Native American Tribes

The Chickasaw Nation is a federally recognized tribe located in Oklahoma. There are roughly 50,000 members in the tribe, which created a new constitution (mostly for business purposes) in 1983.

The Iroquois Confederacy controlled huge swaths of territory in the Northeast, particularly before the American Revolution. There were eventually six tribes in the Confederacy, but the Sioux wasn't one of them.

If you thought there were only a few dozen tribes recognized in the U.S., you were way, way off. There are 566 official tribes acknowledged by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

The Ponca lived mostly in the Midwest. Today, there are two recognized tribes, one in Oklahoma and one in Nebraska.

The Chickasaw people share much of their history with the Choctaw. Both tribes originated in the Southeastern areas of the U.S. During the Civil War, the Chickasaw sided with the Confederates with the understanding that a Southern victory would result in a sovereign Indian country.

The Kaw people were rooted in the Midwest part of the country. They've been called "People of the South Wind" and "People of Water." There around 3,000 Kaw left in the Oklahoma area.

After the 1830 Indian Removal Act was passed, the U.S. forced the removal of mostly Seminole, Cherokee, Choctaw, Muscogee and Chickasaw tribes. Thousands of natives died during the cruel ordeal.

The Omaha tribe reportedly never fought U.S. forces and were friendly to explorers and settlers. The first European contact with the Omaha tribe occurred around 1700 in the area of Sioux City, Iowa.

Sitting Bull was a Lakota medicine man who for years guided his tribe against U.S. military incursions. Sitting Bull reportedly had a vision of a major victory against a U.S. army, and his premonition came true just weeks later.

A Northern Paiute leader named Wovoka fanned the flames of Indian resistance through the Ghost Dance, which Native Americans believe would empower them to obtain peace, happiness…and the ability to drive out European invaders.

The Cayuga Nation is located in New York state. The word Cayuga means "People of the Great Swamp." In 2005, the tribe began buying swaths of land within the reservation and offering financial assistance to natives wishing to return to their homelands.

There are four distinct groups of Shoshone Native Americans. They include the Eastern, Northen, Western and Gosiute. Only about 1,000 people can speak the Shoshone language today.

The Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma is the biggest tribe in the United States. It numbers about 300,000 members. Hundreds of thousands of other people throughout the country claim Cherokee blood.

The Muckleshoot tribe originated in the Washington state area. Modern tribe members rarely speak their native language (called Whulshootseed) but a few natives are attempting to keep the language alive in the 21st century.

The Choctaw Code Talkers served a vital role, transmitting Allied military messages in their language, which the Germans simply couldn't understand. This gave the Allies a huge advantage in several key battles at the end of the war.

The five Civilized Tribes were the Choctaw, Cherokee, Creek, Chickasaw and Seminole. These tribes integrated aspects of white culture into their own lives, leading settlers to believe that they were more civilized than other tribes.

While many tribes were annihilated or forced to surrender to the U.S. military, the Seminoles never gave up the fight, even though they were eventually driven far into the swamps of Florida.

The Iron Confederacy was a band of tribes who worked together to fend off common enemies. The Crow were not a part of this band of natives.

The Nez Perce reservation is located in Idaho. In their native language, the name they give themselves means simply "The People." In 1805, William Clark may have been the very first European to interact with the tribe.

Although they were from southern areas, the Seminoles tended to sympathize with the North, remaining steadfast with the cause of preserving the Union and abolishing slavery.

The Arapaho mainly lived on the plains of Wyoming and Colorado. There are about 11,000 Araphao Indians remaining in two major reservations, one in Wyoming and one in Oklahoma.

There's no official Kickapoo tribe in Iowa. But the tribe is officially established in Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma.

The name Kiowa means "Principal People," meant to evoke the concept of the genuine or true people.

The Cherokee were originally based in Southeastern parts of the United States. Many Cherokee were forced into other areas after the Indian Removal Act of the 1830s.

The government recognizes two Cheyenne tribes -- the Northern and Southern Cheyenne. The Southern Cheyenne live in Oklahoma; the Northern tribe lives in Montana.

Unwilling to sign a treaty with the U.S., the Nez Perce tribe attempted to flee north through the mountains of Montana. After months of running battles, the Nez Perce finally surrendered in the fall of 1877.

With about 200,000 tribal members, the Choctaw make up the third-largest tribe in the United States. They were originally located in Alabama and Mississippi until they were forcibly pushed westward.

The Shawnee were at home in the forested areas of Ohio. Many Shawnee fought for the Union during the Civil War, and when they returned home, they found that white settlers had taken away their land.

The Lakota tribe, led by a legendary chief named Crazy Horse, used a large force to effectively wipe out Custer's men. The famous battle happened in June 1876 in Montana.

Before the American Revolution even began, the Omaha Indians discovered and embraced horse culture. Horses eventually became a symbol of wealth and power among all Native Americans.