George Colbert: The Legacy of a Chickasaw Chief
George Colbert was a Chickasaw chief who negotiated directly with President Andrew Jackson against the forced removal of the Chickasaw Nation. He died on the Trail of Tears in 1839.
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Salishan Language Tree: Branches, Tribes, and Native Languages of the Pacific Northwest
The Salishan language family includes five branches and more than 20 distinct languages spoken by tribes across the Pacific Northwest and Plateau regions. Here's how they connect.
Nokomis and the spider: the story of the dreamcatcher
“I spent over 10 years traveling to Native American pow wows across the United States, visiting a different reservation almost every week. Dreamcatchers were everywhere, from grandmother-made heirlooms to commercial versions sold at gift shops. Understanding the difference matters. This article tells the real story.” — Raven SiJohn, AAANativeArts.com (Est. 1999) The dreamcatcher comes from the Ojibwe people, one of the largest Native American nations in North America, and the story behind it is more beautiful than most people realize.…
Quinault Indian Nation: History, Culture, and Life Today
The Quinault Indian Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Quinault, Queets, Quileute, Hoh, Chehalis, Chinook, and Cowlitz people. They are a Southwestern Coast Salish people of the Pacific Northwest Coast.
Quinault Language Translations to English
The Quinault language is the traditional language of the Quinault people of Washington State. It belongs to the Salishan language family, a large family of Native languages spoken in the Pacific Northwest and neighboring regions. Language is more than a list of words. It carries memory, humor, family ties, place names, songs, stories, and ways of seeing the world. A language can hold a whole shoreline inside a single phrase. That is why the preservation and revitalization of the Quinault…
Standing Rock Sioux Reservation
Views: 3129 The lands of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe were reduced to a reservation by the Act of March 2, 1889. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribal members are descendants of the Teton and Yankton Bands of the Lakota/Dakota Nations. The Great Sioux Nation is also called The Lakota Nation, Tetons and the Western Sioux. The people of the Sioux Nation refer to themselves as Lakota/Dakota which means friend or allie. The United States government took the word Sioux from (Nadowesioux),…
Mississippi Mound Builders
Mississippi Mound Builders were not limited to just the Mississippi River Valley. Ancient civilizations built mounds in a large area from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico and from the Mississippi River to the Appalachian Mountains, but the greatest concentrations of mounds are found in the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys. These included societies in the Archaic, and Woodland period, and Mississippian period. These Pre-Columbian mounds have been dated from roughly 3000 BCE to the 1500s, and most…
Cedarville Rancheria
The Cedarville Rancheria is a federally recognized tribe of Northern Paiute people in Modoc County, California.
Graylock, Western Abenaki Missisquoi chief of Woronoco/Pocomtuc ancestry
Graylock (c. 1670 to 1750) was a Western Abenaki Missisquoi chief of Woronoco/Pocomtuc ancestry, born near Westfield, Massachusetts.
Louis Cook (1737-1814) was a chief and warrior of the Seven Nations
The Seven Nations, also known as the Seven Fires Council, was a confederation of seven Algonquin-speaking tribes that lived in the northeastern region of North America. The member tribes were the Anishinaabe (Ojibwe), Odawa (Ottawa), and Potawatomi, who were known as the Three Fires, as well as the Nipissing, Mississaugas, Algonquin, and Wendat (Huron). Together, these tribes formed a powerful political and military alliance that helped them to resist colonial forces and maintain their sovereignty over their traditional lands.
Frank Longtoe ( 1871-1949), Abenaki, was known as “The Masked Marvel”
Frank Longtoe, also known as the “Masked Marvel,” was a Pocket Billiards Player of Abenaki decent, who always wore a mask and was never photographed without his mask. The masked Marvel accepted all challenges including Ralph Greenleaf. In 1931, Ripley’s Believe It Or Not featured him as “The Best Player in the World,” winning 1500 out of 1512 games over a 3 years period.
Moxus: A Chief of the Abnaki
Moxus, also known as Agamagus, was a chief of the Abnaki tribe. He was the first signer of the Treaty of 1699 and the successor of Madokawandu. He is remembered today for his contributions and achievements in early Abenaki conflicts and negotiations of several important treaties.
The Salish Tribes: History, Culture, and Traditions
Origins and Migration of the Salish Tribes The Salish tribes, often referred to collectively as the Interior Salish or Pacific Coast Salish, depending on region, are part of a larger language family known as the Salishan languages. These peoples traditionally lived across a wide swath of the Pacific Northwest, including what is now Montana, Idaho, Washington, British Columbia, and parts of Oregon. Linguistic evidence suggests that the Salishan peoples may have originated along the Pacific Coast, gradually migrating inland over…
Sitting Bull (Tatanka Iyotanka)
Sitting Bull or Tatanka Iyotanka, as he was known in his language, was a Dakota Indian from the Hunkpapa Band of Sioux Indians, a respected medicine man, and one of the last free Sioux leaders. On August 23, 1932, Mr. Z. M. Hamilton, a journalist for the “Leader Post” newspaper of Regina, Saskatchewan, referred to the Battle of Little Big Horn as “a massacre.” This term was very incorrect. The Sioux were defending their territory, liberty, homes, and their own…
Old Style Side Step Jingle Dance
The story of the Jingle Dress Dance begins in Whitefish Bay, a reserve village located on the shores of Lake of the Woods in southwestern Ontario. Small and isolated, it is a Native community where traditional values and sensibilities still flourish.
Disestablished / Revoked / and Ceded Indian Reservations in the United States
This article catalogs, state by state, Indian reservations (including rancherias, reserves, tracts, and treaty-set-asides) that were disestablished, revoked, or had substantial portions ceded For each state listed, you’ll find notable examples, approximate timelines, and the mechanism (treaty, act of Congress, executive order, allotment/cession, or court ruling). This aims to be as comprehensive as possible in a single reference, while acknowledging that local and case-specific histories can add further nuance. How Disestablishment, Revocation, and Cession Happened Only Congress can clearly disestablish…
Native American Vampire Stories
There are no Native American vampire stories that display the distinctive characteristics of European vampires (associated with bats, unable to withstand sunlight, killed by a stake through the heart, casting no shadow or reflection, weaknesses to garlic and running water, or the ability to turn their victims into another vampire by biting them.) There is nothing equivalent to that in traditional Native American folklore. But there are plenty of monsters that do have some similarity with vampires.
Apache Horses Were Vital Allies in War, Travel, and Survival
Chiricahua Apache, horses meant mobility, freedom, and resistance. But they were also food in times of desperation, and trophies of war when captured in raids.
Apache Burden Baskets: Meaning, Craft, and Tradition
The Apache burden basket is one of the most iconic pieces of material culture from the Southwestern tribes. Instantly recognizable by its conical shape, woven body, leather fringe, and tin jingles, this basket carries more than just physical weight — it carries tradition, pride, and memory.
Arts and Crafts of the Apache Tribes
The Apache tribes are well known for their beautiful and practical arts and crafts. Out of all their skills, basket weaving stands out as the one they are most famous for. Apache people also make beadwork, clothing, pottery, and carvings. Each branch of the Apache tribes has their own special styles and techniques, shaped by their environment and traditions. Basket Weaving: The Best-Known Apache Craft Basket weaving is the most well-known and respected Apache craft. Apache women, especially from the…