Questions & Answers
Questions & Information asked of the Muwin Nation
Questions & Information asked of the Muwin Nation
Generally we shut down sign up Monday Evening the week of the Camp Out.
On Tuesday we talk to the State Park Registration people about how may sites we want. We will can always work with you to do multiple people on one site, so we can to make it work.
2016 - 2018 Season Nation Person: Alan Hall naffajh@sbcglobal.net
Muwin: Bear
Pronunciation: moo-win
Tribal affiliation: Mi'kmaq, Maliseet, Passamaquoddy
Alternate spellings: Muin, Mooin, Mouin, Moo'in, Moowin, Mooween
Also known as: Muwinskw, Mooinskw, Muin'skw, Muin'iskw, Mooin-askw (female)
Type: Animal spirts
Muwin the bear is one of the major characters of Wabanaki folklore. In comparison with other animal spirits, Muwin is portrayed as a strong, honorable figure with impressive magical powers, but often somewhat gullible and slow-witted, so that he frequently serves as the "straight man," victim, or butt of the joke for weaker but cleverer tricksters like Rabbit, Wolverine, or Raccoon. In other stories, Muwin fares better than these animals due to his superior moral qualities.
Some Wabanaki stories feature Muwinskw, Mrs. Bear (sometimes translated as Bear Woman.) She has much the same characteristics as Muwin (particularly gullibility and good moral character), but also the fierce maternal instinct that real mother bears in the wild are known for. In Wabanaki tales, lost or abandoned children are frequently adopted by Muwinskw.
Mi'kmaq People: The Micmac First Nations are indigenous people of eastern Canada, variously spelled Mi'kmaq, Míkmaq, Mikmak, Mi'gmak, or Mikmaq. Their original term for themselves was Lnu'k (or L'nu'k), "the people." Mi'kmaq comes from a word in their own language meaning "my friends"; it is the preferred tribal name now, though fluent speakers often use the adjective form, Mi'kmaw. The Micmacs were sometimes also called Porcupine Indians because of their porcupine-quill art. They were kinfolk and traditional allies of the Abenaki, Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, and Maliseet Indians, with whom they formed the historic Wabanaki Confederacy of New England and the Maritimes. Traditional Micmac territory is concentrated in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, but the Micmac people also had a presence in parts of Quebec, Newfoundland, and Maine. There are about 25,000 Mi'kmaq Indians today, most of whom still live on their traditional lands.
Mi'kmaq History: In allying with the French, the Mi'kmaq tribe did not pick the winning side in the European fight over Nova Scotia; they did, however, pick pretty good friends. Not only didn't the French massacre the Mi'kmaqs, they kept their own settlements to the coast and didn't infringe much on Mi'kmaq hunting grounds. For their part, the Mi'kmaq people were staunch allies of the French in good times and bad, and if the tribe had not been devastated by smallpox and other European diseases, the history of Nova Scotia might have been written very differently. As it was, the English, helped by the Mohawk and other Iroquoians, did eventually defeat and deport the French, but the Mikmaq tribe remains in the Maritimes to this day.
Maliseet People: The Maliseet tribe belonged to the loose confederation of eastern American Indians known as the Wabanaki Alliance, together with the Passamaquoddy, Penobscot, Micmac, and Abenaki Indians. The Maliseet live primarily in Canada, especially New Brunswick, with one band across the border in Maine (the US granted official recognition to the Maine tribe in 1980.) Older literature sometimes refers to them as "St. John's Indians," though they never used that term themselves. The Maliseet's own name for themselves is Wolastoqiyik (Maliseet is a Micmac word for someone who can't talk very well,) but today they are usually known as Maliseets or Malecites.
Maliseet History: The Maliseet and Passamaquoddy people were closely related neighbors who shared a common language. The French called both the Passamaquoddy and Maliseet tribes by the same French name, Etchemin, but they have always considered themselves politically independent. Europeans were frequently confused by the Native American tribes of the east coast, who were numerous, small, and frequently lived together, yet claimed to be separate nations. This is primarily because all of these tribes had been much larger and lived independently of one another before smallpox and other European diseases decimated their populations. The Maliseet and Passamaquoddy, near relatives and long-time allies who spoke dialects of the same language, banded together against European and Iroquois aggression with their neighbors the Abenakis, Penobscots, and Micmacs. The resulting Wabanaki Confederacy was no more than a loose alliance, however, and neither the Passamaquoddy nor the Maliseet nation ever gave up their sovereignty.
Passamaquoddy People: The Passamaquoddy tribe belonged to the loose confederation of eastern American Indians known as the Wabanaki Alliance, together with the Maliseet, Mi'kmaq, Abenaki, and Penobscot tribes. Today most Passamaquoddy people live in Maine, in two communities along the Passamaquoddy Bay that bears their name. However, there is also a band of a few hundred Passamaquoddy people in New Brunswick.
Passamaquoddy History: The French referred to both the Passamaquoddy and their Maliseet kinfolk by the same name, "Etchimins." They were closely related peoples who shared a common language, but the two tribes have always considered themselves politically independent. Smallpox and other European diseases took a heavy toll on the Passamaquoddy tribe, which was reduced from at least 20,000 people to no more than 4000. Pressured by European and Iroquois aggression, the Maliseet and Passamaquoddy banded together with their neighbors the Abenakis, Penobscots, and Micmacs into the short-lived but formidable Wabanaki Confederacy. This confederacy was no more than a loose alliance, however, and neither the Maliseet nor the Passamaquoddy nation ever gave up their sovereignty. Today the Passamaquoddy live primarily in the United States and the Maliseet in Canada, but the distinction between the two is not imposed by those governments--the two tribes have always been politically distinct entities.
In Texas, local governments are empowered to take action on the behalf of those they serve. When drought conditions exist, a burn ban can be put in place by a county judge or county commissioners court prohibiting or restricting outdoor burning for public safety.
If we find ourselves under a Burn Ban, the leaders will reach out to all about other options for Saturday Night Camp Fire