Wigwam

The wigwam was a dome-shaped shelter, with a roughly circular base, used by a wide range of Native American peoples as a semi-permanent shelter.

There are a number of names by which the wigwam is known, corresponding to the specific geographical area, culture, and language family (or dialect of a language) that a specific tribe used. These names include wigwam, wickiup, wetu, and wiigiwaam. The term wickiup was used generally in the Southwestern and Western states of the US, as well as in Alberta, Canada. On the other hand, the term wigwam was predominant among the native peoples of the Northwestern states, and around Quebec and Ontario in eastern and central Canada.

Construction of the Wigwam

The wigwam was a strong, durable type of home built by many American Indians made with a frame of tree limbs bent into a dome shape, then covered with moss, mud, bark, or animal skins to insulate and block out the wind. The specific materials always varied with what the people had available to them: what they could bring with them on their nomadic trails and what was readily available in the environment. The core structure of a wigwam could be built using virtually any type of young tree limbs (saplings) which were especially malleable, and could therefore be bent (without breaking) into the desired shape. After the frame was constructed they were covered with anything from bark, to moss, animal skin, grasses and mud to insulate against the wind and the cold. This made them durable, and relatively long-lasting (semi-permanent) over a single year, or multiple years, with some upkeep.

The frame would be made first. A circle would be drawn into the ground to represent the circumference of the base. Then individual sapling poles would be dug into the ground at intervals, maybe roughly one foot apart, and then bent into a dome shape (meeting roughly in the top center) for the body of the wickiup, where the vertical frame poles would be bound together using whatever cord, grasses, or fibers were available.

After the vertical poles were established for the basic structure of the dome, circles of saplings were established around the vertical poles, parallel to the ground, and bound to the vertical poles. These provided structural support. On top of this strong frame thatching of various types is applied. Grasses. Hides. Leaves. Mud. In modern times plastic sheets are also used. Oftentimes a thicker insulative layer of grasses (or grasses and mud) was created first. Then covered on the outside by hides or tree-bark for a waterproof layer to really make these structure durable and warm, regardless of the elements, especially if a fire was made inside.

They would have a smoke hole in the top middle, if a fire was needed inside, with a cover in case it rained. The doorway was likely covered with a flap of some sort, often a hide, to further protect against the elements.

The men of the community were in charge of building the wigwam, while the women took care of the inside, sometimes hanging decorated hides or furs on the inside walls, or laying them on the ground, to create a comfortable home.

Wickiup-Type Structures In Other Cultures

Interestingly there are many ancient, indigenous people throughout Eurasia who have traditionally built similar shelters. Since all people arose ultimately Out of Africa, this could be evidence of a common ancestral tradition or ancient memory from the distant past of our species.

The Sámi people (an indigenous people of Northern Europe) built a similar structure called the goahti. Near identical constructions called aqal are still used today by the nomadic Somali people, as well as the Afar people on the Horn of Africa. Yarangas are the name of a shelter possessed of a similar shape used by the Indigenous people of Northern Russia, such as the Chukchi and the Siberian Yupik. These differ in that they can also have internal rooms within the dome shape.

Since the indigenous peoples of Eurasia are directly related to the ancient ancestors of the Amerindians (especially those of northern Russia and Siberia, more distantly in time with Africa) a cultural link might be considered in these constructions.

Resources

1. Wigwam. Wikipedia. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wigwam>. Accessed 22 August 2023.
2. Wigwam. René R. Gadacz. The Canadian Encyclopedia. <https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/wigwam>. Accessed 22 August 2023.