medicine lodge

American  

noun

1. a structure used for various ceremonials of North American Indians.

2. (initial capital letters) the most important religious society among the central Algonquian tribes of North America.

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medicine lodge British  

noun

1. a wooden structure used for magical and religious ceremonies among certain North American Indian peoples

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Etymology

Origin of medicine lodge

First recorded in 1800–10

Example Sentences

In groups of four, sixteen medicine lodge songs are sung.

From The Sun Dance of the Blackfoot Indians by Wissler, Clark

It will be recalled that Bradbury in 1811 referred to the "medicine lodge," then standing in the center of the large Arikara village.

From Villages of the Algonquian, Siouan, and Caddoan Tribes West of the Mississippi by Bushnell, David Ives

They circle once around to the right of the lodges and stop outside of the circle, west of the medicine lodge.

From The Sun Dance of the Blackfoot Indians by Wissler, Clark

The ground selected for this performance was immediately in front of the medicine lodge, and embraced an area of about half an acre.

From Seven and Nine years Among the Camanches and Apaches An Autobiography by Johnson, Clark, M.D.

One man goes to the medicine lodge and digs out the smudge place.

From The Sun Dance of the Blackfoot Indians by Wissler, Clark