáti-speakers) and Coweta (Hitchiti-speakers) origin, speaking languages of the Muskogean Language Family. They were of different cultures, Moundville (Alabamas), Dallas (Koasátis) and Lamar (Hitchitis). They joined in a confederacy while they were gathered along Okmulgee River in the late 1600s. An important element in the formation of the confederacy are the Tukabahchee who may have been of Shawnee (Algonquian-speakers) origin. Together they formed a new distinct group that was known by many names, but the most well known is Muskoke (Mvskoge, Muskogee), name of unknown origin and meaning by which they are known today. As diseases and conflicts continued to decimate their societies, more groups gathered around them to seek strength in numbers. Among these groups were Yuchi, Siouan, Natchez and Timucua peoples fleeing their homelands. The lingua franca however remained the Muskoke tongue, an amalgam language of the first original groups. Later, groups dissatisfied with growing cultural and political influences from the surrounding Anglo-society, began moving into Florida to form their own independent villages. That area had been left vacant by slave raids made by among others, the Muskokes themselves. These groups later became known as the Seminoles who fought a contracted war with the United States.

The Muskoke are thus a combination of many disparate groups, Muskhogean-speakers, Yuchi-speakers, Siouan-speakers, Timucuan-speakers and Algonquian-speakers (Shawnees). Survivors of disease epidemics, conflict, wars and genocidal policies of the invading British and later United States. Finally driven out of their lands in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee to end up mainly in Oklahoma where they are now a minority in a land once promised them as theirs forever. A few families managed to hide themselves in remote corners of their former homeland, now most have organized themselves to better maintain their identity in a sea of Anglo-American and African-American faces. The land they once controlled is now ruled over by Anglo-Americans who maintain their power in a society where Anglos (people mainly of British Isles ancestry) are increasingly becoming a minority in urban areas.

Location, some groups migrate from one location to another through time due to outer or inner pressure; other groups do not.

Muskoke location

Language, no matter where we are in the world the language we speak is not necessarily the same our foremothers and -fathers spoke, sometimes it is related but at other times language shifts occur due to some form of assimilation processes.

Muskoke language

History, every time has it’s place and every place it’s time, it is a sad or a happy time, peaceful or warlike, actors in societies seek riches and fortune, sometimes at the expanse of others, but ultimately it is the winner that writes that history. History can be presented in many different ways that express our cultural ideals.

Muskoke history

Culture & Society, traditions, values, kin groups and expectations to ones status in a society now and in the future, we are all players in the cultural surroundings we are born in, social creatures seeking happiness in our varied ways.

Muskoke culture

Muskoke clans

Population, diseases, wars and competitions increase or diminish our numbers. Gender values also affects us.

Muskoke population

DNA, what our genomes say about us tells a lot about our origin and physical appearance.

Muskoke DNA

Miscellaneous, articles and other interesting things.

Sources.

Muskoke sources