Wovoka
Encyclopedia
Ghost Dance
The Ghost Dance was a new religious movement which was incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. The traditional ritual used in the Ghost Dance, the circle dance, has been used by many Native Americans since prehistoric times...
movement. Wovoka means "cutter" or "wood cutter" in the Northern Paiute language
Northern Paiute language
Northern Paiute is a Western Numic language of the Uto-Aztecan family, which according to Marianne Mithun had around 500 fluent speakers in 1994. Ethnologue reported the number of speakers in 1999 as 1,631...
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Biography
Wovoka was born in Smith Valley area southeast of Carson City, NevadaCarson City, Nevada
The Consolidated Municipality of Carson City is the capital of the state of Nevada. The words Consolidated Municipality refer to a series of changes in 1969 which abolished Ormsby County and merged all the settlements contained within its borders into Carson City. Since that time Carson City has...
, around the year 1856. Wovoka's father may have been the religious leader variously known as “Tavibo“ or “Numu-Taibo” whose teachings were similar to those of Wovoka. Regardless, Wovoka clearly had some training as a medicine man
Medicine man
"Medicine man" or "Medicine woman" are English terms used to describe traditional healers and spiritual leaders among Native American and other indigenous or aboriginal peoples...
. Wovoka’s father died around the year 1870, and he was taken in by David and Mary Wilson, who was a rancher in the Yerington, Nevada
Yerington, Nevada
Yerington is a city in Lyon County, located in western Nevada, USA. The population was 2,883 at the 2000 census. It is named after Henry M. Yerington, Superintendent of the Virginia and Truckee Railroad from 1868 to 1910. It is the county seat of Lyon County....
area. Wovoka worked on Wilson’s ranch and used the name Jack Wilson when dealing with whites. David Wilson was a devout Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, and Wovoka learned Christian theology
Christian theology
- Divisions of Christian theology :There are many methods of categorizing different approaches to Christian theology. For a historical analysis, see the main article on the History of Christian theology.- Sub-disciplines :...
and Bible stories while living with him.
Wovoka gained a reputation as a powerful medicine man early in adulthood and is now perceived to have been adept at magic tricks. One feat he often performed was being shot with a shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
, which may have been similar to the bullet catch
Bullet catch
The bullet catch is a conjuring illusion in which a magician appears to catch a bullet fired directly at him—often in his mouth, sometimes in his hand or caught with other items such as a dinner plate...
"trick". Reports of this feat potentially convinced the Lakota that their “ghost shirts” could stop bullets. Wovoka also performed a feat of levitation. One of his chief sources of authority among Paiutes was his alleged ability to control the weather. He was said to have caused a block of ice to fall out of the sky on a summer day, to be able to end drought with rain or snow, to light his pipe with the sun, and to form icicles in his hands.
Wovoka claimed to have had a prophetic vision during the solar eclipse
Solar eclipse
As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...
on January 1, 1889. Wovoka's vision entailed the resurrection
Resurrection
Resurrection refers to the literal coming back to life of the biologically dead. It is used both with respect to particular individuals or the belief in a General Resurrection of the dead at the end of the world. The General Resurrection is featured prominently in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim...
of the Paiute dead and the removal of whites and their works from North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Wovoka taught that in order to bring this vision to pass the Native Americans must live righteously and perform a traditional round dance, known as the Ghost dance
Ghost Dance
The Ghost Dance was a new religious movement which was incorporated into numerous Native American belief systems. The traditional ritual used in the Ghost Dance, the circle dance, has been used by many Native Americans since prehistoric times...
, in a series of five-day gatherings. Wovoka's teachings spread quickly among many Native American peoples, notably the Lakota. The Ghost Dance movement is best known for its role in the Wounded Knee Massacre
Wounded Knee Massacre
The Wounded Knee Massacre happened on December 29, 1890, near Wounded Knee Creek on the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, USA. On the day before, a detachment of the U.S. 7th Cavalry Regiment commanded by Major Samuel M...
, in which it caused Indian Agents, Soldiers, and other Federal officials a great deal of consternation and helped to predispose them towards a cautious, wary, and defensive posture when dealing with the Sioux. Important to note is that Wovoka’s preachings included messages of non-violence, but that two Miniconjou, Short Bull
Arnold Short Bull
Arnold Short Bull , a member of the Sičháŋǧu Lakota tribe of Native Americans, instrumental in bringing the Ghost Dance movement to the reservations.- Ghost Dance, 1890-91 :...
and Kicking Bear
Kicking Bear
Kicking Bear , also called Matȟó Wanáȟtake, was an Oglala Lakota who became a band chief of the Minneconjou Lakota Sioux. He fought in several battles during the War for the Black Hills, including the Battle of Little Big Horn...
, instead emphasized the possible elimination of whites which contributed to the already defensive attitude of the federal officials who were already reacting with fear of the unknown to the Ghost Dance movement.
Wovoka died in Yerington on September 20, 1932 and is interred in the Paiute Cemetery in the town of Schurz, Nevada
Schurz, Nevada
Schurz is a census-designated place in Mineral County, Nevada, United States. The population was 721 at the 2000 census. It is located on the Walker River Indian Reservation. It is the burial place of Wovoka, the Paiute messiah who originated the Ghost Dance movement...
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Further reading
- Michael Hittman, Wovoka and the Ghost Dance, Bison Books 1998, ISBN 0803273088
- John Norman, Ghost Dance, Daw Books 1970, (a fictional account) ISBN 0879975016