Lakota Tribe Essay

Introduction

The Sioux are a confederacy of several tribes that speak three different dialects, the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota. The Lakota, also called the Teton Sioux, are comprised of seven tribal bands and are the largest and most western of the three groups, occupying lands in both North and South Dakota. The Dakota, or Santee Sioux, live mostly in Minnesota and Nebraska, while the smallest of the three, the Nakota, primarily reside in South Dakota, North Dakota, and Montana.

The name Sioux derives from the Chippeway word “Nadowessioux” which means “Snake” or “Enemy.” Other definitions trace it too early Ottawa (Algonquian) singular /na:towe:ssi/ (plural /na:towe:ssiwak/) “Sioux,” apparently from a verb meaning “to speak a foreign language”, however, the Sioux generally call themselves Lakota or Dakota, meaning “friends, allies, or to be friendly.” The Sioux are a proud people with a rich heritage. They were the masters of the North American plains and prairies, feared by other tribes from the great lakes to the Rockies. Migrating west from Minnesota, the Sioux became nomads of the plains, taking advantage of horses that were originally brought to the Americas by the Spanish in the 1500s. Following the buffalo, they lived in teepees to allow them quick mobility.

The Lakota Indians are a group of Indians that are considered part of the much larger Sioux tribe and are often referred to as Teton or Dakota. Traditionally, the Sioux was a collective term used to describe a group of tribes that formed a political alliance but today the tribes are mainly divided along cultural lines.

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The Lakota were traditionally a nomadic culture of hunters that migrated to the western plains, in the areas of North and South Dakota as well as Minnesota. After European settlers introduced horses to the region, the Lakota Indians were able to use horses to follow the buffalo their main source of food. The Lakota diet also consisted of corn and wild animals like deer and elk.

Like other Amerindians, the Lakota have strong ties to nature and the spirit and belief in many different gods. A popular element in the Lakota religion has been the use of vision quest to pray to the Gods and as a rite of passage into adulthood. The buffalo was not just a source of food to the Lakota it was used in the making of clothing, teepees and shields. A number of the Lakota legends such as the story of the White Buffalo center around the animal.

The number of Lakota Indians is slightly lower than other tribal groups. Today, there are only about 70,000 registered Lakota Indians. Less than half of these continue to speak the ancestral language. The Lakota Indians can be traced back to the Lewis and Clark expedition. During this time, the Lakota Indian tribe accompanied much of the Great Plains. Because of ongoing warfare, the tribal group was forced northward, and settled in the Dakotas.

During the westward expansion and discovery of gold in the Black Hills, Lakota chief Sitting Bull helped defeated Lt. Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn. Lakota chief Crazy Horse also fought to preserve his people's way and life by protesting the takeover of Lakota lands and forced movement of Lakota Indians to reservations.

The Lakota language is part of the Siouan language family and can be understood by those speaking different dialectics. The Lakota language uses nasal and oral vowels with different words being used based on which sex the user is addressing.

Today, about half of the Lakota Indians live in reservations located in the Dakotas and are made up of seven bands. Others live in Nebraska, Minnesota and Canada. In total there are believed to be around 70,000 Lakota. Though the Lakota are considered citizens of America or Canada, Lakota reservations in these countries exist as separate nations. Lakota reservations are self-governed, having their own sets of rules, laws, constitutions, police and elected leaders. One of the largest Amerindian reservations in the United States is the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, which is home to the Hunkpapa branch of the Lakota.

Seven Tribes of Lakota

Sometimes also spelled “Lakhota,” this group consists of seven tribes who were known as warriors and buffalo-hunters. Sometimes called the Tetons (referring to their dialect and location west of the Dakota on the plains) the seven tribes include:

Ogalala (“they scatter their own,” or “dust scatterers”)
Sicangu or Brule (“Burnt Thighs”) Hunkpapa (“end of the circle”),
Miniconjou (“planters beside the stream”),
Sihasapa or Blackfoot (Ntote confused with the separate Blackfoot tribe)
Itazipacola (or Sans Arcs: “without bows”)
Oohenupa (“Two Boilings” or “Two Kettle”)

This band was found in the upper Mississippi Region in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. There were about 20,000 Lakota in the mid-18th century, a number which has increased to about 70,000 today, of which approximately 1/3 still speak their ancestral language.

The Lakota were located in and around present-day Minnesota when Europeans began to explore and settle the land in the 1600s. Living on small game, deer, and wild rice, they were surrounded by large rival tribes. Conflict with their enemy, the Ojibwa eventually forced the Lakota to move west. By the 1700s, the Lakota had acquired horses and flourished hunting buffalo on the high plains of Wisconsin, Iowa, the Dakotas, and as far north as Canada. The Tetons, the largest of the Lakota tribes dominated the region.

As white settlers continued to push west onto Sioux lands and multiple treaties were made and broken, the Sioux retaliated, resulting in three major wars and numerous other battles and skirmishes. The first major clash occurred in 1854 near Fort Laramie, Wyoming, when 19 U.S. soldiers were killed. In retaliation, in 1855 U.S. troops killed about 100 Sioux at their encampment in Nebraska and imprisoned their chief. In 1866-1867, Red Cloud’s War was fought that ended in a treaty granting the Black Hills in perpetuity to the Sioux. The treaty, however, was not honored by the United States; gold prospectors and miners flooded the region in the 1870s. In the ensuing conflict, General George Armstrong Custer and 300 troops were killed at Little Bighorn on June 25, 1876, by the Sioux Chief Sitting Bull and his warriors.

Today, the majority of the Lakota live at the 2,782 square mile Pine Ridge Reservation in southwestern South Dakota.

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List Of Few Topics On Lakota Tribe Essay

The history of the Lakota tribe and their cultural traditions
The impact of European colonization on the Lakota tribe
The significance of the Lakota language and how it is being preserved today
The role of Lakota spirituality and religion in tribal life
The Lakota tribal government and its decision-making processes
The relationship between the Lakota tribe and the United States government
The history of the Lakota tribe's resistance to colonization and assimilation
The impact of the Dawes Act on the Lakota tribe's land and resources
The significance of the Lakota tribe's treaties with the United States government
The role of Lakota women in tribal society and their contributions to the tribe
The impact of the Indian Child Welfare Act on the Lakota tribe
The role of the Lakota tribe in the development of the modern Native American rights movement
The significance of the Lakota tribe's oral tradition and storytelling
The role of the Lakota tribe in modern tribal politics and advocacy
The impact of the Lakota tribe's traditional economy on their way of life
The significance of the Lakota tribe's social and political organizations
The impact of Lakota art and crafts on tribal culture and identity
The role of Lakota music and dance in tribal life and cultural expression
The impact of the U.S. education system on the Lakota tribe's cultural traditions
The significance of the Lakota tribe's ceremonies and rituals
The role of the Lakota tribe in preserving and revitalizing their cultural traditions
The impact of the Lakota tribe's traditional healing practices on their healthcare system
The significance of the Lakota tribe's language and cultural revitalization efforts
The role of the Lakota tribe in modern Native American literature and media
The impact of the Lakota tribe's traditional foodways on their diet and health
The significance of the Lakota tribe's traditional clothing and adornment
The role of the Lakota tribe in modern environmental activism and conservation efforts
The impact of the Lakota tribe's traditional hunting and gathering practices on their way of life
The significance of the Lakota tribe's traditional shelter and dwelling practices
The role of the Lakota tribe in modern economic development and entrepreneurship
The impact of the Lakota tribe's traditional marriage and family structure on their society
The significance of the Lakota tribe's traditional governance and leadership practices 33