A’aninin Shirt

Lesson Objective

Students will look at the A’aninin shirt and learn about its historical and social context. Then they’ll reflect on what the shirt represents to those who had the honor of wearing it. They’ll also reflect on how these values could apply to them in the classroom.

If you wish to replace or add creative writing, compare and contrast activities, and/or historical research to your lesson, scroll down to Learning Extensions.

Introduction

It’s easy to imagine that a person wearing this shirt would stand out in a crowd. Pink bands of color jump off bright red wool. Bold patterns spring from rows of tightly sewn beads. Curtains of animal hide fringe dangle from all sides, to flow with every move. The person wearing this shirt would surely seem larger than life. A shirt like this one grabs the attention of anyone who sees it.

But for the people of the A’ani/Nakoda community in which this shirt was made and worn, its impact went beyond the details just noticed. The way a shirt was made, the materials it was made of, and how it was used provided an even greater honor than its visual beauty.

For the people of the Plains Indian nation who made and wore this honor shirt, everything about it—how it was made, the materials it was made of, and how it was used—had importance beyond visual beauty. Such shirts, made to honor men, offered a connection to the powerful traditions of one’s people.

Warm-Up Questions

Take a moment to look at the artwork.

• What do you see? What more can you find?
• How does this artwork make you feel? What do you see that makes you say that?
• What questions do you have after looking at the shirt?
• What do they think was the artist’s intent?

Background

Plains Indian men did not typically wear shirts before the 19th century. Instead, they wrapped themselves in robes of animal hide, wearing the fur against their skin. The earliest shirts were made by sewing two animal skins together; the front legs of the animals became the shirt’s sleeves, the skin of the rear legs dangled from the bottom of the shirt,

Life on the Plains brought many changes in the decades before this shirt was made. The traditions of a people change as their way of life changes. Some of them can be seen in this shirt. One example is the beads used to add color and pattern to this shirt. Traditionally women crafted their designs using porcupine quills, colored with natural dyes. Glass beads from Italy and Bohemia, exchanged with European traders for pelts and hides, offered more colors, and were easier to work with. By the late 1800s when this shirt was made, quillwork had almost disappeared from Plains Indian shirts. But artists continued to form the traditional patterns in the new material.

The bright red wool of the body of the shirt is evidence of another lifestyle change. As European settlers moved westward throughout the 1800s, they forcefully moved Plains Indians off their traditional lands. Europeans also destroyed bison herds, which changed hunting as a way of life, resulting in a scarcity of animal hides for shirts and other purposes. Wool cloth became a popular trade item.

Lightweight and warm, the wool made a comfortable shirt. Like shirts made of animal hide, this shirt is not sewn together at the sides. Notice how the white edge of the cloth, where it was held in the factory during the dyeing process, has been incorporated into the design on the bottom edge of the shirt.

Patterns and Symbolism of the Shirt

Although no two Plains Indian honor shirts are exactly alike, many have features in common.

Some people think decorated bands were originally added to cover seams on robes where two pieces of hiding joined together. This decoration was used on shirts too, even when there was no seam underneath. The bib at the neck of the shirt was skin from the animal’s head. These decorations continued to appear on Plains Indians shirts even when the shirt itself was made of other materials, like the wool of this shirt. Sometimes the decoration from a worn-out shirt was cut off and stitched on a new shirt, which might be the case with this one.

What do the patterns on the decorated bands represent? No one can say with certainty. The blue and white diamonds might be eagle feathers, white with black tips in nature. Eagle feathers were an important part of a warrior’s dress since the eagle was the most sacred animal for Plains Indians. The crossed bars on a white shield may be some symbol of strength. Or these patterns may simply have pleased the artist as she worked, inspired by the shapes she saw in other things around her.

Earning and Wearing the Shirt

A man had to earn the right to wear a shirt like this one on the Great Plains in the 19th century. He might prove himself to be brave in battle or cunning at raiding horses. But he also had to be thoughtful and wise. His actions helped his community survive.

A woman of the community stitched the beadwork and sewed the shirt. Elders of the community presented the shirt to him in a sacred ceremony. Sometimes they attached long locks of their own hair (or their enemy’s hair) to the shirt, in place of a fringe. The wearer of the shirt literally carried his community with him when he wore it. If he acted dishonorably in the future, the shirt might be taken away.

The man would wear the shirt on special occasions, with leggings, moccasins, and a headdress. The decorations on the shirt might invite a retelling of the stories of his exploits. The history of the tribe would come alive. Just as importantly, those stories offered a model of honorable behavior for the well-being of the people in the future.

Then and Now

Honor shirts were an important tradition among many of the nations living on the Great Plains in the 1800s. Each nation had its own style of decoration. This shirt, made on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in Montana in the 1890s, likely reflects the traditions of two nations, the A’aninin [pronounced ah-AH-nee-nin] and Nakoda [pronouned nah-KO-dahl (commonly known as the Gros Ventre [pronounced GRO-vahnt] and Assiniboine [pronounced ah-SIN-ih-boyn]).

