Sioux (Lakota)

Sioux (Lakota)
Group	Sioux (Lakota)
Caption	Lakota encampment depiction at Wounded Knee
Population	~170,000 (approximate)
Regions	Great Plains, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, Minnesota
Languages	Lakota
Religions	Lakota spirituality, Christianity
Related	Dakota, Nakota, Plains Peoples

Sioux (Lakota)

The Lakota are a Native American people of the Great Plains historically associated with the northern and western bands traditionally called Oglala, Hunkpapa, Brulé, Miniconjou, Sihasapa, Oohenunpa, and Itazipco. They played central roles in 19th-century conflicts involving the United States, engaged in treaties such as the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1851), and feature prominently in events like the Battle of Little Bighorn, the Wounded Knee Massacre, and the Great Sioux War of 1876–77.

Name and classification

The ethnonym "Lakota" identifies one of the three major divisions of the Sioux Nation alongside the Dakota and Nakota; scholarly classification appears in works by Henry Schoolcraft, Francis D. Metcalf, and James Owen Dorsey. Federal recognition of Lakota bands occurs through entities such as the Oglala Sioux Tribe, the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, each associated with reservations established by treaties like the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868 and legal decisions including United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians. Anthropologists including Franz Boas, James R. Walker (anthropologist), and Raymond DeMallie have analyzed Lakota kinship, while historians such as Dee Brown, Archaeologist George Gustav Heye, and E. A. Brininstool documented Plains culture.

History

Lakota history intersects with European colonial expansion, manifest in encounters with explorers Lewis and Clark Expedition, traders from the Hudson's Bay Company, and military expeditions led by officers like George Armstrong Custer, Nelson A. Miles, and Alfred Sully. Lakota leaders such as Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Spotted Tail, Red Cloud, Chief Gall, Big Foot, and Rain-in-the-Face negotiated, resisted, and fought in confrontations including the Fetterman Fight, the Battle of the Little Bighorn, and the Red Cloud's War. The aftermath involved removals, boarding school policies associated with institutions like the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, allotment under the Dawes Act, and activism epitomized by organizations such as the American Indian Movement and protests like the Trail of Broken Treaties and the 1980–1981 Wounded Knee incident.

Culture and society

Lakota social life features kinship structures described in ethnographies by Lewis Henry Morgan and ceremonial practices recorded by Frances Densmore and Ella Cara Deloria. Traditional lifeways included buffalo hunting using methods spotlighted in accounts by George Catlin, John James Audubon, and Frederick Selous, and communal gatherings such as buffalo hunts and powwows recorded by Mary Sully Burzette. Lakota arts include quillwork, beadwork, hide painting seen in collections at the Smithsonian Institution, hides displayed in the National Museum of the American Indian, and Winter counts preserved in archives like the South Dakota State Historical Society. Gender roles and ceremonial roles discussed by scholars such as Adrienne Keene and Sheila Deloria intersect with modern issues addressed by tribal councils and NGOs like the National Congress of American Indians.

Language

The Lakota language is a Siouan language within the Siouxan family studied by linguists including Mithun, Franz Boas, Noah Webster (lexical mentions), E. H.·P. Thompson-style historical linguists, and contemporary researchers at institutions like the Sinte Gleska University and the Lakota Language Consortium. Orthographies developed by F. H. Krause and modern revitalization programs involve immersion schools, curricula at Oglala Lakota College, and digital resources supported by organizations like First Peoples' Cultural Council. Important texts include translations of the Bible into Lakota, collections by E. A. Speck, and educational initiatives influenced by the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.

Beliefs and spirituality

Lakota spirituality centers on concepts documented in ethnographic works by James R. Walker, Ella Cara Deloria, and Black Elk (whose life was recorded by John G. Neihardt). Ceremonies such as the Sun Dance, the Yuwipi, and the Ghost Dance movement of Wovoka influenced Lakota religion during periods of upheaval. Sacred places like the Black Hills (Paha Sapa), Pine Ridge Reservation sites, and pipestone quarries at Pipestone National Monument hold ongoing significance reflected in legal disputes including United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians and protests over energy projects like the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Government and contemporary issues

Lakota governance operates through tribal governments including the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe with constitutions influenced by policy shifts such as the Indian Reorganization Act and litigation involving the Indian Claims Commission. Contemporary issues include land claims litigated in cases like the Black Hills Claim, public health crises addressed by agencies such as the Indian Health Service, economic development projects including casinos regulated under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and activism tied to environmental review processes under statutes like the National Environmental Policy Act.

Notable people and legacy

Prominent Lakota figures include leaders and activists such as Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, Spotted Tail, Black Elk, Kicking Bear, Chief Gall, Big Foot, Rain-in-the-Face, Oglala Oyate advocates, cultural contributors like artist Oscar Howe, writer Maria Tallchief (of regional importance), scholar Ella Cara Deloria, historian Dee Brown, and contemporary leaders in politics and arts. The Lakota legacy appears in legal precedents like United States v. Sioux Nation of Indians, in popular culture portrayals involving filmmakers such as Kevin Costner and films like Dances with Wolves, and in museum exhibits at the National Museum of the American Indian and Smithsonian Institution.

Category:Indigenous peoples of the North American Plains