A Guide to Collecting American Indian Jewelry

Exquisite beauty of silver and turquoise studded jewellery draws everyone. Earth tone colours,

intricately detailed designs and distinctive sense of craftsmanship are some of the many features that make handcrafted American Indian jewelry pieces one of its kind. Highly skilled and incredibly talented Native Americans are known for their artistic capabilities and crafting skills. And that is why demand for traditional Native American products has been on the rise. If you are planning to buy handcrafted tribal jewellery or any other sort of products, then having some basic knowledge about American Indian arts and crafts can help you avail the best value for your money. Moreover, it also saves you from the imitation arts and unscrupulous sellers. Below listed are some tips you may follow in order to make the right pick. 

Pick a genre of jewellery. You can find a huge and varied selection of jewellery items produced by a number of Native American tribes. Zuni, Navajo, Choctaw and many other tribes are known for their artistic traditions. You may either choose a tribe or a time period. Besides selecting a genre for focusing your collection, make sure to avoid mass produced pieces with sub-standard craftsmanship and counterfeit stones. Whenever you are buying handcrafted American Indian jewelry, it is important to choose the pieces that can be attributed to a specific artist or a tribe. 

According to the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, any item marketed using terms such as “Native American made” must be made by a member of a State or federally-recognized tribe or by a certified Indian artisan. So if you wish to buy authentic native american crafts, then make it a point to look for artist’s hallmark sign. Generally, the hallmark can be a stamp or engraved signature. Shopping from a reputed seller and asking for the certificate of authenticity reduces the chances of ending up with a counterfeit item. 

Choctaw Nation Culture & History

Are you looking for authentic Choctaw turquoise jewelry? Exquisitely handcrafted Choctaw jewellery never fails to grab the eyes of fashion forward audience. And that is why native style and Choctaw artwork has been in rage these days. You might be familiar with different designs and styles of Choctaw turquoise jewelry and accessories, but what do you know about the people behind these masterpiece works? It will be an interesting thing to explore the history, culture and traditions of Choctaws. 

Native Americans were the first indigenous people to live in North America for thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans. They cultivated plants, hunted animals, established communities and developed intricate systems of religious belief. There were a lot of tribes such as Apache, Cherokee, Choctaw, Dakota, Hopi, Navajo, Ottawa, Ute and Zuni to mention a few. They prospered on the land of North America by living in peace and harmony with the nature. But with the European invasion, things took an ugly turn. Natives were devastated by the epidemic spread of diseases that the Europeans brought with them, which included measles, smallpox and yellow fever. It was followed by slavery, massive killing and more tortures. Forced removal of indigenous people, known as ‘Trail of Tears’ remain as a tragic moment in the native american indian history. Choctaws, one of the Five Civilized Tribes were the first to walk the Trail of Tears. Currently, major population of Choctaws resides in the city of Oklahoma. 

Choctaw Nation or Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma with twelve tribal districts has nearly 200,000 members. Being a federally recognised Native American tribe, the nation aims to improve the lives of its people. Choctawnation culture is rich with unique traditions and religious practises. Not only the natives take pride in Choctaw nation culture and heritage, but they also make it a point to pass their values to the next generation.

Facts You Need to Know About Choctaw Culture

The history of Native Americans dates back to 12000 BC. Among the vast number of Native American tribes, five were called the Civilized tribes - the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek (Muscogee), and Seminole. Let us delve into the details of Choctaw culture. 

According to the historians, the Choctaws lived along the Mississippi River Valley area for about

1,800 years. Choctaw tribe believes that they are the last of earth’s inhabits to appear. With an estimated population of 20,000, the Choctaw Indian tribe was considered as one of the great nations of western hemisphere. Being the descendants of Mississippian culture, they were skilled in building mounds throughout the river valley. Moreover, they established trade relations with other tribes by using the dugout canoes. There were around 100 agricultural centres in the Choctaw nation and they harvested corn, squash, beans and pumpkin.  When it comes to music and art forms, the tribe were in the forefront for conducting celebrations and performances. Choctaw music and dance songs were passed down from one generation to other through oral traditions. 

Choctaw Indian tribe has a matriarchal society where women play a significant role in the family. Gender equality was another important quality of the Choctaw culture. Even though the men served in leadership position, the tribe placed great importance to the women’s input and advice. Job role of the males included hunting and defending whereas women cultivated lands and looked after the family. The tribe spoke in some dialects of the Muskogean language family. During the World War I and World War II, there were Choctaw code talkers among the U.S Army. Choctaw language was used for the military communications in order to avoid the interception and deciphering of messages by the enemy troops. You may browse through the online Choctaw dictionary or books to learn more about the native language.

Significance of Native American Culture

During the thousands of years preceding the European invasion, millions of Native Americans lived on the land of North America. Climate changes and rising population inspired the American Indians to adapt and live. But with the arrival of Europeans, things took an ugly turn. American Indians were forced out of their own lands by the colonists. Harsh treatment from the colonists, forced relocation, enslavement and wars are some of the major factors that contributed to the decline of American Indian population. But even now, it will be difficult to find another group in the world with a diverse and rich culture as that of the Native Americans.  Nowadays, there has been a resurgence of native American culture and traditions. Natives who are proud of their rich heritage have been struggling to revive their culture that was nearly obliterated by European and American domination.

American Indians followed their culture and beliefs orally. They created stories and songs to convey native American culture centuries ago. Such stories were passed from generation to generation. Even today, many of the American Indian writers use those mythological stories to honor their tribal memories. Native American music, another critical expression of culture played a key role in their culture. However, the musical expression was mainly instrumental that used drums, rattles and flutes. Just like the native american music, arts and crafts were also an integral part of their lives. Native Americans are popular for their incredible crafting skills such as weaving, basketry, pottery and more. Handcrafted tribal jewellery and Native American décor items like rugs, paintings and sculptures have been gaining wide popularity these days. So whenever you are out to shop for the authentic native American products, make it a point to explore a bit of their history and culture.

their history and traditions. For instance, storytelling had a significant role in the