The Lakota People in the Past

The Lakota People in the Past

The first Europeans who came in contact with the Sioux were two French explorators in 1660. The name that they gave to these people in their reports comes from the deformation of the word "Nadewa-issiù” (dangerous snakes) that the other Indian tribes used as a name for these people. They were divided in three Nations (along with the tribes) that named themselves Lakota (Teton Sioux), Dakota (Santee Sioux) and Nakota (Yankton Sioux), words that in Siouan language ment “allied”. The Lakotas were the most famous.

By the time the whitemen arrived, the Lakotas were dominating the Great Plains, the area around the Black Hills, a sacred area for the Indian spirituality and occupied territories of North and South Dakota, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and Nebraska. They were subdivided in seven subgroups or seven council fires (Oceti sakowin in Lakota language): the Oglala (famous from chief Red Cloud), the Sicangu (Spotted tail, uncle of Crazy Horse, who was Oglala), the Hunkpapa (Sitting Bull), the Minikonju, the Itazipco, the Oohenunpa and the Sihasapa. Between these “seven council fires”, there were exchanges, matrimonial or commercial ones and alliances in case of common aims.

The Lakotas were nomadic hunters and all their life, from economy to spirituality, was entirely related to the buffalo hunt. Before the period of the Indian wars, until the end of 1855, there were almost 50-60 millions buffalos in the Great Plains, probably divided into four different herds that migrated-moved from north to south and vice versa during every season. But the creation of different pathways by the whitemen for the conquest of the West (Oregon and Bozeman) divided the herds and made them change their emigrational destinations and also impeded the movement of the Indians. Apart from that, the Government of the United States decided to resolve definitely the Indian problem by inviting the white hunters to kill-destroy as many buffalos as possible. Furthermore, with the construction of the railway hundreds of travelers and tourists arrived seeking just satisfaction from killing dozens and dozens of buffalos everyday without even taking advantage of their hides. Before the end of the century the buffalos were less than one million and the Indian culture was at the last stages of its life.

The Lakotas lived their most glorious time between the years 1830 and 1877, during which personalities like Red Cloud, Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull succeeded to stand and fight against the Blue Jackets, namely the American Cavalry, which under the commands of the Government had to eliminate the Indians in every possible way.

We must refer to the glorious battle of Little Bighorn, where the part of the Cavalry under the commands of Custer was totally destroyed by the Lakotas, united for the first time with the Cheyenne and Arapahos, under the charismatic guidance of Crazy Horse.

That was the last Indian victory and the only true conflict for the United States. After the betray and the killing of Crazy Horse, in September of 1877, the era of Lakota resistance can be considered as ended. The whitemen continued with their policy, and proceeded to the Massacre of Wounded Knee, where almost 350 Indians were massacred, among them 230 women and children, something that shows that there was no obedience to the terms of peace that had been signed and of course that the only thing in which the United States government was truly interested was the total and definitive elimination of the natives for the acquisition of the territories that were rich in gold, uranium etc.

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