The Omaha
The gentes keeping the sacred pipes and those having the sacred tents are
designated among the Omaha by appropriate designs. The sacred tent of the
Wejincte was the tent of war, those of the Hanga were the tents associated
with the buffalo hunt and the cultivation of the soil. The diameter of the
circle (figure 34) represents the road traveled by the tribe when going on
the buffalo hunt, numbers 1 and 10 being the gentes which were
the van. The tribe was divided into half tribes, each half tribe
consisting of five gentes. The sacred tents of the Omaha and all the
objects that were kept in them are now in the Peabody Museum of
Archaeology and Ethnology at Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The two groups of gentes forming the half tribes or phratries, sometimes
composed of subgentes or sections, are as follows:
Hangacenu gentes--1, Wejincte, Elk. 2, Inke-sabe, Black shoulder, a
Buffalo gens; the custodian of the real pipes of peace. 3, Hanga or
Ancestral, a Buffalo gens; the regulator of all the so-called pipes of
peace and keeper of two sacred tents. 4, catada, meaning uncertain; in
four subgentes: a, Wasabe hit'aji, Touch-not-the-skin-of-a-black-bear;
b, Wajinga cataji, Eat-no-small-birds; Bird people; c, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}e-*d*a it'aji,
Touch-no-buffalo-head; Eagle people; d, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}e-'in,
Carry-a-turtle-on-the-back; Turtle people. 5, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}anze, Wind people.
Ictasanda gentes--6, Mancinka-gaxe, Earth-lodge-makers; coyote and wolf
people. 7, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}e-sinde, Buffalo-tail; a Buffalo-calf people. 8, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}a-*d*a,
Deer-head; Deer people. 9, Ingce-jide, Red dung; a Buffalo-calf gens. 10,
Icta-sanda, meaning uncertain (gray eyes?), said to refer to the effect
of lightning on the eyes. This last gens consists of Thunder and Reptile
people.
The Inke-sabe formerly consisted of four subgentes. When the gens met as a
whole, the order of sitting was that shown in figure 35. In the tribal
circle the Wacigije camped next to the Hanga gens, and the other Inke-sabe
people came next to the Wejincte; but in the gentile council fire the
first became last and the last first.
The Iekice or Criers.
The Naqceit'a-baji, Those-who-touch-no-charcoal.
The three subgentes here named sat on the same side of fireplace.
The Hanga formerly had four subgeutes, but two of them, the Waciitan or
Workers, and the Ha-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}u-it'aji, Touches-no-green(-corn)-husks, are extinct,
the few survivors having joined the other subgentes. The remaining
subgentes are each called by several names: 1, {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}csanha-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}acican, pertaining
to the sacred skin of an albino buffalo cow, or Wacabe, Dark buffalo; or
Hanga-qti, real Hanga; or {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}e-ceze-cataji, Do-not-eat-buffalo-tongues. 2,
Janha-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}acican, pertaining to the sacred (cottonwood) bark; or
Waqcexe-acin, Keeps-the-spotted-object (the sacred pole); or
Jan-waqube-acin, Keeps-the-sacred-or-mysterious-wood (pole); or
{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}a-waqube-cataji, Does-not-eat-the-sacred (mysterious)-buffalo-sides; or
Minxa-san-cataji-ki *P*etan-cataji, Eat-no-geese-or-swans-or-cranes.
In the tribal circle the Wacabe camped next to the Inke-sabe, and the
Waqecxe-acin were next to the Wasabe-hit'aji subgens of the catada; but in
the Hanga gentile assembly the positions were reversed, the Wacabe sitting
on the right side of the fire and the Waqcexe-acin on the left.
The Wasabe-hit'aji subgens of the catada was divided into four sections:
Black-bear, Raccoon, Grizzly-bear, and Porcupine. The only survivors are
the Black-bear and Raccoon (Singers).
The Wajinga cataji subgens was divided into four sections: 1, Hawk people,
under the chief Standing Hawk (now dead). 2, Blackbird people, under the
chief Wajina-gahiga. B, Starling or Thunder people. 4, Owl and Magpie
people.
