Hononegah (from the Winnebago "hinu", the designation that she was the eldest daughter of her family, "ni", "water", and -ga which clarifies it's a name.) was born in the Teejopera (day-jope-ra), or "Four Lakes Country", which is modern day Madison, Wisconsin. This is given as her birthplace by N. W. Jipson. She is first seen as living in a village along the Rock River in what is now Ogle County, Illinois, and at the time of her birth, there is no evidence of the Winnebago living in this area until 1824 when Thomas Forsyth reports the existence of twelve to fourteen Winnebago villages located on the Rock River and its tributaries south of Lake Koshkonong.