Petun facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Languages |
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| Petun (Iroquoian) | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Wendat |
The Petun people, also called the Tobacco people or Tionontati, were an indigenous group from eastern North America. Their name "Petun" comes from a French word for tobacco. They were an Iroquoian group who lived in the forests.
Their homeland was south of Lake Huron's Georgian Bay. This area is now part of Ontario, Canada. The Petun were closely related to the Huron, also known as the Wendat. Like other Iroquoian peoples, they formed a group of allied villages called a confederacy.
When Europeans first met them, the Petun were a smaller Iroquoian group. In the early 1600s, they had about eight or nine villages. Before Europeans arrived, their population was estimated to be around 8,000 people.
Between 1634 and 1640, many diseases spread among the Huron and Petun. These diseases came with settlers from Europe. The sicknesses greatly reduced their population. Even though they spoke Iroquoian languages, the Petun were separate from the powerful Iroquois Confederacy. This confederacy, also known as the Five Nations, lived south of the Great Lakes.
In 1648–1649, the Iroquois attacked smaller tribes. These attacks were part of the Beaver Wars, fought over the valuable fur trade. The Iroquois nearly destroyed the Petun and Huron. Some Petun survivors joined with Huron refugees. They formed a new group called the Huron–Petun Nation, later known as the Wyandot.
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What Does the Name "Petun" Mean?
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The name "Pétun" came from early French traders in Brazil. It came from the Guaraní language, an indigenous language. This word later became less common in the French language.
Many sources say the Petun name is linked to growing and trading tobacco. This was a common activity for this Iroquoian group when Europeans arrived. For example, a historian in the 1800s wrote that they "raised and sold tobacco." This is why the French called them Petuns.
Other sources, like the Smithsonian Institution in 1910, also mentioned "large fields of tobacco." Later encyclopedias also linked the French nickname "pétun" to their tobacco farming and trade.
However, some early French writings do not mention tobacco farming in Petun villages. The explorer Samuel de Champlain first used the nickname in 1616. He used it for one specific village he visited. Later, in 1623, the term became more widely used.
One of the first claims about the Petun growing a lot of tobacco came from a 1632 map. This map was said to be Champlain's, but it was not entirely his work. Champlain's earlier writings from 1619 said the Petun grew corn, but not tobacco. The 1632 map, however, clearly mentioned their tobacco farming and trade.
In the Mohawk language, an Iroquoian language, the word for tobacco is O-ye-aug-wa. French traders in the Ohio Valley wrote this name as Guyandotte. Later, American settlers used this name. They named the Guyandotte River in West Virginia after the Wendat. The Wendat had moved to that area during the Beaver Wars.
Petun History
Early Information About the Petun
There are not many old writings that focus only on the Petun before they scattered. The main historical source is the Jesuit Relations. These were reports written by French Jesuit missionaries. They mostly lived in Huronia, which was across Nottawasaga Bay from the Petun.
The missionaries often got their information about the Petun second-hand. Also, English translations of French writings sometimes changed due to the translator's choices. This made it harder to get clear information.
Early sources also did not always clearly separate the Huron, Petun, and Neutral groups. Sometimes, the Petun were grouped with the Huron. Other times, unrelated groups like the Cayuga were mistakenly called "Petun."
Before Europeans Arrived
The Petun people appeared during a time called the Late Ceramic period. This period started about 1,100 years ago and ended about 400 years ago. They are part of the Ontario Iroquoian tradition, along with the Huron and Neutral peoples.
During the Late Ceramic period, people lived in fortified villages. These villages often had palisades, which were walls made of tall wooden posts. Farming became more important during this time. Growing corn was a key activity, while hunting became less important.
Archaeologists believe that the Princess Point culture, which appeared about 3,000 years ago, was the ancestor of the Iroquoians. This culture brought corn to the area. During this time, people also started burying their dead with special items. Later, they began using ossuaries, which are places where many bones are buried together.
Just before Europeans arrived, the Iroquoians in Ontario had formed two main cultural groups. These were the Huron–Petun in the north and the Neutrals and Erie in the south. People started living in larger, well-protected villages. The Huron and Petun moved to central areas near Georgian Bay. The Neutrals settled in the Niagara Peninsula.
When Europeans Arrived
When the French arrived in the early 1600s, they started writing detailed records. These records tell us about the Huron, Petun, and Neutrals. By this time, the Huron and Petun were politically separate. However, the French noted that their customs were very similar.
