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The Role of the Iroquois Chiefs?
The common name of the male leaders of the clans that serve as representatives
of the clan in council is referred to as "chief" in english, but
this term does not say enough. The Haudenosaunee call the male leaders
"Hoyaneh," meaning "Caretakers of the Peace." Each nation has a
different number of Chiefs, but all of the Hoyaneh have the same
power and authority. The chief is the "voice" of the family clan.
Some clans have more than one chief. There is no "head" chief. They
were also called "sachems" in some documents. There are other traditional
leaders, appointed because of their special skills and are referred
to as "Pine Tree Chiefs." Each chief would also have a sub-chief
to help him with his duties. The chief's title's rest within the
clan and the Clan Mother can remove a delinquent Chief from his
position as a fail safe mechanism, but generally a Chief is installed
for life.
In looking for man to become the chief of the clan, a Clan Mother
would look for some one who could be trusted to look after the welfare
of the people. It is said that the Chief holds the law, the people
and the religion in the palm of their hand. It is a sacred trust
and duty to assure the safety of all of that for the generations
to come. The following qualities would be make a man a good candidate
to become a chief:
Pleasant personality
Honest
Not committed any crimes
Must have ability to reason, not acting foolishly
Knowledge of what the Confederacy laws represent
Knowledge of the ceremonies
Must have never left his family
Must be able to uphold the Great Law
Must be able to represent the people fairly
Must be kind hearted
Must be able to withstand criticism
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