The sport of lacrosse got its name from French explorers who saw Native Americans playing the game in Quebec in the early-to-mid 17th century.
French missionaries thought that the sticks looked like a bishop’s hooked staff or crozier. The French term “la crosse” refers to the cross at the top of a crozier.
This became the name used for the sport in both the French and English languages.
When Was The Sport First Called Lacrosse?
Historians give some different dates for the first use of the word “Lacrosse”. But the consensus is a date between 1630 and 1635.
We can look for the first occurrence of the word in the massive digital archive that Google has made of printed books.
I searched their online index for lacrosse. The graph below represents the number of occurrences each year.
As you can see, the word first appears in a book in the Google library that is dated around the 1630s. There is a little spike for a few years. So, how did this come about?
Who Gave Lacrosse Its Name?
We don’t know with complete certainty who was the first to use the word lacrosse.
However, it’s generally attributed to the French missionary Jean de Brébeuf. He traveled to Canada in 1825 where he lived with the Huron.
Ironically, Brébeuf learned the language of the Huron to further his missionary work. He translated the catechism into Huron.
You’d wonder why he didn’t just use the Huron word for lacrosse when he wrote an account for the annual missionary reports by the Jesuits!
Published in The Jesuit Relations
The Jesuit missionaries used to write annual reports for their clerical superiors in Quebec or Montreal.
The superiors would then compile the reports into volumes of books known as The Jesuit Relations.
Brébeuf also sent back his reports during his time with the Huron. In one account, he is not impressed with how lacrosse is used as a treatment by a healer.
He writes how the healer (he calls them sorcerors) would ask for a game of lacrosse to be played to soothe the fever of a sick man.
I’ve removed some of the text in the quote below to make it read a little easier. I’ll put the full text at the end of the article.
Of three kinds of games especially in use among these Peoples, namely, the games of lacrosse, dish, and straw, – the first two are, they say, most healing…
There is a poor sick man, fevered of body and almost dying, and a miserable Sorcerer will order for him, as a cooling remedy, a game of lacrosse.
Or the sick man himself, sometimes, will have dreamed that he must die unless the whole country shall play lacrosse for his health…
You will see then in a beautiful field, village contending against village, as to who will play lacrosse the better.
Excerpt from the Jesuit Relations, 1630s
What Is Lacrosse Called By Native Americans?
The sport was invented by Native Americans long before the arrival of European explorers. They considered it to be excellent training for their warriors.
Different communities had different names for the version that they played. Let’s run through some of the main names.
The first two are descriptive of the actions in the sport.
Ojibwe
The Ojibwe are the largest Native American people in North America. They live across Minnesota, North Dakota, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ontario in Canada.
Ojibwe who lived west of Lake Winnipeg in Canada are also known as the Salteaux.
Lacrosse is called baaga’adowe in Ojibwa. This means “they bump hips” and refers to players clashing against each other.
Onandaga
The Onandaga people are one of the nations of the Iriquois. Their traditional lands are south of Lake Ontario. They gave their name to Onondaga County in New York State.
Their name for the sport is a more general description of the game.
Lacrosse is called dehuntshigwa’es in Onondaga. This means “men hit a rounded object”.
The next two names we’ll look at refer to the use of lacrosse in the training of warriors.
Eastern Cherokee
The Eastern Cherokee are based in North Carolina.
They are descended from the Cherokee who stayed on the eastern side of the United States when the military forced others to move west of the Mississippi River.
The people now are called the Eastern Band Of Cherokee Indians (ECBI).
Lacrosse is called da-nah-wah’uwsdi in Eastern Cherokee. This means “little war”.
The early games were full of rough and tumble, with plenty of fights and use of the sticks to hit opponents. Hence, a little war.
Mohawk
The Mohawk people are part of the Iroquois Confederacy. Their lands were in northern New York State and southeastern parts of Canada.
They were also known as the Keepers of the Eastern Door. This refers to their communities being furthest to the east of the Iroquois League. They were best placed to guard the League against invaders from the east.
Lacrosse is called tewaarathon in the Mohawk language. This means “little brother of war”.
Full Except From The Jesuit Relations
Here is the full excerpt that I mentioned earlier.
I got the text from a book by Thomas Vennum, a retired researcher of ethnic studies at the Smithsonian. His book is called “American Indian Lacrosse: Little Brother Of War”.
This is partly a fictional narrative of the story of lacrosse. However, the excerpts are real and are taken from historic documents.
Of three kinds of games especially in use among these Peoples, – namely, the games of lacrosse, dish, and straw, – the first two are, they say, most healing.
Is not this worthy of compassion? There is a poor sick man, fevered of body and almost dying, and a miserable Sorcerer will order for him, as a cooling remedy, a game of lacrosse.
Or the sick man himself, sometimes, will have dreamed that he must die unless the whole country shall play lacrosse for his health; and, no matter how little may be his credit, you will see then in a beautiful field, Village contending against Village, as to who will play lacrosse the better, and betting against one another Beaver robes and Porcelain collars, so as to excite greater interest.