The {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}anze gens was divided into at least two subgentes, the Keepers of the
pipe and the Wind people. Lion, of the Deer-head gens, said that there
were four subgentes, but this was denied in 1882 by Two Crows of the Hanga
gens.
The Mancinka-gaxe subgentes, as given by Lion, were: 1, Coyote and Wolf
people. 2, In'e-waqube-acin, Keepers-of-the-mysterious-stones. 3,
Niniba-t'an, Keepers-of-the-pipe. 4, Minxa-san-wet'aji.
Touch(es)-not-swans. Cange-ska, White Horse, chief of the Mancin-ka-gaxe
(in 1878-1880) named three subgentes, thus: 1, Qube, Mysterious person, a
modern name (probably including the Mi{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}asi and In'e-waqube-acin, and
certainly consisting of the descendants of the chief Wa-jinga-sabe or
Blackbird). 2, Niniba-t'an. 3, Minxa-san-wet'aji.
The {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}a-*d*a were divided into four parts: 1, Niniba-t'an,
Keepers-of-the-pipe, under Lion. 2, Naqce-it'aji, Touches-no-charcoal,
under Boy Chief. 3, Thunder-people, under Pawnee Chief. 4, Deer-people,
under Sinde-xanxan (Deer's-)tail-shows-red-at-intervals
(-as-it-bounds-away).
The Ictasanda gens also was in four parts: 1, Niniba-t'an,
Keepers-of-the-pipe. 2, Real Ictasanda people, (Numbers 1 and 2 were
consolidated prior to 1880.) 3, Wacetan or Reptile people, sometimes
called Keepers-of-the-claws-of-a-wildcat. 4, Real Thunder people, or
Those-who-do-not-touch-a-clamshell, or
Keepers-of-the-clamshell-and-the-tooth-of-a-black-bear.
The social organization of the Omaha has been treated at length by the
author in his paper on Omaha Sociology.(6)
More
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2 _cegiha_ (_people Dwelling Here_)(9)
A. Omaha or U-man-han (Upstream people), located on Omaha reservation, Nebraska, comprising in 1819 (according to James)(10)-- a. Honga-sha-no tribe, including-- 1. Wase-ish-ta band. 2. Enk-ka-sa-... Alphabet
a, as in father. 'a, an initially exploded a. a, as in what, or as o in not. 'a, an initially exploded a. ae, as in hat. c, as sh in she. See s. {~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}, a medial sh, a sonant-surd c (Dakota letter), as ch i... Cegiha
According to tribal traditions collected by Dorsey, the ancestors of the Omaha, Ponka, Elwapa, Osage, and Kansa were originally one people dwelling on Ohio and Wabash rivers, but gradually working westward. The first separation took place at the m... Dakota Social Customs
Among the eastern Dakota the phratry was never a permanent organization, but it was resorted to on special occasions and for various purposes, such as war or the buffalo hunt. The exponent of the phratry was the tiyotipi or soldiers' lodge, which ... Dakota-asiniboin
The Dakota are mentioned in the Jesuit Relations as early as 1639-40; the tradition is noted that the Ojibwa, on arriving at the Great Lakes in an early migration from the Atlantic coast, encountered representatives of the great confederacy of the... Designation And Mode Of Camping
The Dakota call themselves Otceti cakowin (Oceti sakowin(1)), The Seven Fireplaces or Council-fires. This designation refers to their original gentes, the Mdewakantonwan (Mdewakan-tonwan), Waqpekute (Wahpe-kute), Waqpe-tonwan (Wahpetonwan), Sisito... Extent Of The Stock
Out of some sixty aboriginal stocks or families found in North America above the Tropic of Cancer, about five-sixths were confined to the tenth of the territory bordering Pacific ocean; the remaining nine-tenths of the land was occupied by a few s... General Features Of Organization
In the study of the organization of societies, units of different orders are discovered. Among the tribes of the Siouan family the primary unit is the clan or gens, which is composed of a number of consanguinei, claiming descent from a common ance... Habitat
