Britannica AI Icon

The Song of Hiawatha

poem by Longfellow

Quick Summary

The Song of Hiawatha is a narrative poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, first published in 1855. It tells the story of Hiawatha, a legendary chief of the Onondaga tribe, who is credited with forming the Iroquois Confederacy around 1450.12

In the poem, Hiawatha is depicted as an incarnation of human progress, teaching his people agriculture, navigation, medicine, and the arts. He is said to have conquered the forces of nature that opposed humanity. The poem was written in the meter of the Finnish epic Kalevala and achieved widespread popularity, becoming one of Longfellow's most famous works.13

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.