The Lakota term refers to a group of Native Americans. This tribe basically is formed of a conglomeration of seven tribes. They are united by a common language Lakota and interestingly this language is one of the three major dialects of the Sioux language.
A significant point to be noted is that the Lakota consists of three Sioux groups. They are basically occupying the lands in both North and South Dakota and who in an initial level had signed treaties with the US government. What makes it spectacular is the fact that at the moment the tribe is withdrawing from treaties signed with the U.S. federal government, though it is not clear if these statements by the activists represent the view of the elected government of the Sioux Nation. At the same time it is also not clear how the nation is set top respond.
The Lakota tribe can be divided into seven branches and they are Sicangu, Oglala, Izipaco, Hunkpapa, Miniconjou, Sihasapa, and Ooinunpa. The tribe has an interesting history and it can be said that in the early 18th century, the Lakota became part of the Great Plains culture. What is notable that this happened with their Algonquin-speaking allies, the Tsitsistas with whom their society centered on the buffalo hunt . Statistics clearly reveal that there were 20,000 Lakota in the mid-18th century; however in the coming years their number has increased and at the moment there are over 70,000 of these people. A major point to be considered here is that among these people about 20,500 speak the Lakota language.
The Lakota tribe faced strong competitors in other Native American tribe members and for instance history clearly reveals that large and powerful Arikara, Mandan, and Hidatsa villages had prevented the Lakota from crossing the Missouri. Basically the history of the tribe also showed many conflicts that were internal in their tribe and these included the splitting by the Seven Council Fires into two elements. These two elements of the tribe were the Saone who moved to the Lake Traverse area on the South Dakota-North Dakota-Minnesota border as well as the Oglala-Sicangu who occupied the James River Valley.
A study of the history of the Lakota tribe showed that they gained superiority over the other tribes when smallpox and other diseases nearly destroyed the other tribes and it was only then these members of the Lakota tribe crossed the Missouri and forayed into the High Plains. Interestingly the members of the Lakota Tribe came in contact with the United States, during the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804–06.
Lakota