Excepting the Asiniboin, who are chiefly in Canada, nearly all of the Siouan Indians are now gathered on the reservations indicated on earlier pages, most of these reservations lying within the aboriginal territory of the stock. At the advent o... Hidatsa
There has been much confusion concerning the definition and designation of the Hidatsa Indians. They were formerly known as Minitari or Gros Ventres of the Missouri, in distinction from the Gros Ventres of the plains, who belong to another stock. ... Industrial And Esthetic Arts
Since the arts of primitive people reflect environmental conditions with close fidelity, and since the Siouan Indians were distributed over a vast territory varying in climate, hydrography, geology, fauna, and flora, their industrial and esthetic ... Institutions
Among civilized peoples, institutions are crystallized in statutes about nuclei of common law or custom; among peoples in the prescriptorial culture-stage statutes are unborn, and various mnemonic devices are employed for fixing and perpetuating i... Mandan
The Mandan had a vague tradition of emigration from the eastern part of the country, and Lewis and Clark, Prince Maximilian, and others found traces of Mandan house-structures at various points along the Missouri; thus they appear to have ascended... Organization
The demotic organization of the Siouan peoples, so far as known, is set forth in considerable detail in Mr Dorsey's treatises(52) and in the foregoing enumeration of tribes, confederacies, and other linguistic groups. Like the other aborigines ... Phonetic And Graphic Arts
The Siouan stock is defined by linguistic characters. The several tribes and larger and smaller groups speak dialects so closely related as to imply occasional or habitual association, and hence to indicate community in interests and affinity in d... Somatology
The vigorous avocations of the chase and war were reflected in fine stature, broad and deep chests, strong and clean limbs, and sound constitution among the Siouan tribesmen and their consorts. The skin was of the usual coppery cast characteristic... Some Features Of Indian Sociology
As shown by Powell, there are two fundamentally distinct classes or stages in human society--(1) tribal society and (2) national society. National society characterizes civilization; primarily it is organized on a territorial basis, but as enlight... The Asiniboin
The Asiniboin were originally part of the Wazi-kute gens of the Yanktonai (Ihanktonwanna) Dakota. According to the report of E.T. Denig to Governor I.I. Stevens,(5) the Asiniboin call themselves Dakota, meaning Our people. The Dakota style them Ho... The Biloxi
The tribal organization of this people has disappeared. When the few survivors were visited by the author at Lecompte, Louisiana, in 1892 and 1893, they gave him the names of three of the clans of the Biloxi, descent being reckoned in the female l... The Catawba
Dr A. S. Gatschet, of the Bureau of Ethnology, visited the Catawba tribe prior to March, 1882, when he obtained an extensive vocabulary of the Catawba language, but he did not record any information respecting the social organization of the people... The Crow Or Absaroka
As this tribe belongs to the Hidatsa linguistic substock, it is very probable that the social laws and customs of the one people are identical with those of the other, as there has been nothing to cause extensive differentiation. It is not know... The Development Of Mythology
As explained by Powell, philosophies and beliefs may be seriated in four stages: The first stage is hecastotheism; in this stage extranatural or mysterious potencies are imputed to objects both animate and inanimate. The second stage is zootheism;... The Eastern And Southern Tribes
The history of the Monakan, Oatawba, Sara, Pedee, and Santee, and incidentally that of the Biloxi, has been carefully reviewed in a recent publication by Mooney(54) , and does not require repetition. On reviewing the records of explorers a... The Hidatsa
