They were also decorated beautifully with sacred items, and were usually handcrafted using only natural materials. In fact, the native word for dream catcher, asabikeshiinh, actually means “spider” specifically because of the web-like design. In the past, Native Americans constructed dream catchers from the bones and tissue of animals, also called sinew, and wrapped them in a web around a small frame. For those who do not know, the Ojibwe tribe is from Minnesota, like me! The original version of the dream catcher was not always as fancy and elaborate as they are today. The dream catcher is considered to be a traditional Native American item that originated from the Ojibwe (Chippewa) tribe.
Let’s explore a little bit of the history behind the dream catcher in Native American culture. Would it be arts and crafts? Superstition or beliefs? Whatever it is, we are going to take a deeper look into the culture and discover the significance and symbolic meaning behind the item in context of Native American culture.
I do not know what cultural feature to label this as. This weeks post focuses on something I love: dream catchers.
