Waníyetu Wówapi: The Winter Count

You wonder how I tell you these stories, my child? How I can recount what happened in my grandmother's time as if it happened yesterday? Good memory, my child! You don't reach my age without having a strong mind. Of course, the hides help as well.

Historical Details

Background

Time is long and unending. While the oral tradition is strong and constantly reinforced, the minutiae of births, deaths, and trade are too much for any singular person to keep track of year after year. Our ancestors saw to it that these details would be recorded, and that their children would be able to read the symbols and understand their meaning to preserve the information for future generations.

History

The history of the winter count is the history of the Band. Upon its hides are painted everything from census information to trade deals to treaty negotiation. At the end of each year, when the bands are gathered together into a winter camp, knowledge keepers, Elders, and society leaders meet to discuss the happenings of the previous season. When they have decided what is worth recording, weathered hands grab bison-bone stylus to inscribe pigment upon the hides. These counts are then careful preserved and stored until the next time that their knowledge is needed.

Legacy

Winter Counts are an integral part of band decisions and policy-making. When the council is called together to discuss the future actions of the band, members will call upon previous years' Winter Counts both as precedent to support an action, or as examples to avoid one. This, in combination with the memory and knowledge of the Elders, ensures that all decisions made by the band are informed by actions, triumphs, and struggles of their ancestors.

Type

Record, Historical

Medium

Vellum / Skin