Our chief authority for the names of the Hidatsa gentes is Morgan's Ancient Society. Dr Washington Matthews could have furnished a corrected list from his own notes had they not unfortunately been destroyed by fire. All that can now be done is to ... The Hotcangara Or Winnebago
The Winnebago call themselves Ho-tcan'-ga-ra', First or parent speech. While they have gentes, they have no camping circle, as their priscan habitat was in a forest region. The following names were obtained from James Alexander, a full-blood of th... The Hunkpapa
The name Hunkpapa (sometimes corrupted into Uncpapa, Oncpapa, etc), should be compared with the Yanktonai name Hunkpatina; both refer to the hunkpa or ends of a tribal circle. A Hunkpapa man in 1880 gave the following as the names of the gentes: 1... The Ihanktonwan Or Yankton
The Yankton and Yanktonai speak the Yankton dialect, which has many words in common with the Teton. In 1878 Walking Elk wrote the names of the Yankton gentes in the following order: 1, Tcan-kute (Can kute), Shoot-in-the-woods; 2, Tcaxu (Cagu), ... The Ihanktonwanna Or Yanktonai
The Yanktonai are divided into the Upper and Lower Yanktonai, the latter being known as the Hunkpatina, Those-camping-at-one-end (or horn)-of-the-tribal-circle. The Upper Yanktonai geutes are as follows: 1, Tcan-ona (Can ona), Shoot-at-trees, o... The Iowa
The Iowa camping circle was divided into two half-circles, occupied by two phratries of four gentes each. The first phratry regulated the hunt and other tribal affairs during the autumn and winter; the second phratry took the lead during the sprin... The Itaziptco
The Itaziptco (Itazipco), in full, Itazipa-tcodan (Itazipa-codan), Without-bows or Sans Arcs, had seven gentes, according to Waanatan or Charger, in 1880 and 1884: 1, Itaziptco-qtca (Itazipco-hca), Real Itaziptco, also called Mini-cala (Mini-sala)... The Kanze Or Kansa
Among the Omaha the Yata people are those who camp on the yata or left side of the tribal circle; the Ictunga people, those who camp on the Ictunga or right side. The tribe is divided into seven phratries, or, as the Kansa style each, wa... The Mandan
The Mandan tribe has not been visited by the author, who must content himself with giving the list of gentes furnished by Morgan, in his Ancient Society. This author's system of spelling is preserved: 1. Wolf gens, Ho-ra-ta'-mu-make (Qa-ra-ta' n... The Mdewakantonwan
The Mdewakantonwan were so called from their former habitat, Mdewakan, or Mysterious lake, commonly called Spirit lake, one of the Mille Lacs in Minnesota. The whole name means Mysterious Lake village, and the term was used by De l'Isle as early a... The Minikooju
In 1880 Tatanka-wanbli, or Buffalo-bull Eagle, gave the author the names of numbers 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of the following list of the Minikooju (Minikoozu), Minikanye-woju (Minikanye-wozu), or Minneconjou gentes. These were given in 1884, with ... The Ni-u'-t'a-tci Or Missouri
This tribe, which for many years has been consolidated with the Oto, has at least three gentes. It may have had more, but their names have not yet been recorded. 1, Tu-nan'-p'in, Black bear; 2, Tce-xi'-ta, Eagle, Thunderbird, etc, in four subgente... The Oglala
The first list of Oglala gentes was obtained in 1879 from Reverend John Robinson and confirmed in 1880 by a member of the tribe. These gentes are as follows: 1, Payabya, Pushed-aside. 2, Tapicletca (Tapisleca), Spleen (of an animal). 3, Kiyuksa, B... The Omaha
The gentes keeping the sacred pipes and those having the sacred tents are designated among the Omaha by appropriate designs. The sacred tent of the Wejincte was the tent of war, those of the Hanga were the tents associated with the buffalo hunt an... The Oohe-nonpa Or Two Kettles
Of the Oohe-nonpa (Oohe-nonpa), Two Boilings or Two Kettles, Charger knew the names of only two gentes, which he gave to Reverend H. Swift in 1884, as follows: 1, Oohe-nonpa, Two-boilings. 2, Ma-waqota (Ma-wahota), Skin-smeared-with-whitish-earth.... The Osage
