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The name Iroquois (which mean "rattlesnake") was given to the members of the 5 tribes of Native Americans which make up the Iroquois nation by their enemies the Algonquin and by the French. The 5 tribes are the Cayuga, Seneca, Tuscarora, Onondaga and the Mohawk.
The Iroquois call themselves Haudenosaunee
which means "people of the long house"
At their peak, the Iroquois nation controlled most of the lands
of north-eastern United States and eastern Canada. In the 1600s
there were about 20 000 Iroquois.
Each tribe was divided into 3
groups called clans and named 'turtle', 'bear' or 'wolf'. Each
clan was headed by a woman. Each clan had its own longhouse and
when a man married, he moved into the longhouse of his wife's
clan.
Women of the tribe chose the chiefs to lead the Iroquois. There
were war chiefs who had power to lead at times of war and and
there were different chiefs who led in times of peace.
Villages were large and fenced
to keep out enemies. Many of the longhouses were over 60 metres
in length.
The Iroquois were farmers and hunters. The men cleared the land
and then the women grew corn and beans. 
While the women took care of the farm, the men hunted and fished.
The men also made war on enemy
tribes and when they defeated them 'adopted' them into the Iroquois
nation.
In the late 1600s the Iroquois fought against the French who came
to try and take their lands. They sided with the British when
the British and French went to war for control
over North America.
The Iroquois were driven from their homelands
by Europeans and many died in battle with the invaders and from
diseases brought to the country from Europe
In the American War of Independence,
when the Americans fought the British for control of their country,
the Iroquois sided with the British.
After the Americans defeated the British and the country became
the United States of America, the Iroquois had their land taken
from them by Americans.
Today there are about 70 000 Iroquois living on settlements in the United States and Canada.
Some other
sites with information about Native Americans
This is a huge site with dozens of links to aspects of life.
http://www.nativeamericans.com/
Other interesting sites
http://www.mce.k12tn.net/indians/index.htm
http://www.kidinfo.com/American_History/Native_Americans.html
Acknowledge this source in
your bibliography like this:
The Iroquois: Native Americans
(2000). [Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au
updated January 2007