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Hiawatha was a Native American leader of the 1500s who became a legend for his role in bringing the people of the five Iroquois nations together. According to the stories, he helped persuade the tribes to live in peace and join forces against their enemies.

Hiawatha (whose name means "he makes rivers") was a member of the Mohawk tribe of present-day New York. After becoming a chief, he met the prophetone who claims to have received divine messages or insights Dekanawida, who had a plan to unite the people of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca nations. Hiawatha embraced Dekanawida's plan and set out to explain it to the individual tribes. However, he soon encountered opposition from the powerful Onondaga chief Atotarho, who refused to cooperate with Hiawatha. Iroquois tales say that Atotarho sent an enormous white bird to seize Hiawatha's daughter and kill...