CHapTerR VI 
GENERAL SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC INTERPRETATIONS 
Tur Witp-riczk Moon 
With primitive man, as with wild animals, there are two chief foci 
from which radiate the primary activities of the individual and his 
society. Both are connected with the processes of growth. The one 
is food getting, the other reproduction. Along these radiations the 
majority of life’s battles are fought—along those from the first focus 
the individual struggles to survive; along those from the second he 
struggles that others may survive, that he may perpetuate his species. 
In the evolution of animal life these struggles may be classified 
roughly as, first, purely chemical; next, predominantly instinctive, 
and last, conscious. Attention is called to the struggle along the 
radiations from the food focus, and in this last, or conscious stage. 
The most fundamental and persistent want of man is that for food. 
It is not to be wondered at, therefore, that periods of food plenty should 
be recognized and marked conspicuously by suitable names. It isa 
worldwide custom of primitive people to name many months or moons 
of the year after that natural product which, by its abundance or useful- 
ness, or by other means, emphasizes itself for the time being above all 
other products. Wild rice at the time of its harvest is such a product, 
and it has given name to its harvest moon among many wild rice produc- 
ing Indians. In the Ojibwa language the September moon is called 
Manominike-qisiss or Manomini-qisiss, ‘the moon of the gathering 
of wild rice.”! Schoolcraft gives the synonym Mon-0-min-e-geez-7s, OF 
‘* moon of wild rice,”? as referring to the August moon. There need 
be no discrepancy here, for the harvest occupied parts of August, 
September, and October. Wilson gives 7 uhnoomene-heezis, ** the wild 
rice moon,” as another synonym for September.* In the Ottawa 
language, Menomonic-ka-we kee-zis, and in the Menomini language, 
Pohia-kun ka-zho, both mean ‘ wild-rice-gathering moon.”* The Pota- 
watomi Indians have a moon called manominike-gises, or ** the moon of 
gathering wild rice.”’ corresponding with late September and early 


ve 

1 Baraga, Dictionary. 
2Schooleraft, Indian Tribes. vol. v, p. 569. 
3 Wilson, Manual of the Ojebway Language. Both Wilson and Baraga call August the bilberry 
or whortleberry moon. 
4Tanner, Narrative, p. 321. 
5 Pokagon, letter, November 16, 1898. 
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