Ch. 1 Aboriginal Peoples: The Mi’kmaq Social 7 – Towards Confederation

Where did the Mi’kmaq Live? Lived in woodlands and the coasts of what is now the Maritimes: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Were one of the first peoples to make contact with Europeans.

Social Structure Mi’kmaq lived in small villages organized around clans (extended families). Each clan had their own hunting and fishing territories. Mi’kmaq believed that all things in nature were connected and sacred and wasting natural resources like food was considered very wrong.

Mi’kmaq Gov’t Each Mi’kmaq clan had its own leader, called the sagamaw, who was usually a good hunter. The Mi’kmaq nation was divided into seven districts. Each district had a leader and council. They settled disputes and declared war and divided hunting and fishing territories for the clans. Finally, there was the Grand Council which made decisions affecting the entire Mi’kmaq nation. (See Fig. 1.8 on p. 15)

Decision Making Like the Iroquois, the Mi’kmaq believed in consensus, compromise and equality of leaders to the followers.

Role and Status of Women Ensured families had enough to meet basic needs. Raised children and took care of home. Collected and prepared food. Hunted small game for food and clothing. In gov’t, women advised male leaders on most issues. Female elders played a special role on decisions big and small.