Description
The Mohegan Tribe is a federally recognized tribe and sovereign tribal nation of the Mohegan people. Their reservation is the Mohegan Indian Reservation, located on the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut. Before the seventeenth century, the Mohegan were part of the Pequot Tribe, which emerged among Algonquian peoples located in present south central New England. They later seized land from other tribes in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Mohegan and the Pequot tribes were ruled jointly by the Pequot chief, Sassacus; later a rebellion by the subchief Uncas led to Mohegan independence. Population estimates indicated some 2,500 Mohegan descendants in the early 21st century.
Language
Mohegan-Pequot (also known as Mohegan-Pequot-Montauk, Secatogue, and Shinnecock-Poosepatuck; dialects in New England included Mohegan, Pequot, and Niantic; and on Long Island, Montaukett and Shinnecock) is an Algonquian language formerly spoken by indigenous peoples in southern present-day New England and eastern Long Island.
Culture
heir life revolved around the outdoors, sustaining themselves through farming what is referred to as the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash, as well as sunflowers. As needed, they hunted and gathered various game and wild flora. Mohegan language contains many words related to stones. Stones play a dynamic role in Mohegan culture, including, but not limited to, being a tool to connect one to one's ancestors. Mohegan women wore knee-length skirts and the men wore breechcloth and leggings. Shirts were not necessary in the Mohegan cultures, but Mohegan people did wear deerskin mantles in cool weather.