Muscogee mythology (previously referred to by its

exonym An endonym (also known as autonym ) is a common, name for a group of people, individual person, geographical place, language, or dialect, meaning that it is used inside a particular group or linguistic community to identify or designate them ...

"Creek") is related to a

Muscogee The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek or just Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language; English: ), are a group of related Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Here they waged war again ...

tribe who are originally from the

southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

, also known by their original name Mvskoke (or Muskogee), the name they use to identify themselves today.Transcribed documents
Sequoyah Research Center and the American Native Press Archives ''Mvskoke'' is their name in traditional spelling. Modern Muscogees live primarily in

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Their language, '' Mvskoke'', is a member of the Eastern branch of the Muskogean language family. The

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

are close kin to the Mvskoke and speak an Eastern Muskogean language as well. The Muscogee were considered one of the

Five Civilized Tribes The term Five Civilized Tribes was applied by the United States government in the early federal period of the history of the United States to the five major Native American nations in the Southeast: the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee (Cr ...

. After the Creek War many of the Muscogee escaped to Florida to create the Seminole.

History

The early historic Muscogee were probably descendants of the

Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture was a collection of Native American societies that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 to 1600 CE, varying regionally. It was known for building la ...

peoples who lived along the

Tennessee River The Tennessee River is a long river located in the Southern United States, southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. Flowing through the states of Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Kentucky, it begins at the confluence of Fren ...

, in what is now modern

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

and Alabama, and possibly related to the Utinahica of southern Georgia. More of a loose confederacy than a single tribe, the Mvskoke lived in autonomous villages in river valleys throughout what are today the states of Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama also consisted of many ethnic groups speaking several distinct languages, such as the Hitchiti,

, and

Coushatta The Coushatta () are a Muskogean-speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native American people now living primarily in the United States, U.S. states of Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas. When the Coushatta first encountered Europeans, the ...

. Those who lived along the

Ocmulgee River The Ocmulgee River () is a western tributary of the Altamaha River, approximately 255 mi (410 km) long, in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the westernmost major tributary of the Altamaha.Oconee River The Oconee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map Accessed April 21, 2011 river in the U.S. state of Georgia. Its origin is in Hall County and it terminates where it join ...

were called "Creek Indians" by British traders from

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

; eventually the name was applied to all of the various natives of creek towns, becoming increasingly divided between the Lower Towns of the Georgia frontier on the

Chattahoochee River The Chattahoochee River () is a river in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern United States. It forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida and Georgia border. It ...

(see

Apalachicola Province Apalachicola Province was a group or association of towns located along the lower part of the Chattahoochee River in present-day Alabama and Georgia. The Spanish so called it because they perceived it as a political entity under the leadership of ...

), Ocmulgee River, and Flint River and the Upper Towns of the

Alabama River The Alabama River, in the U.S. state of Alabama, is formed by the Tallapoosa River, Tallapoosa and Coosa River, Coosa rivers, which unite about north of Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery, near the town of Wetumpka, Alabama, Wetumpka. Over a co ...

Valley. The Lower Towns included Coweta, Cusseta (Kasihta, Cofitachequi), Upper Chehaw ( Chiaha), Hitchiti, Oconee, Ocmulgee, Okawaigi, Apalachicola, Yamasee (Altamaha), Ocfuskee, Sawokli, and Tamali. The Upper Towns included Tuckabatchee, Abihka, Coosa (Kusa; the dominant people of

East Tennessee East Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. Geographically and socioculturally distinct, it comprises approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee. East Tennessee consists of 33 coun ...

and North Georgia during the Spanish explorations), Itawa (original inhabitants of the Etowah Indian Mounds), Hothliwahi (Ullibahali), Hilibi, Eufaula, Wakokai, Atasi, Alibamu, Coushatta (Koasati; they had absorbed the Kaski/Casqui and the Tali), and Tuskegee ("Napochi" in the de Luna chronicles). Cusseta (Kasihta) and Coweta are the two principal towns of the Muscogee Nation to this day. Traditionally the Cusseta and Coweta bands are considered to the earliest members of the Muscogee Nation.

Creation

Many Muscogee creation stories revolve around how human beings arrived on the earth rather than the earth's origins. Muscogee creation stories differ among tribal groups that became grouped colonially by language similarities, but stories from Kasihta, Kasihta-Chickasaw-Coweta, and Coweta origins all include humans emerging from beneath the earth in the West and journeying to the East. Muscogee creation stories reference Hesaketvmesē (meaning "Maker of Breath" or "the One Above who holds life's breath"; pronounced Hisa'kita immi'si), a solar deity also called Epohfvnkv ("the Creator" or "the One Above us"), who spoke to and guided the Muscogee on their journeys. In Muscogee beliefs, the cosmos is divided into three worlds: The Upper world, primarily home to Maker of Breath, the Sun, the Moon, and Thunder, The Middle World, inhabited by humans, and the Lower World, notably occupied by the creature known as the Tie Snake or the Horned Serpent. The Middle World is the balance between the order and chaos between the Upper and Lower Worlds.

Legends

In Muscogee legends, the Tie Snake and the Horned Serpent are underwater serpents seen frequently as a chaotic figure. The two creatures are sometimes interpreted to be interchangeable but the Horned Serpent is larger. Across different legends, key points of the Tie Snake and Horned Serpent origin stories involve one of two hunters eating prohibited food, causing them to transform overnight into a snake. This story signals the importance of respecting the cosmic balance between the worlds. Another significant figure in Muscogee mythology is Corn Woman, whose origin varies across legends. One version tells the tale of corn falling from a woman's feet after she rubbed them together. In another, corn poured out of Corn Woman's thigh after she scratched it. Many of the legends end in the Corn Woman sacrificing herself to allow corn crops to grow. The legend of Corn Woman symbolizes how life comes from death and women's fertility.

References

{{List of mythological figures by region Creation myths Muscogee culture Mythologies of the indigenous peoples of North America

History

Creation

Legends

See also

References