The Mohawk Nation is one of three senior nations of the Iroquois or Six Nations Confederacy. The nation's original homeland was the Mohawk Valley of New York State, between the modern cities of Schenectady and Utica. The Mohawk is the easternmost nation of the Six Nations Confederacy, which, besides them, consists of the Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora Nations.

Mohawk society is matrilineal. The people trace their ancestry through the maternal line and at birth belong to their mother's clan. The Clan Mothers chose the sachems or chiefs. The women also controlled the land where they grew and gathered food.

The Mohawk had a strong history in trading and were involved in the fur trade from the start. They and their Iroquois allies skillfully played the French and the English against each other for nearly two centuries. During this time they were quite successful in protecting the integrity of their home territories and their position as leading middlemen of the fur trade. During the American Revolution, however, the Mohawk sided with the British and many were forced to flee to Canada as a result.

Today, the Mohawk live in six communities in Canada in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec and in New York State in the USA. The communities are: Tyendinaga on the Bay of Quinte, near Belleville, Ontario; Ahkwesáhsne, which straddles the borders of New York State and the provinces of Quebec and Ontario near St. Regis, New York; Wáhta, approximately 50 kilometres (30 miles) Southeast of Parry Sound, Ontario; Ohswéken on the Grand River, near Hamilton, Ontario; Kanehsatàke, near Oka, Quebec; and Kahnawàke, near Montreal, Quebec.