Omaha (people)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Former tribal area of ​​the Omaha and neighboring tribes and current reservations in Nebraska and Oklahoma

The Omaha are a North American Indian tribe from the Dhegiha branch of the Sioux language family . The name means: Those who run against the wind or the current . At the beginning of the 19th century they lived in northeastern Nebraska on the Missouri River . The Osage living south of Omaha called them Pa-Ho-tse (en: Snow Head; de: Schneekopf).

residential area

Like the other members of this language group, namely (Osage, Ponca , Kansa, and Quapaw ), the Omaha migrated westward from the Atlantic coast, having previously lived in Virginia , North, and South Carolina . They later moved to the Ozark Plateau and the prairies of what is now the western state of Missouri .

At this point the five tribes separated; the Omaha and Ponca moved north to what is now Minnesota , where they resided until the late 17th century. Then these two tribes were pushed further west by the wandering Dakota . They split in what is now South Dakota and the Omaha moved on to Bow Creek in Nebraska .

Culture

Like other prairie tribes, the Omaha combined agriculture with hunting. In spring and autumn they lived in fixed villages with dome-shaped earth huts, while they moved into the hunting season with transportable tipis . The social organization of the Omaha was well thought out and consisted of a class system with chiefs, priests, doctors and councilors. Social class was inherited in the male line, but an individual could improve his status by acquiring horses and blankets or hosting celebrations.

There were 10 clans divided into two moieties embodying earth and heaven . Earth clans were charged with hosting war and food gathering ceremonies, while sky clans oversaw the supernatural assistance ceremonies. When the whole tribe encamped on the bison hunt in summer or on the hike, the tipis were arranged in a large circle symbolizing the tribal organization. The Omaha gained special reputation through tests of courage in war, for example when they touched an enemy in combat, when they touched a dead enemy surrounded by his tribal members, or when they kidnapped a trained horse from the enemy's camp. This touch was called a coup or counting coup . Killing and scalping, on the other hand, were less significant achievements.

history

Little Snake, an Omaha interpreter

By 1700 the Omaha and Quapaw lived together on the Ohio and Wabash Rivers . On the way west the two tribes separated, the Quapaw settled in what is now Arkansas and the Omaha moved to the Missouri River in what is now northern Iowa . Here the Ponca split off and the weakened Omaha had to give way to the pressure of the Sioux tribes and moved to Bow Creek in northeastern Nebraska, a tributary of the Missouri, around 1775.

Under the leadership of Chief Blackbird , the Omaha became the most powerful tribe in the region in the late 18th century. He promoted trade with the Spanish and French and also used the relationships to protect his people from hostile tribes, especially the Sioux. The Omaha were the first Plains Indians on horseback, which made them superior to much larger tribes due to their greater mobility. Around 1795 Blackbird lived with 1,100 tribesmen in the large village of Tonwontonga on the west side of the Missouri south of today's city of Sioux City in Nebraska. There is an excavation site there today. The Spaniards built a fort nearby and became Omaha’s regular trading partner. In 1800, a smallpox epidemic struck the village and at least 400 residents including Chief Blackbird died. In 1804 Lewis and Clark visited Tonwontonga and the Blackbirds burial site on a cliff on the Missouri before continuing their expedition.

Further illnesses and particularly the pressure of the Sioux forced the Omaha to move south, where they settled in villages near the present-day town of Bellevue in Nebraska on Papillion Creek between 1819 and 1856 . In 1856 the Omaha sold their land to the US government and agreed to move to their current reservation in northeastern Nebraska and western Iowa. In the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Omaha fought on the side of the northern states . By the 1870s, the bison was almost wiped out on the Great Plains and the Omaha could only survive with government assistance.

Current situation

The tribe was federally recognized under the name Omaha Tribe of Nebraska . It currently has over 5,000 registered members, around 3,000 of whom live in the Omaha Indian Reservation with the main town of Macy. The approximately 50.27 km² reservation is located in the counties Thurston , Cuming and Burt in Nebraska and a small part in Monona County in Iowa . The tribe is governed by a tribal council consisting of seven members, which is elected every three years by the residents of the reservation. The tribe operates Casino Omaha near Onawa, Iowa.

The Omaha population was estimated to be 2,800 in 1780, but shrunk to 300 after the smallpox epidemic of 1802. By the mid-20th century, around 1,500 Omaha were again living in the Nebraska reservation, and the 2000 US census found 5,298 Tribesmen.

Known Omaha

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : Omaha  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Raymond J. DeMallie (Ed.): Handbook of North American Indians , Vol. 13 Plains, Chapter: Omaha. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington DC 2001, ISBN 0-16-050400-7 .
  2. ↑ a b c d Omaha History (PDF; 452 kB), accessed on December 19, 2011.
  3. ↑ US Census 2000 , accessed December 19, 2011.