The Cheyenne Indians: History, Culture, and Lifestyle

1. The Cheyenne Indians By Abby Atkins

2. Geographic Location • South-central Montana. • Great Plains area east of the Rocky Mountains and West of the Missouri River. Flag of the Northern Cheyenne.

3. Historical Timeline • 1830s- Many Cheyenne move south to trade while most remain north to trade at Fort Laramie. • 1840s-50s-Thousands of people move into Cheyenne and Lakota lands killing buffalo as they go by on trains and bringing disease.

4. Historical Timeline (cont.) • July 2,1874- Custer leads 1,000 troops in search of a place to build a fort and find gold on Great Sioux Reservation. • Dec.3,1875- All Indians are ordered onto reservations. • June 16,1876- Battle of the Rosebud Cheyenne and Lakota warriors attack General Crooks’ troops. Also known to the Cheyenne as the ‘Battle were the Girl Saved Her Brother.’

5. Historical Timeline(cont.) • June 25,1876- Battle of the Little Bighorn. Custer attacks Northern Cheyenne on Little Bighorn River. • Spring 1877- Northern Cheyenne and Crazy Horse surrender. • May 28,1877- Northern Cheyenne ordered South to Indian Territory in Oklahoma. • Aug.5,1877- Northern Cheyenne join Southern Cheyenne in Indian Territory.

6. Historical Timeline(cont.) • Sep. 9,1878- Approx. 300 Cheyenne flee North, pursued by U.S. Navy. • Oct. 1878- Northern Cheyenne reach Nebraska. • Nov. 16,1884- President Chester A. Arthur signs Executive Order- Reservation established in Southern Montana for Cheyenne.

7. Environment • Animals • Buffalo • Important Plants • Roots and herbs • Remedies, ritual purification, sweat lodge, sometimes surgery. Both men and women were healers. • Wild animals • Deer • Wild horses • And many others

8. Environment(cont.) • Climate • Semiarid grassland like • 5000-6000 ft. above sea level • Cold winters, warm summers. • Low precipitation and humidity, much wind, sudden changes in temperature

9. Economy • Men hunted deer and buffalo. Also fished. • Women harvested corn, squash, and beans. Also picked berries and dug roots. • Trade and exchange • For other tribes’ horses, baby cradles, food, etc. • Traded with other tribes and white people for beads.

10. Transportation • Mainly used dogs using travois. • When European horse was introduced, Cheyenne could travel farther and quicker to migrate with the buffalo on which they relied on for food and hides.

11. Agriculture • Types of plants grown • Corn • Potatoes • Beans • Animals domesticated • Horse • Dog

12. Agriculture(cont.) • Stored surplus by drying meat on rocks or over a fire. • They did not irrigate.

13. Gender Roles • Women were in charge of taking down and putting up home. Also cook, clean, and watch after kids. • Men were in charge of hunting and defending tribe. Also feeding the family. Only men could become chiefs. • Both told stories of the past, artwork, music, and traditional medicine.

14. Shelter • Long poles were used as the frame. • Varying, one teepee could take 10-50 hides. • Sinew was used as a thread and bones used as decorations. • They didn’t have any permanent villages because they had to move with the buffalo for meat and hides.

15. Religion • Medicine man, shaman, priests who practiced shamanism, dance, medicine. • Medicine man and woman. • Primary gods: • The Wise One Above • God of the Underworld • Haemmawihio: God of Creation • The Spirits at the Points of the Compass

16. Religion(cont.) • Ceremonies: • Major ones • Hoxehe-vohomo’ ehestote (Sun dance) • Massaum ( Animal dance) • Sweet Medicine (Mutosyef) • All are still preformed.

17. Religion(cont.) • Spiritual practices: • Two principal deities- The Wise One Above and God of the Underworld. • Four others at the points of the compass; N.E.W.S. • Preformed Sun Dance in most elaborate form. • Most prized objects- hat made of skin and hair of a buffalo cow. • Four arrows- 2 for hunting – 2 for battle. All in a Sacred Bundle.

