History of the Lakota tribe(s).

[Worldtraveller]

I know we have a few people here, and I'll admit I haven't started googling or even headed to the local bookstores yet, but.....

My mom has recently gotten deep enough into our family geneology to discover that we are descended from the Lakota on her side (her great grandmother, IIRC). I'm interested if anyone here can recommend some books on the history of the Lakotas, and other NA tribes as well. Also, where (if any) do the current Lakotas reside in the US?

FYI, there was a long time in her research where she wasn't sure whether we were related to the NA tribes of the southwest (Arizona territory) or the upper midwest (Illinois area), as it appears that her great grandfather travelled from Ilinois to the Arizona territory around the time he married. I was kinda hoping I was related to Geronimo. :D

Cheers

[Esocyn]

I believe most Lakota are in South Dakota. The other Sioux tribes are scattered between Minnesota, Nebraska, North and South Dakota and Saskatchewan.

[Sarpedon]

The lakotas seemed to have inhabited the northern part of the plains of the Midwest, penetrating quite deep into the forests of Minnesota. The town I grew up in was named after a lakota man, who during the so-called 'Sioux Uprising' (now called 'the Dakota (or Lakota) Conflict') saved the lives of at least one settler family. He was later hanged anyway, though was later than that exonerated.

Our town has burial mounds in our town square, but they have not been excavated, so it is unknown as to which tribe they belonged.

I do not believe that the Lakota penetrated Minnesota as far as the Mississippi River, though I could be wrong. That was Ojibwe territory. They were very numerous along the Minnesota River however. Most of the Dakota conflict was centered around that area and farther west.

As far as their origins, I believe they started out further west, in the Dakotas, and moved east during relatively recent times. Therefore, I would be skeptical of any claims of relations between them and the big Mississipian tribes.

I'm hardly an expert though; most of this is just dimly remembered from a paper I did for a high school class, so many years ago.

[Ray Moscow]

I think "the people" are mostly in the Dakotas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakota_people), now.

Geronimo was Apache, who are Athabascans.

Ray (who has a bit of Blackfoot blood)

[Lanakila]

Not in Montana but we have many tribes here: http://www.native-languages.org/montana.htm
http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/montana/index.htm

[Brimshack]

You might want to read DeMallie's version of Black Elk. It's called The Sixth Grandfather. Richard White wrote a pretty good article about the expansion of the Western Sioux. Can't remember where it's published though. Essentially, they started in the great lakes area, then moved west in stages. They were blocked for a bit by the Arikara, Mandan, and Hidatsa, but virgin soil epidemics hit the river tribes harder and took out that obstacle. On south and West the Lakota went.

For religion try "Oglala Religion" by someone named Powers, I forget his first name.

[Worldtraveller]

Cool, thanks for the info, Brimmy.

Oh, and have another cookie. ;)

[deadman_932]

IF you want, at some time in the future, you could contact Arvol LookingHorse of the Oglala, who holds the Calf Pipe. Be direct with him and clear -- there's a movement lately to discourage the tide of "wasicu" that want too much, but Arvol has always tried to create understanding through his WoLakota Foundation, and he's a nice guy : http://arvollookinghorse.homestead.com/ . You can read some of his brief "messages" here to get an idea of how he thinks: http://www.manataka.org/page108.html

This is the best single-volume "history."

Gibbon, Guy (2002) The Sioux: The Dakota and Lakota Nations. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 328 pages ISBN: 1557865663 (Wiley Press in the U.S.) http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-1557865663.html

Blurb "Reviews" :


‘Guy Gibbon’s The Sioux: The Dakota and Lakota Nations is the first attempt to write about the Sioux from prehistory to the present in a single volume. This book is a valuable starting point for readers interested in Sioux history and culture.’ Raymond J. DeMallie, Indiana University

"Readable and sophisticated, this book covers both the famous western Sioux of the plains (Lakota) and the less well known forest dwelling eastern Dakota, from the earliest humans in their Minnesota homeland (9500 BCE) to 2000 CE. Suitable as a text, the book engages general readers too."

Gibbon is/was an archaeologist, so he does a good job on the early stuff, but there's linguistic data that he missed, on indicators of a more easterly (east of Minnesota) "origin" in the deep, deep past.


------------------------

An enormous bibliography on Lakota/Dakota/Nakota is here: http://puffin.creighton.edu/lakota/biblio_total.html

Cheers, and Good luck.