Manitou

Overview

The word Manitou was widely used during early European contact. In 1585, when Thomas Harriot recorded the first glossary of an Algonquian language, Roanoke (Pamlico), he included the word mantóac, meaning "gods and goddesses". Similar terms are found in nearly all Algonquian languages.

In some Algonquian traditions, Gitche Manitou refers to a supreme being. The term has analogues dating to before European contact, and the word uses of gitche and manitou existed before contact. After contact, however, Gitche Manitou was adopted by some Anishinaabe, such as the Ojibwe, to refer to the supreme being. Algonquian religion acknowledges medicine healers, who used manitou to see the future, change the weather, and heal illness. Ojibwe medicine healers were primarily healers who used their spiritual connection to cure patients since illness was then believed to be caused by magic and spirits. To communicate with spirits and manipulate manitou, a healer would enter a trance, induced by singing, dancing, drumbeats, or the use of hallucinogens. Non-healers could also interact with spirits by embarking upon a "vision quest", using prayer, fasting, hallucinogens, and removing themselves from the society of others. A person who underwent vision quests would be visited by an "animal, voice, or object", which would become their guardian spirit.