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Natchez [archive]
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Natchez
Location: The Natchez were among some of the last native American groups to live in the area which is now known
as southwestern Mississippi.
History: There is some archaeological evidence that indicates that the Natchez culture began around 700 AD and
lasted until the 1730s. This is when the tribe was involved in a war with the French. The Natchez language seems to be related
to the Muskogean language family. This indicates that the Natchez probably developed from earlier cultures in the Lower
Mississippi River Valley.
Daily Life: The Natchez were farmers who supplemented their diets through hunting and gathering. The daily life
of a Natchez would with no doubt consist of these very things. This would be providing for the tribe. The Natchez society is
organized into what anthropologists call a chiefdom. This chiefdom was divided into two ranks: nobility and commoners.
Membership in one rank or the other was determined by heredity through the female line. This system used by the Natchez
is called matrilineal descent and was also common among other Native American groups. Being in a certain social class also
determined the daily activities done. If one were a “commoner” they would be responsible for the farming, hunting, and
gathering of wild fruits and vegetables. If one were of nobility they were responsible for the decisions of the tribe and also
for the tribe’s well being and success.
Best Known Features: The Natchez may be known mostly for their religious beliefs and customs. The Natchez
religion consisted of building mounds, or “moundbuilding,” as an expression of their complex tribal religion. The mounds
served as bases for sacred building. The people of the tribe would work together to construct and maintain these mounds,
many of which still stand today. The mounds were flat-topped ceremonial mounds. Only a few of the highest-ranking
officials lived at the mound centers on a permanent basis. The people of the tribe who lived over a wide area on family
farms often gathered at the mound center for social and religious meetings, rituals, and activities. The Chief of the Natchez
was referred to as “Great Sun.” This man would be carried on a litter carried by eight men. These men would relay the litter
and move as fast as possible. The theology of the chiefdom was quite complex. It was based on a supreme deity who lived in
the sky and was connected with the sun. It was believed by the Natchez that in the distant past the son of the deity came to
earth and brought civilization as his own people giving them laws, customs, ceremonies, and arts which made them powerful.
The deity was retired into a stone that was forever preserved in the main temple. This sounds much like the beliefs of
Christianity. The grand Village of the Natchez Indians is now appropriately named Natchez, Mississippi. This was the site
of the tribe’s main ceremonial mound during the early period of French colonization in the Lower Mississippi River
Valley. The mounds constructed at the Grand Village were most likely done in stages, beginning in the thirteenth century.
Additional Reading
Natchez Tribe
Natchez Language
Mississippi Native Americans
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