Mdewakanton Dakota

Mdewakanton Dakota
Group	Mdewakanton Dakota
Population	(see contemporary communities)
Regions	Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska
Languages	Dakota language
Religions	Traditional Native American religions, Christianity
Related	Santee Sioux, Wahpekute, Sisseton, Wahpeton

Mdewakanton Dakota The Mdewakanton Dakota are a subdivision of the Dakota people historically centered near the Mississippi River headwaters and present in regions including Minnesota and the upper Missouri River drainage. Their identity has been shaped by interactions with neighboring nations such as the Ojibwe and Lakota, as well as by treaties with the United States and conflicts including the Dakota War of 1862. They are connected culturally and linguistically to other Siouan languages speakers and maintain contemporary tribal governments and federally recognized bands.

Name and Identity

The ethnonym derives from Dakota language terms tied to places like Lake Pepin and White Earth Reservation landscapes; historical references appear in accounts by explorers such as Pierre-Charles Le Sueur, Samuel de Champlain, and Henry Rowe Schoolcraft. Colonial and federal records reference bands and leaders including Taoyateduta (Little Crow), Wakinyan Chanka (Red Wing), and Bdewakantunwan groups recorded in documents like the Treaty of St. Peters and the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux. Anthropologists and historians such as Frances Densmore and Henry R. Schoolcraft categorized social divisions among Dakota into bands including Wahpekute, Sisseton, and Wahpeton.

History

Pre-contact and early contact histories involve trade and conflict with peoples and entities such as the Huron, Ojibwe, the French colonial empire, and traders associated with the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company. Colonial-era events including the Seven Years' War and the expansion of Upper Mississippi River fur trade revised alliances and resource patterns. Nineteenth-century episodes include treaty-making with the United States (e.g., Treaty of Traverse des Sioux, Treaty of Mendota), displacement related to policies like Indian removal, and armed conflict epitomized by the Dakota War of 1862 and subsequent trials overseen by officials such as President Abraham Lincoln and military officers under Henry Hastings Sibley. Post-war processes involved forced removals to places including Crow Creek Indian Reservation and interactions with federal institutions such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs and policies enacted under laws like the Indian Appropriations Act.

Society and Culture

Social organization included clan and band structures comparable to those documented by observers such as George Catlin and Ralph Waldo Emerson, with leadership roles held by figures like Red Wing and Little Crow. Ceremonial life featured rites appearing in records by Frances Densmore and missionary accounts from Missions in Minnesota including use of the Sun Dance and seasonal gatherings at sites such as Pipestone National Monument and Fort Snelling. Material culture evident in collections at institutions like the Smithsonian Institution and Minnesota Historical Society includes beadwork, quillwork, hide tipis, and birchbark canoes; artists and leaders like Wesley Cooley and storytellers preserved craft traditions. Contact-era syncretism involved interactions with Roman Catholic Church, Presbyterian Church (USA), and Methodist Episcopal Church missionaries.

Language and Oral Traditions

The Dakota language, a variety of the Siouan languages family, is documented in grammars and dictionaries by linguists such as William W. Warren and educators collaborating with programs at institutions like University of Minnesota and Sisseton Wahpeton College. Oral traditions, recorded in collections alongside narratives about figures like Wakinyan (thunder beings) and place-stories tied to Lake Mille Lacs and Mississippi River tributaries, preserve cosmology and history. Storytelling and pedagogy occur in contexts ranging from tribal schools to cultural centers such as the Red Lake Nation archives and initiatives linked to the Minnesota Historical Society and language revitalization projects supported by grants from foundations like the Smithsonian Institution.

Economy and Land Use

Historically, subsistence and trade systems integrated seasonal hunting of species documented in journals by Lewis and Clark Expedition, gathering of wild rice harvested at sites like Upper Mississippi River wetlands, and participation in intertribal trade networks with groups such as the Abenaki and Ojibwe. Economic change resulted from fur trade interactions with the American Fur Company, land cessions under treaties like the Treaty of St. Peters, and later allotment policies under laws such as the Dawes Act. Contemporary economic activities include enterprises managed by tribal corporations engaging with markets in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, gaming regulated under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, cultural tourism at places like Fort Snelling State Park, and natural-resource management in collaboration with agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Relations with United States and Treaties

Treaty relations encompass agreements including the Treaty of Traverse des Sioux, Treaty of Mendota, and the Treaty of St. Peters, with consequences adjudicated in venues such as the U.S. Congress and federal courts including decisions invoking precedents like Worcester v. Georgia-era jurisprudence and later Indian law developments. The Dakota War of 1862 precipitated legal actions including military trials and executive decisions involving Abraham Lincoln; subsequent settlement processes involved agencies such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs and legislation like the Indian Claims Commission Act. Contemporary legal and political advocacy occurs through entities such as the National Congress of American Indians, litigations before the United States Court of Federal Claims, and settlements addressing land, treaty rights, and compensation.

Contemporary Communities and Governance

Modern Mdewakanton descendant communities are organized into federally recognized bands and tribal governments including organizations at reservations and trust areas allied with groups such as the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community and Upper Sioux Community (Peoples); they operate enterprises including gaming facilities, cultural centers, and conservation projects in coordination with state agencies like the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Educational and health services are provided by institutions including Sisseton Wahpeton College, tribal health clinics, and partnerships with the Indian Health Service. Cultural revitalization efforts involve collaborations with museums like the Minnesota Historical Society, language programs supported by universities such as Bemidji State University, and arts initiatives featuring performers connected to venues in Minneapolis and national programs of the National Endowment for the Arts.

Category:Dakota people