bighouse

From big +‎ house.

bighouse (plural bighouses)

1. Alternative form of big house (“religious building of the Delaware Indians”)
   • 1991, Ellen Mackay, Places of Worship in the Cowichan and Chemainus Valleys, Sono Nis Press, →ISBN, pages 26 and 28:

     (Actually, there were several different styles of bighouses, including an underground one which was roofed over—a similar type of architecture is currently popular in some parts of the country as an energy-efficient house.) […] Mask dancers may use the bighouse for some ceremonies and rituals, but may perform at functions anywhere.

   • 1993, Denise Lardner Carmody, John Carmody, Native American Religions: An Introduction, Paulist Press, →ISBN, page 219:

     Consequently, human affairs tended to seem like a small world set within the much larger world of the cosmos. This explains symbolism such as that of the Delaware bighouses, which were constructed to mimic the different levels of the cosmos. […] The symbolism of the bighouse reminded the Delaware that all their activities lay open to the powers that had made the world.

   • 2004, R. Bruce Morrison, C. Roderick Wilson, Native Peoples: The Canadian Experience, Oxford University Press, page 442:

     In addition, he built a ceremonial bighouse on the grounds of the Provincial Museum, carved new masks for use, and dedicated the house with a formal presentation of some of his dance privileges that culminated in the distribution of potlatch gifts.