Explore the Native American tribes of the United States—past and present—through our comprehensive A–Z directory. This resource covers federally recognized, state recognized, unrecognized, petitioning, and historically extinct tribes, all in one place. Each profile includes history, culture, language, notable leaders, and present-day status, making it a valuable reference for students, researchers, and anyone interested in Indigenous heritage.
From the well-known Cherokee and Navajo to smaller, lesser-known nations, you’ll find accurate, well-researched information along with links to related tribal histories, cultural practices, and historical events. Whether you’re tracing ancestry, studying historical events, or seeking to understand the diversity of Native peoples, this directory provides both quick facts and in-depth resources—organized alphabetically for easy navigation.
Browse by letter to find any tribe quickly — whether well-known like the Cherokee, Navajo, or Sioux, or smaller, lesser-documented communities. Where possible, we’ve linked each profile to related pages on tribal culture, language, notable leaders, and historical events.
Explore an alphabetical directory of Native American tribes from across the United States — past and present. This hub brings together federally recognized tribes, state recognized tribes, unrecognized heritage groups, and historical tribes that are now extinct or terminated, all in one place for easier research and discovery.
Each tribal profile includes:
Name variations and alternate spellings.
Historical homelands and migration patterns.
Cultural practices and language families.
First contact history with Europeans or other outsiders.
Population changes over time and present-day status.
Links to detailed articles, photos, maps, and related resources.
Federally recognized tribes (F): Sovereign nations acknowledged by the U.S. government with treaty rights and federal benefits.
State recognized tribes (S): Recognized by individual states for governmental purposes; may or may not also have federal recognition.
Unrecognized tribes (U): Groups that self-identify as Native American but lack official recognition at state or federal levels; may be historical communities, terminated tribes, or petitioners for recognition.
Extinct or terminated tribes (T): Historic peoples who no longer exist as distinct communities due to assimilation, relocation, population loss, or official termination policies.
Recognition affects a tribe’s legal status, access to programs, and ability to govern itself. Some tribes are seeking to restore recognition lost through federal termination policies in the mid-20th century, while others maintain cultural identity without formal recognition.
From pre-contact populations in the millions to the devastating impacts of disease, warfare, forced removals like the Trail of Tears, assimilation policies, and the near-eradication of the buffalo, Native peoples have endured profound challenges. Yet, many communities have preserved their heritage, rebuilt their populations, and continue to thrive today.
The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe is made up of four bands of Sioux people: the Minneconjou, Two Kettle, Sans Arc, and Blackfoot Sioux.Continue to Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the Cheyenne River Reservation →
The Bidai tribe is named with a Caddo word meaning “brushwood,” probably referring to the peculiar growth characteristic of the region. Extinct today, they belonged to the Caddoan stock, whose villages were scattered over a wide territory, but principally about Trinity River in Texas, while some were as far north as the Neches River or beyond.Continue to Bidai Tribe →
One reason the BIA chose the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin for termination was that the tribe had successful forestry and lumbering operations that the BIA believed could support the tribe economically. Congress passed an act in 1954 that officially called for the termination of the Menominee as a federally recognized Indian tribe.Continue to Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin →
In 1962, the Congress of the United States decided that the Northern Ponca Tribe should be terminated. In 1966 the Northern Poncas were completely terminated and all of their land and tribal holdings were dissolved. This termination removed 442 Ponca from the tribal rolls, dispossessing them of 834 acres and began the process of total decline.Continue to Northern Ponca Tribe →
The Keechy Tribe was a Native American Southern Plains tribe that lived in Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma. Also known as the Kichai, they were most closely related to the Pawnee.
The Koroa Indians are one of many “small tribes” of the Southeastern United States that are mentioned briefly in historic accounts and then fade from the records during the colonial period. There is evidence that some Koroa may have resided in present-day Arkansas in the late seventeenth century, but the ancestral homeland, cultural roots, and historic fate of the Koroa remain issues of disagreement among today’s scholars.