The Mohawk, the easternmost of the Five…

The Mohawk, the easternmost of the Five Nations, inhabit the eastern part of present New York State.

The Mohawks, who have received their name, meaning "man eater," from their Algonquian-speaking neighbors, call themselves “Ganiengehaga,” meaning "people of the flint."

Their western neighbors consider the Mohawks "keepers of the eastern door" of the longhouse that symbolizes the Five Nations’ Iroquois League.

Deganawidah and Hiawatha, the traditional founders of the league, are adopted Mohawks.

Like the neighboring Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, and Oneida, the Mohawks trace kinship through the female line.

A calendric cycle of religious ceremonies centers on warfare and a concomitant gaining of prestige and honor by males.