Jesuit missionaries wrote that the Huron and Petun were close allies. But they had fought fierce wars against each other in the past. The Huron lived northeast of the Petun, between Georgian Bay and Lake Simcoe. Trails connected the Huron and Petun, and it took about a day to travel between them.
In 1616, Samuel de Champlain listed about eight Petun villages. Later, in 1639, Jesuit accounts mentioned nine villages. One modern guess puts the Petun population at about 8,000 people. This number dropped to 3,000 by 1640 because of disease epidemics. In comparison, the Huron had about 18–25 villages and 20,000–30,000 people. Their population also dropped to about 9,000 by 1640.
The Petun were a tribal confederacy, much like the Huron. The Jesuits said the Petun had two main groups: the "Nation of the Wolves" and the "Nation of the Deer."
The Beaver Wars and Their Impact
The fur trade and the French presence changed Petun society. The French mainly traded with the Huron. This made it hard for the Petun and other groups to get European goods directly. The French wanted beaver pelts, but beavers soon became rare in Huronia. So, the Huron had to trade with other groups, like the Algonquin, for furs.
Meanwhile, the Iroquois to the south began to expand their territory. This period became known as the Beaver Wars. The Dutch, who had a colony called New Netherland, also wanted furs. They traded up the Hudson and Delaware rivers. The Dutch gave firearms to the Iroquois. In contrast, the French carefully controlled who got firearms. They only gave them to trusted Christian Huron converts.
Diseases and conflicts with the Iroquois forced many Huron to seek safety. They went to the French mission of Sainte-Marie among the Hurons. This mission was near modern-day Midland, Ontario. Many Huron also converted to Christianity there.
In 1648, the Iroquois attacked and destroyed several eastern Huron villages. That winter, a large Iroquois army of about a thousand warriors secretly camped north of Lake Ontario. Most of these warriors were Seneca and Mohawk. In the spring, they attacked the Huron.
The Iroquois took over the western Huron villages around Sainte-Marie. The French burned Sainte-Marie to stop the Iroquois from capturing it. Then, the French left the Pays d'en Haut (Upper Country) and went to Quebec for safety. The Huron people scattered after their defeat. Some followed the French to Wendake, Quebec. Others found safety among the Neutrals and the Petun.
By the end of 1649, the Iroquois also attacked the Petun. Many Huron and Petun people were then taken into Iroquois society. However, a large group of Huron and Petun refugees fled west. They went to the upper Great Lakes region. There, they found safety with the Odawa and Potawatomi peoples.
Most of these refugees first stayed with the Odawa on Manitoulin Island. Then, they moved to the Michilimackinac–Green Bay area. Later, they migrated near modern-day Detroit. By 1701, they reached the southwest shore of Lake Erie.
They started trading in Pennsylvania, where they were called the Wyandot. This name was a changed version of Wendat. In 1843, they were all moved to Wyandotte County, Kansas. In 1867, the American government gave them land in Indian Territory. This area is now northeastern Oklahoma.
Under pressure from settlers, the Wendat had to move further west to Ohio. In the 1830s, during a time called Indian Removal, most were forced to move. They went to Indian Territory in what is now Kansas and Oklahoma. Today, two tribes are officially recognized in the United States: the Wyandotte Nation (in Oklahoma) and the Wyandot Nation of Kansas.
Petun Culture and Customs
The Jesuit Relations from 1652 describes how the Petun and the Neutrals practiced tattooing. The report says:
And this (tattooing) in some nations is so common that in the one which we called the Tobacco, and in that which – on account of enjoying peace with the Hurons and with the Iroquois – was called Neutral, I know not whether a single individual was found, who was not painted in this manner, on some part of the body.
The Petun nation spoke a language similar to the Huron Nation. They also shared many of the same cultural customs. They had an alliance with the Neutral Nation, who lived southwest and south of them. They also allied with the Ottawa, or Odawa, an Algonquian-speaking nation to the east.
The Petun also shared some material culture with the Odawa. For example, a disc pipe found at a Petun site from 1630–47 was similar to pipes found at Odawa sites.
Related Iroquoian Peoples
Five Nations of the Iroquois
Western Iroquoian Groups
- Chonnonton
- Erie
- Conestoga (Susquehannock)
- Petun
- Wenro
- Huron
Southern Iroquoian Groups
- Cherokee
- Meherrin
- Nottoway
- Tuscarora (They moved from the Carolinas to New York by 1722 after wars.)
See also
In Spanish: Tionontati para niños
