Roots Of Stomp Dancing

The traditional stomp dance keeps rhythm with the feet.

Stomp dancing is a Native American religious and social dance, and is now most commonly associated with the Green Corn Ceremony of the Cherokee tribe of Oklahoma. According to Cherokee-Indians.com, stomp dancing gets its name from the noise that the shuffle movement of the Native Americans' feet make when performing, and the ritual always involves fire, song and dance and a square or circular raised platform. The Stomp Dance normally takes place during the end of August and beginning of September.

History

The Muscogee (or the Creek) Native Americans were the first people to be associated with stomp dancing, according to the Inter-Tribal Council of the Five Civilized Tribes. These people were not a single tribe but consisted of a union of several tribes in areas that are now known as Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. The Green Corn ceremony is the ritual used to praise the coming of the new year, and is the ceremony at which the stomp dance was originally performed. In late summer, the Creeks believed that when the corn was ripe for picking, it was time to show their blessing through a combination of feasting, fasting, dancing, religious observances and songs. In the Creek language, the stomp dance is called "Opanka haco."

Adaptation

Although the Creek Native Americans were the first to practice the stomp dance, when the Cherokees were driven away from their homeland of Georgia by the Indian Removal Act of 1830 and sent to Oklahoma, the Cherokees incorporated the Creek's stomp dance into their culture, according to the New World Encyclopedia. The stomp dance, called "Dilsti," now replaces the Green Corn Ceremony completely for the Cherokees and is performed multiple times per year, but mostly in the late summer months. There are strict rules that one must follow that are hung up on a board in the native language. For example, the rules include no littering, no liquor and no rowdy behavior. It is now the most popular dance among the Oklahoma Cherokees.

Traditional Muscogee (Creek) Native American Stomp Dance

In the past, the stomp dance was performed on an elevated, square ceremonious platform, and a fire was built in the center of the square. In modern times, the Creeks have adapted the square into a circular mound, but still refer to it as the "square."

Both in the past and today, this fire and the reigniting of it are their main focus of prayer throughout the two-day-long celebration. The Creeks believe that the smoke let off by the fire will bring their prayers and thanks up toward the heavens. There is a type of arbor constructed on each of the edges of the square that faces north, south, west and east, and has a man sitting on each corner. The platform is encircled by a ring or mound of earth, and outside the mound are the clan houses.

According to the New World Encyclopedia, after one day of fasting and a ritualistic cleansing in a nearby body of water (generally a stream or river) by the males, both the men and women perform the stomp dance. The women are restricted to dancing and keeping the beat, while the men perform the antiphonal singing. The ceremony and prayers continue off and on throughout the night, between feasts, and end after dawn.

Traditional Cherokee Stomp Dance

When the Cherokees walked the Trail of Tears after the "Indian Removal Act," they found some solace in this new social and religious stomp dance. They have adapted the dance to their preference and culture, and the Cherokee stomp dance is now unique to them. It is an extremely lively affair, still performed to this day in late summer. The dance described here still resembles how they would have prayed in the 1800s, and has not changed much over the years.

The first dance is held after sundown, is by invitation only and includes the elders, tribal elders, medicine men and clan leaders. After the second call is made, the men and women gather around the fire on the platform and perform in a counterclockwise, circular trot step. The singing is alternated between two groups of men. The women dance while keeping the rhythm with accompaniments, including rattles worn around the ankles made from tortoise shells. Each person keeps in step with the person in front of them. They vigorously dance and sing until dawn, or as long as the last elder is left singing.

Visiting a Stomp Dance

Both the Creek and the Cherokee Native Americans still practice these religious rites. Most often, the stomp dance is a private ceremony with no outside visitors. However, if there are visitors, it is best if they are invited, and upon arrival, they must let the leader of the grounds know they have arrived. Although most of the tribe no longer wear traditional clothes, the leader will generally wear a feather pointing straight up from his hat. The Native Americans consider this ground to be their church, and so the area must be treated with respect.

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