Last night we saw, with clear weather, the largest moon of 2022 – the Super Moon. The July Moon is generally called the Buck Moon. This year July’s moon is the closest the moon will be to Earth. Local astrologist at the Observatory in Hyde Park, Dean Regas says, “Super-est Moon of the year tonight. Look for it rising in the southeast after sunset. Big on the horizon around 9pm (221,000 miles away), but closest to Earth around 1:30am (under 220,000 miles).”
The full moon was super important to the Native Americans. Each month’s full moon had a name, a purpose or indicator- usually of what food was ripe for the eating – and in many cases even a ritualized dance to go with it.
July’s signals mid summer and hot weather months. And in the Midwest, southwest and northwest it indicates several foods that are in season. For us in the Midwest, plains and northeast it signifies the ripeness of berries – blackberries, raspberries, and chokecherries. For those in more southern and warmer climates it indicates that the early corn is ripe and ready to be harvested – ours in the Midwest was only “knee-high by the Fourth of July,” so we’ve still got a way to go on our corn. Finally, in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon, Washington and Alaska it’s salmon season.
The Algonquins called their July moon ‘matterflawaw kesos’ and to them it signified that squash, one of the Native American ‘three sisters’, was ripe. Our local Shawnee Indians called the July moon ‘miini klishthwa’ and to them is signified time to go out and forage the ripe blackberries of Ohio. For the Chippewa and Ojibwe it signified ripening of raspberries. The Cherokee of the Carolinas knew it meant corn was ripening. For the Araho and Lakota it meant the chokecherries were ripe. For Pacific Northwest Indians, like the Haida of Alaska or the Tlingit, it signified salmon season and so it was time to get your fishing poles up to snuff and catch some fresh salmon.
So if you were to make an entire meal inspired by Native American July moon indicators it might be salmon encroute (although I doubt the Indians had access to good layered puff pastry), with a cheesy squash casserole, ending with a beautiful red berry pie. And make sure you also do a little dance around the campfire in moccasins and loincloth.
dannwoellertthefoodetymologist 