Dreamcatcher - wikipedia Dreamcatcher This article is about the Native American object. For other uses, see Dreamcatcher ( disambiguation ). In some Native American cultures, a dreamcatcher or dream catcher ( Ojibwe : asabikeshiinh, the inanimate form of the word for `` spider '' ) is a handmade willow hoop, on which is woven a net or web. The dreamcatcher may also include sacred items such as certain feathers or beads. Traditionally they are often hung over cradles as protection. It originates in Ojibwe culture as the `` spider web charm '' ( Ojibwe : asubakacin `` net - like '', White Earth Band ; bwaajige ngwaagan `` dream snare '', Curve Lake Band ), a hoop with woven string or sinew meant to replicate a spider 's web, used as a protective charm for infants. Dreamcatchers were adopted in the Pan-Indian Movement of the 1960s and 1970s and gained popularity as a widely marketed `` Native crafts items '' in the 1980s. Contents 1 Ojibwe origin 2 Modern uses 3 See also 4 References 5 External links Ojibwe origin `` Spider web '' charm, hung on infant 's cradle ( shown alongside a `` Mask used in game '' and `` Ghost leg, to frighten children '', Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin ( 1929 ). Ethnographer Frances Densmore in 1929 recorded an Ojibwe legend according to which the `` spiderwebs '' protective charms originate with Spider Woman, known as Asibikaashi ; who takes care of the children and the people on the land. As the Ojibwe Nation spread to the corners of North America it became difficult for Asibikaashi to reach all the children. So the mothers and grandmothers weave webs for the children, using willow hoops and sinew, or cordage made from plants. The purpose of these charms is apotropaic and not explicitly connected with dreams : Even infants were provided with protective charms. Examples of these are the `` spiderwebs '' hung on the hoop of a cradle board. These articles consisted of wooden hoops about 31⁄2 inches in diameter filled with an imitation of a spider 's web made of fine yarn, usually dyed red. In old times this netting was made of nettle fiber. Two spider webs were usually hung on the hoop, and it was said that they `` caught any harm that might be in the air as a spider 's web catches and holds whatever comes in contact with it. '' Basil Johnston, an elder from Neyaashiinigmiing, in his Ojibway Heritage ( 1976 ) gives the story of Spider ( Ojibwe : asabikeshiinh, `` little net maker '' ) as a trickster figure catching Snake in his web. Modern uses Contemporary `` dreamcatcher '' sold at a craft fair in El Quisco, Chile in 2006. While Dreamcatchers continue to be used in a traditional manner in their communities and cultures of origin, a derivative form of `` dreamcatchers '' were also adopted into the Pan-Indian Movement of the 1960s and 1970s as a symbol of unity among the various Native American cultures, or a general symbol of identification with Native American or First Nations cultures. The name `` dream catcher '' was published in mainstream, non-Native media in the 1970s and became widely known as a `` Native crafts item '' by the 1980s, by the early 1990s `` one of the most popular and marketable '' ones. In the course of becoming popular outside the Ojibwe Nation, and then outside the pan-Indian communities, various types of `` dreamcatchers '', many of which bear little resemblance to the traditional styles, and that even incorporate materials that work against the intended purpose, are now made, exhibited, and sold by New age groups and individuals. Many Native Americans have come to see these `` dreamcatchers '' as over-commercialized, offensively misappropriated and misused by non-Natives. A mounted and framed dreamcatcher is being used as a shared symbol of hope and healing by the Little Thunderbirds Drum and Dance Troupe from the Red Lake Indian Reservation in Minnesota. In recognition of the shared trauma and loss experienced, both at their school during the Red Lake shootings, and by other students who have survived similar school shootings, they have traveled to other schools to meet with students, share songs and stories, and gift them with the dreamcatcher. The dreamcatcher has now been passed from Red Lake to students at Columbine CO, to Sandy Hook CT, to Marysville WA, to Townville SC, to Parkland FL. See also God 's eye Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 References Jump up ^ Freelang Ojibwe Dictionary ^ Jump