Objects such as this shirt continue to provide a connection to the traditions of the past, as well as a touchstone for a contemporary sense of identity. The two groups have shared Fort Belknap Reservation since its establishment in 1888, despite having distinctly different historical backgrounds. At times, in fact, the nations had opposing allegiances. By the time they began to share the reservation, the former adversaries were struggling together to adapt to a starkly different way of life. Their artistic traditions merged to form a new “Fort Belknap” style.

Today the rolling plains of Fort Belknap Reservation are home to about 5,000 people. Despite living together for the past century, both the A’aninin and Nakoda retain independent national identities.

Art Activity: Classroom Shirt

Materials

• Paper
• Drawing Materials

Guided Practice

Look closely at the shirt, left to right and top to bottom. There are many different colors, textures, and patterns on this shirt. Describe them.

• How would this honor shirt make someone stand out in a crowd? What do you see that makes you say that?
• What are some ways that clothing communicates strength in your community? How so?
• A group of elders decides who deserves an honor shirt and, sometimes, whose shirt should be taken away. How might a shirt remind you of your duties to your community? How might it influence your behavior?

Instructions

1. The activity consists of designing a shirt that represents the values of the classroom as a community.
2. Have students spend time on their own thinking about the values that surround them in their classroom, their homes, and their different spaces. Have them brainstorm and make a list of the three most important values (e.g., kindness, curiosity, respect, etc.).
3. As a classroom, discuss the students’ values and choose the three that they want to represent them as a classroom. This is space for healthy debate.
4. Once chosen, have each student use paper and drawing materials to create a shirt inspired by the A’aninin shirt, but with the values of the classroom.

Optional Art Extension

Have students share their creations and explain their choices of symbols. Which shirt would they want to wear? Why? Who should be able to decide who wears the classroom’s honor shirt?

For older students: Hold a mock election to decide who should be elected to wear the classroom’s honor shirt. Here is where students can practice a quick campaign, listening to each other, reflect on the importance of voting, and then act out their own vote.

Reflection

Reflect on the importance of the word “honor.” Merriam-Webster defines honor as: high moral standards, integrity, and the respect or public esteem a person receives. It acts both as a personal code of conduct and a measure of social standing, symbolizing worthiness, honesty, and a good reputation.

Is this what you think of when you think about honor? Is it important to your students? Is it important to their families? Is it important in their neighborhood? Brainstorm until you reach the entire world. What does honor mean to us all? Take time at each step to reflect why you believe it matters.

Learning Extensions

Research and Discussion

The materials and techniques used to create Plains Indian shirts have changed over the course of the 19th century. Take a survey of the clothing worn by students in a 21st-century American classroom. What kinds of materials are most common? How are those materials produced? What parts of the clothing are functional? What parts are just decorative? What types of images appear?

Compile a catalog of these observations with written descriptions. To make the research more diverse, assign a country to each student or within groups. Have them research those same questions about their respective countries and bring their findings to discuss with the class.

Research and Writing

Honorable behavior, now and then

Only men who behaved bravely and honorably for the good of the community wore shirts like this one. The book Black Elk Speaks (available at Hennepin County Public Library) presents one man’s memories of Plains Indian life in the 19th century. Read selections and discuss the behaviors that were considered honorable in Black Elk’s time. Younger students might consider the same question through the many picture books of Paul Goble, which evoke life on the Plains at that time.

Then examine a recent issue of Indian Country (available online) and consider what actions are considered honorable for the good of the community today. Have students write an essay about their findings.

Resources

Hail, Barbara A. Hau, Kóla! The Plains Indian Collection of the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology (Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 1980); Horse Capture, Joseph D. and George P. Horse Capture, Beauty, Honor, and Tradition: The Legacy of Plains Indian Shirts (Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 2001); Maurer, Evan. Visions of the People: A Pictorial History of Plains Indian Life (Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press, 1992); Thom, Laine. Becoming Brave: The Path to Native American Manhood (San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1992)

Minnesota State Standards

History

9.4.22.7 U.S. History Era 1: Indigenous Histories. Examine the survival of Indigenous nations in the contemporary world. Examine how Indigenous people have contested narratives of erasure that have silenced their histories.

9.4.21.8 U.S. History Era 1: Indigenous Histories. Construct an argument about Indigenous history before European colonialism, using multiple sources.

9.4.18.8 U.S. History Era 1: Indigenous Histories. Examine multiple Indigenous narratives about early North American history.

Citizenship and Government

9.1.1.2 Demonstrate the skills necessary to participate in the election process. Evaluate how access to voting is impacted by law and application of law.

2.1.1.1 Demonstrate voting skills by participating in a vote and identifying the rules that keep the voting process fair.

Visual Arts

5.0.4.7.1–5.9.4.7.1 Respond: Analyze and construct interpretations of artistic work.

5.0.5.9.1–5.5.5.9.1 Connect: Integrate knowledge and personal experiences while responding to, creating, and presenting artistic work.

Reading

4.1.9.1 Collect information from a variety of sources in different formats on a topic of personal interest or academic focus.

Writing

4.2.5.1 Write to inform or explain, organizing and presenting ideas clearly, using precise, domain-specific vocabulary and a variety of text structures, and including an introduction and conclusion, building on skills from previous years.

4.2.7.2 Plan and conduct independent research using sources to build understanding of topic; evaluate perspective, credibility and relevance of information, avoiding plagiarism, and share findings in writing.