Tribal Words for Tobacco
Traditional Use
There are currently 564 federally recognized tribes in the United States today. Each tribe has their own distinct culture, traditions, languages, value systems, and teachings. (8)
Historically, many American Indian and Alaska Native nations used tobacco for spiritual and ceremonial purposes, unlike the use of tobacco cigarettes today. Traditional and ceremonial use of tobacco is still used in AI/AN communities today.
When tobacco is used to make smoke, it provides a balance between the world of humans and spirits. (1)
Nicotiana tabacum, is the scientific name for the plant used in commercial tobacco.
Nicotiana rustica, is the scientific name for traditional tobacco. (2)
American Indians and Alaska Natives and Tobacco
American Indians and Alaska Natives (32.4%) have the highest percent of cigarette smokers than all other ethnic groups in the U.S. (9)
Lung cancer is linked to many other cancers such as; mouth, throat, esophagus, bladder, kidney, pancreas, breast, and cervical.
Commercial tobacco companies target AI/AN communities to avoid paying taxes on tobacco products. They also fund powwows and rodeos to build their image in American Indian communities, often using imagery to sell the products.
American Indian youth smoke because:
Traditional Purpose
Since tobacco use varies from tribe to tribe, there is no single way to portray its ceremonial use. Below are some of the reasons some tribes use traditional tobacco.
How Traditional Tobacco is Used
Traditional tobacco is used in many different ways today:
Commercial Misuse
Commercial tobacco is not like traditional tobacco:
Carcinogens: A carcinogen is any cancer-causing substance.
Some carcinogens found in cigarettes:
Acetone (nail polish remover)
Ammonium (floor/toilet cleaner)
Arsenic (poison, also used in pesticides)
Benzo [a] pyrene (found in coal tar)
Carbon Monoxide (car exhaust fumes)
Cadmium (found in rechargeable batteries)
Formaldehyde (preserves dead bodies)
Hydrogen Cyanide (gas chamber poison)
Nitrobenzene (gasoline additive)
Toluene (found in paint thinner)
Cigarette smokers also have a much higher risk of developing several health diseases and disorders, including:
-COPD -Several Types of Cancer
-Heart attacks -Stroke
-Emphysema -Chronic Bronchitis
Sacred Expressions
All Nations Breath of Life supports the use of traditional tobacco for spiritual and ceremonial purposes. Sacred Expressions provides participants and viewers with quotes from Spiritual Native Leaders. Each quote illustrates the importance of the Pipe and tobacco in Native traditions and ceremonies.
"For us Indians there is just the pipe,
the earth we sit on
and the open sky.
The spirit is everywhere.
Sometimes it shows itself through an animal,
a bird or some trees and hills.
Sometimes it speaks from the Badlands,
a stone, or even from the water.
That smoke from the peace pipe,
it goes straight up to the spirit world.
But this is a two way thing.
Power flows down to us through that smoke,
through the pipe stem.
You feel that power as you hold the pipe;
it moves from the pipe right into your body.
The pipe is not just a thing,
it is alive."
John Lame Deer (Lakota) - Rosebud7
"When the native people first discovered tobacco it was believed it was from the creator it was a sacred plant. From then on it was used for medicine and ceremonial purposes. Not only the South Eastern but almost all tribes used tobacco. What was passed down to me was that tobacco was first discovered on an unmarked native grave- this was the sign it was from the creator. The tobacco was and is still being used today as a peace offering among native people- the tobacco used was of the purest form (no additives). It was blessed and put into a peace pipe to be shared among the Native people."
Sam Proctor Muskogee (Creek) (10)
"The equivalent of Christian sin
in the Indian traditional sense
is breaking ones commitment to the Pipe.
When one prays with the Pipe,
he is obliged to do it in a good way,
not for evil purposes.
The Pipe brings harmony
between men
when they smoke it.
You cant lie through the Pipe.
To go against these things is a sin."
Richard Moves Camp (Lakota) - Pine Ridge (7)
1. ANBL Pamphlets. Traditional Tobacco Use. University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, 2007.
2. The California Rural Indian Health Board (CRIHB). Community Tobacco Educator Training Guide. 2007; http://www.crihb.org/files/tobacco_101_traditional_module.pdf. Accessed June 9, 2009.
3. Aboriginal Tobacco Strategy. About traditional tobacco. 2008; http://www.tobaccowise.com/cms/One.aspx?portalId=44644&pageId=46570. Accessed June 9, 2009.
4. National Cancer Institute. Cigarette smoking and cancer. 2004; http://cancertrials.nci.nih.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/cancer. Accessed June 10, 2009.
5. Nez Henderson P, C. Jacobsen, et al. Correlates of cigarette smoking among selected Southwest and Northern Plains Tribal Groups: The AI-SUPERPFP Study. American Journal of Public Health. 2005;95(5):867-872.
6. Kegler MC, B. Kingsley, et al. The functional value of smoking and nonsmoking from the perspective of American Indian youth. Family and Community Health. 1999;22(2).
7. Steinmetz, P. (1984). Mediations with Native Americans-- Lakota Spirituality. Santa Fe, NM: Bear & Company, Inc.