up to : Densmore, Frances ( 1929, 1979 ) Chippewa Customs. Minn. Hist. Soc. Press ; pg. 113. Jump up ^ Jim Great Elk Waters, View from the Medicine Lodge ( 2002 ), p. 111. ^ Jump up to : `` During the pan-Indian movement in the 60 's and 70 's, Ojibway dreamcatchers started to get popular in other Native American tribes, even those in disparate places like the Cherokee, Lakota, and Navajo. '' `` Native American Dream catchers '', Native - Languages Jump up ^ John Borrows, `` Foreword '' to Françoise Dussart, Sylvie Poirier, Entangled Territorialities : Negotiating Indigenous Lands in australia and Canada, University of Toronto Press, 2017. Jump up ^ `` a hoop laced to resemble a cobweb is one of Andrea Petersen 's prize possessions. It is a ' dream catcher ' -- hung over a Chippewa Indian infant 's cradle to keep bad dreams from passing through. ' I hope I can help my students become dream catchers, ' she says of the 16 children in her class. In a two - room log cabin elementary school on a Chippewa reservation in Grand Portage '' The Ladies ' Home Journal 94 ( 1977 ), p. 14. Jump up ^ `` Audrey Speich will be showing Indian Beading, Birch Bark Work, and Quill Work. She will also demonstrate the making of Dream Catchers and Medicine Bags. '' The Society Newsletter ( 1985 ), p. 31. Jump up ^ Terry Lusty ( 2001 ). `` Where did the Ojibwe dream catcher come from ? Windspeaker - AMMSA ''. www.ammsa.com. Sweetgrass ; volume 8, issue 4 : The Aboriginal Multi-Media Society. p. 19. Jump up ^ Marysville School District receives dreamcatcher given to Columbine survivors By Brandi N. Montreuil, Tulalip News. Posted on November 7, 2014 Jump up ^ CNN : Showing Newtown they 're not alone Jump up ^ Dreamcatcher for school shooting survivors ( paywall ) External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dreamcatcher. The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 Anishinaabe Culture Anishinabek Educational Institute birch bark biting birch bark scrolls clan system Dreamcatcher Drumkeeper Jingle dress Manitou Medicine wheel Grand Medicine Society Nanabozho Ojibwe language Ottawa dialect Pow wow Quillwork Ribbon work traditional beliefs Wampum Political organizations Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Chiefs of Ontario Council of Three Fires Grand Council of Treaty 3 Grand Council of Treaty 8 Great Lakes Inter-tribal Council Inter-tribal Council of Michigan Minnesota Indian Affairs Council Nishnawbe Aski Nation Independent First Nations Alliance Keewaytinook Okimakanak Council Matawa First Nations Mishkeegogamang First Nation Mocreebec Council of the Cree Nation Mushkegowuk Council Sandy Lake First Nation Shibogama First Nations Council Wabun Tribal Council Weenusk First Nation Windigo First Nations Council Union of Ontario Indians Amulets and talismans Amulets Agimat Amulet MS 5236 Bulla Cimaruta Cornicello Cross necklace Djucu Dreamcatcher Dzi bead Fascinus Fulu Good luck charm Gorgoneion Gris - gris Hamsa Horse brass Horseshoe I'noGo tied Jackal 's horn Kanai Anzen Lapis alectorius Mojo Mugwort Nazar Omamori Painted pebbles Palad khik Rabbit 's foot Red string ( Kabbalah ) Sachet ( scented bag ) Sampy Ta'wiz Takrut Thokcha Tintinnabulum ( Ancient Rome ) Touch piece Troll cross Talismans Lamen Navaratna Seal of Solomon Swastika Talismans in the Bábí and Bahá'í Faiths Uncial 0152 Related articles Apotropaic magic Curse tablet Evil eye Feng Shui Folk religion Magic and religion Numerology Superstitions Torma Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dreamcatcher&oldid=832523351 '' Categories : Anishinaabe mythology Dream Amulets Great Lakes tribal culture Native American sculpture American Indian relics First Nations culture Objects believed to protect from evil Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from August 2017 Articles containing Ojibwe - language text Wikipedia articles needing clarification from December 2017 Talk Contents About Wikipedia বাংলা Български Boarisch Català Dansk Deutsch Ελληνικά Español فارسی Français Galego 한국어 Հայերեն Italiano עברית Lietuvių Magyar Македонски မြန်မာဘာသာ Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Slovenščina Српски / srpski Suomi Svenska Tagalog ᏣᎳᎩ Türkçe Українська اردو Tiếng Việt 中文 27 more Edit links This page was last edited on 26 March 2018, at 14 : 38. 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Question: what is the significance of a dream catcher
Answer: a protective charm for infants