In the Osage nation there are three primary divisions, which are tribes in the original acceptation of that term. These are known as the Tsi{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}u utse pecun*d*a, the Seven Tsi{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}u fireplaces, Han{~... The Oto
The author has not yet learned the exact camping order of the Oto and Missouri tribes, though he has recorded lists of their gentes (subject to future revision), with the aid of Ke-{~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED K~}re{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}{~COM... The Ponka
The Ponka tribal circle was divided equally between the Tcinju and Wajaje half-tribes. To the former belonged two phratries of two gentes each, i.e., numbers 1 to 4, inclusive, and to the latter two similar phratries, including gentes 5 to 8. ... The Quapaw Or Kwapa
When the Kwapa were discovered by the French they dwelt in five villages, described by the early chroniclers as the Imaha (Imaham, Imahao), Capaha, Toriman, Tonginga (Doginga, Topinga), and Southois (Atotchasi, Ossouteouez). Three of these village... The Siha-sapa Or Blackfeet
The following are the gentes of the Siha-sapa or Blackfeet as given by Peji or John Grass, in 1880: 1, Siha-sapa-qtca, Real Blackfeet. 2, Kanxi-cun-pegnaka (Kangi-sun-pegnaka), Wears-raven-feathers-in-the-hair. 3, Glagla-hetca (Glagla-heca), Untid... The Siouan Mythology
It was partly through pioneer study of the Siouan Indians that the popular fallacy concerning the aboriginal Great Spirit gained currency; and it was partly through the work of Dorsey among the cegiha and Dakota tribes, first as a missionary and a... The Sisitonwan Or Sisseton
It is evident that the Sisseton were formerly in seven divisions, the Wita-waziyata-otina and the Ohdihe being counted as one; the Basdetce-cni and Itokaq-tina as another; the Kaqmi-atonwan, Maniti, and Keze as a third, and the Tizaptan and Okopey... The Sitcanxu
The Sitcanxu, Bois Brules or Burned Thighs, are divided locally into (1) Qeyata-witcaca (Heyata wicasa), People-away-from-the-river, the Highland or Upper Brule, and (2) the Kud (Kuta or Kunta)-witcaca, the Lowland or Lower Brule. The Sitcanxu are... The Titonwan Or Teton
TRIBAL DIVISIONS The Teton are divided into seven tribes, which were formerly gentes. These are the Sitcanxu (Sicangu), Itaziptco (Itazipco), Siha-sapa, Minikooju (Minikoozu), Oohe-nonpa (Oohe-nonpa), Oglala, and Hunkpapa. ... The Tutelo
It is impossible to learn whether the Tutelo ever camped in a circle. The author obtained the following clan names (descent being in the female line) from John Key, an Indian, on Grand River reservation, Ontario, Canada, in September, 1882: On one... The Waqpe-kute
The name waqpe-kute is derived from waqpe (wahpe), leaf, and kute, to shoot at, and signifies Shooters-among-the-leaves, i.e., among the deciduous trees, as distinguished from Wazi-kute, Shooters-at-or-among-the-pines. The gentes exist, but their ... The Waqpe-tonwan Or Wahpeton
The name of this people signifies Yillage-among-the-leaves (of deciduous trees), the gens being known to the whites as Leaf Village or Wahpeton. The gentes of this people, as given in 1884 by Reverend Edward Ashley, are the following: 13. I... Toiwe're
The ancestry and prehistoric movements of the tribes constituting this group are involved in considerable obscurity, though it is known from tradition as well as linguistic affinity that they sprung from the Winnebago. Since the days of Marquet... Tribal Nomenclature
In the Siouan stock, as among the American Indians generally, the accepted appellations for tribes and other groups are variously derived. Many of the Siouan tribal names were, like the name of the stock, given by alien peoples, including white me... Winnebago
Linguistically the Winnebago Indians are closely related to the {~LATIN SMALL LETTER TURNED T~}{~LATIN SMALL LETTER OPEN O~}iwe're on the one side and to the Mandan on the other. They were first mentioned in the Jesuit Relation of 1636, though the ...