How did the Haudenosaunee Confederacy play lacrosse before European colonization?

Before European colonization, the Haudenosaunee Confederacy and other indigenous groups played a version of lacrosse that was significantly rougher and more expansive than the modern sport.1

Key characteristics of the game included:

• Scale and Duration: Games could involve as many as a thousand players per side, with goals placed miles apart. Matches were endurance-heavy and could last up to three days.1
• Combat Training: Because of the physical demands and the need to endure injuries with fortitude, the game served as essential training for combat. Players often attempted to disable opponents with their sticks before focusing on scoring.1
• Ritual Significance: Beyond being a sport, the game was a mystic ceremony often preceded by complex rituals and solemn dances.1
• Inclusivity: While practices varied by tribe, in some areas men and women played together, while in others, women participated in their own distinct versions of the game.1

Known by names such as baggataway or tewaraathon, the game utilized a stick that French settlers later likened to a bishop’s crozier (la crosse), which provided the sport its modern name.1