18. Clothing • Women wore long deerskin dresses with high fringed boots and hair long and loose or in braids. • Men wore breechcloths and leather leggings. Sometimes a Plains War Shirt. • Also moccasins, and hair in braids or worn long. • Both were decorated with porcupine quills, shells, or elk teeth.

19. Clothing(cont.) • Made of deer and buffalo hides. • Groups of different people wore different costumes and clothing. • Dancers usually wore masks to symbolize the ceremony they performed. • Ornaments included: • Feathers or horsehair, in hair. • War paint on body. • Jewelry such as necklaces, anklets, bracelets, etc.

20. Pictures of Cheyenne clothing • Buckskin dresses • Breechcloths • Moccasins • Boots • Jewelry

21. Art • They made geometric patterns. • Artistic tradition reflected sacred an socioeconomic pursuits of men and women. • They used hides, sinew, beads traded from white settlers, and plats for paint or mud. • War scenes, heroic scenes, and stories of the past were some of the topics.

22. Pictures of Cheyenne Art • War scenes • Heroic scenes • Stories of the past

23. Technology • Some tools are: • Scrapers- usually made of stone of antlers. • Flesher- used for scraping leftover meat off of hides. • Buffalo horn- used for spoons or cups. • Buffalo bones- used for jewelry and ribs for sleds. • Buffalo hooves- glue and cups.

24. Technology(cont.) • Powerful bows and arrows • War clubs • Spears • Shields

25. Technology(cont.) • Cheyenne dialect- Algonquin language family. • Alphabet of 14 letters.

26. Technology(cont.) Language • One…Na’este Sun…Ese’he • Two…Nese Moon…Taa’e-ese’he • Three…Na’he Water…Mahpe • Four…Neve White…Vo;kome • Five…Noho Yellow…Heove • Man…Hetane Red…Ma’e • Woman…He’e Black…Mo’ohta • Dog…Hotame or Oeskeso Eat…Emese • See…Evoohta Hear…Enesta • Sing…Enemene Leave…Enhoota

27. Government • Leaders: • Council of chiefs had 40 men. • You can be a solider, but not a chief at same time. • Leaders chosen: • Bravery • Wealth • Hospitality Population of tribe…approx.11,000 people enrolled.

28. Intresting Facts • Two united tribes: • Sotaae’o- Meaning Unknown • Tisitisistas- Like Hearted People • In 400 years, they had gone though 4 stages of culture: • Eastern Woodlands- sedentary/agricultural people-grew corn and beans • Abandoned sedentary/agricultural life. Became a full fledged Plains horse culture tribe. • Present day Minnesota/South Dakota. Continued forming tradition. Started bison hunting on Plains. • Reservation Stage.

29. Intresting Facts(cont.) • Fought in the Battle of the Rosebud (also known as the Battle Where the Girl Saved her Brother.) • Also fought in the Battle of the Little Bighorn. • Name comes from the Dakota-Sioux name: Sahiyenan, meaning “Red-Talker”

30. Credits http://www.crystallinks.com/cheyenne.html http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/cultural/nortamerica/cheyenne.html http://www.sonofthesouth.net/american-indians/cheyenne-indians.htm http://www.geocities.com/bigorrin/cheyenne_kids.htm http://www.fourtunecity.com/victorian/song/1147/picutres/animals/animalsw.htmj http://www.native_languages.org/cheyenne_words.htm http://www.cheyennenation.com/ http://www.geocites.com/cheyenne language/index.htm http://www.acessgeneology.com/native/tribes/history/indiangov.html http://www.everyculture.com/North-America/Cheyenne-Religion-and-Experssive Culture.html Http://www.mcusa-archives.org/features/lehn.html http://www.curtis-collection.co/tribe7020data/cheyanne.html http://www.danley.ren.csh.ud/history/nai-environment.html http://www.sportacus.schoolnet.co.ud/WWplains.htm http://www.mnisose.org/profiles/ncheyenne.htm Buffalo Calf Road Woman, Agonito, Rosemary 242 pages Google Cheyenne Pictures http://www.animationlibrary.com