​

​

The Three Sisters

​

To the arrival of Europeans in North America, the corn is closely associated with beans and squash. Forming the basis for the food of Iroquoian people and providing a significant proportion of the daily calorific intake, this plant triad is called the 'three sisters' (Kionhekwa) by the Iroquois. From the iroquois Creation Myth, the legend wants the three sisters, three inseparable, have sown the seeds on the grave of mother earth, dead of having given birth to twins. These plants were allowed to feed the twins and to ensure the survival of the french iroquoise population.

​

Iroquois society presents all the aspects of a matrilineal democracy, essentially oriented towards the cultivation of corn, squash and beans.

The three sisters represent this matriarchal society, with transmission from the grandmother to the mother and then to the daughter: the circle of life.