Calendar history of the Kiowa Indians. (1898 N 17 / 1895-1896 (pages 129-444)) — John Shaqi
Calendar history of the Kiowa Indians. (1898 N 17 / 1895-1896 (pages 129-444))Mooney, James
History
Calendar history of the Kiowa Indians. (1898 N 17 / 1895-1896 (pages 129-444))
Mooney, James
Kiowa Indians; Kiowa language -- Glossaries, vocabularies, etc.
The Mandan they call _Dóhón_, "the last tipi," assigning as a reason for
the name that they lived farthest toward the east. The Mandan, unlike
the other tribes, did in fact have one of their villages on the farther
(eastern) bank of the Missouri. They also sometimes call them
_Dowákohón_, an older form of Dohon, and _Sabă´_, "stingy," perhaps from
some trade dispute. In the sign language the Kiowa designate them by
indicating tattoo marks, stating that the women, and sometimes the men,
tattooed the arms, breast, and around the lips. This agrees exactly with
Clark, who says that the proper sign for Mandan is intended to indicate
tattooing on the chin and lower part of the face. He states also, on the
authority of an old plainsman, that fifty years ago the Mandan women had
a small spot tattooed on the forehead, together with a line on the chin,
while of the men the chiefs alone were tattooed, this being done on one
side, or one-half of the breast, or on one arm and breast (_Clark, 4_).
It may be that the small tattooed circle on the foreheads of many Kiowa
women is an imitation from their Mandan sisters. Matthews says that he
has seen a few old men of the Hidatsa with parallel bands tattooed on
the chest, throat, and arms, but not on any other part of the body, or
on any young or middle-age persons in the tribe (_Matthews, 3_).
The Hidatsa or Minitari are known to the Kiowa as _Henóñko_, a name
which they can not translate. In this word the terminal _ko_ is the
tribal suffix, while _Henóñ_ is the root, possibly a derivative from
_Herantsa_, another form of Hidatsa, the Kiowa having no _r_ in their
language. To designate them in the sign language, they make a gesture as
if dipping up water with the hand, referring to their common name of
Minitari, "water crossers," or "water people." This sign is probably now
obsolete in the north, as it is not noted by either Clark or Mallery.
They say that the Henoñko called the Kiowa _Datûmpáta_. The Kiowa
describe the three tribes as about the same in regard to house-building
methods and the cultivation of corn and Indian tobacco. They have also a
distinct recollection of the peculiar "bull boats," tub-shaped and
covered with rawhide, used by the Mandan and their allies. They ascribe
these boats more particularly to the Mandan, from whom perhaps the
Arikara obtained them after moving up to the same neighborhood.
RECOLLECTIONS OF OTHER NORTHERN TRIBES
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account