Lakota People

Lakota People

The Lakota (pronounced ; also known as Teton, Titunwan ("prairie dwellers"), Teton Sioux ("snake, or enemy") are an indigenous people of the Great Plains. They are part of a confederation of seven related Sioux tribes, the Oceti Šakowiŋ or seven council fires, and speak Lakota, one of the three major dialects of the Sioux language.

The Lakota are the western-most of the three Sioux-language groups, occupying lands in both North and South Dakota. The seven bands or "sub-tribes" of the Lakota are:

• Sicaŋǧu (Brulé, Burned Thighs)
• Oglala ("They Scatter their Own)
• Itazipco (Sans Arc, Without Bows)
• Huŋkpapa ("End Village," Camps at the End of the Camp Circle)
• Miniconjou ("Plant beside the Stream," Planters by the Water)
• Sihasapa ("Black Feet")
• Oóhenuŋpa (Two Kettles)

Notable persons include Tataŋka Iyotake (Sitting Bull) from the Hunkpapa band; Touch the Clouds from the Miniconjou band; and, Tašuŋke Witko (Crazy Horse), Maȟpiya Luta (Red Cloud), Heȟaka Sapa (Black Elk), Siŋte Gleška (Spotted Tail), and Billy Mills from the Oglala band.