How are the Haudenosaunee nations described within the Confederacy?

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The main idea here is that the Haudenosaunee Confederacy is a political alliance of distinct nations, each with its own government and authority. Each nation retains sovereignty—the right to govern its own people, make internal laws, and manage its lands. At the same time, they come together as a united federation to handle common concerns such as peace, diplomacy, and shared governance, using a system like the Grand Council guided by the Great Law of Peace. Decisions are made through consensus among the nations, not by a single ruler imposing will, reflecting equality among the member polities. The six nations (Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, with the Tuscarora joining later) each maintain leadership and structures within their own communities, while ceding some authority to the Confederacy for matters that affect everyone. This makes them sovereign polities that are united rather than provinces under a crown, and certainly more than cultural groups without political systems.