All about the ancient tribes
The three groups traditionally lived in what is now Alberta, Canada, and the U.S. state of Montana, and there they remain, with one reservation in Montana and three reserves (as they are called in Canada), one for each band, within Alberta.
Where did the Blackfoot Indians live?
Originally the Blackfeet lived in the Saskatchewan River Valley of Saskatchewan, Canada, and the upper plains of the United States. By 1850 the tribe had moved to the Rocky Mountains and Missouri River areas.
Historians believe the Blackfeet, forced out of their ancestral grounds in today’s upper Great Lakes region by white advancement, were one of the first Native American tribes to head West. Two other bands – the Bloods and the North Blackfeet – now reside on Canadian Indian preserves scattered throughout Alberta.
The Blackfoot tribe lived in tepees which were the tent-like American Indian homes used by most of the Native Indian tribes of the Great Plains. The tepee was constructed from wooden poles that were covered with animal skins such as buffalo hides.
An important Algonquian confederacy of the northern plains, consisting of three subtribes, the Siksika proper or Blackfeet, the Kainah or Bloods, and the Piegan, the whole body being popularly known as Blackfeet. In close alliance with these are the Atsina and the Sarsi.
Today, three Blackfoot First Nation band governments (the Siksika, Kainai, and Piikani Nations) reside in the Canadian province of Alberta, while the Blackfeet Nation is a federally recognized Native American tribe of Southern Piikani in Montana, United States.
(ˈblækˌfʊt ) noun. Word forms: plural -feet or -foot. a member of a group of Native American peoples formerly living in the northwestern Plains.
The Blackfoot wore clothing made from deerskin. Men wore breechcloths, leggings, and shirts. Women wore long dresses. In the winter, they kept warm with thick robes made from bison hides.
www.bia.gov/bia/ois/tgs/genealogy Publishes a downloadable Guide to Tracing Your Indian Ancestry. Has a vast online library, Tracing Native American Family Roots. www.ncai.org/tribal-directory Provides the online tribal directory where contact information for specific tribes can be found.
Siksikáí’powahsin (commonly referred to as the Blackfoot language) is an Algonquian language spoken by four Blackfoot nations: the Siksiká (Blackfoot), Aapátohsipikani (North Piikani), Aamsskáápipikani (South Piikani) and Kainai (Blood).
Overview. The Blackfoot Confederacy is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana. This band of Cherokee, however, have no connection to the Blackfoot nations.
The Sihásapa or Blackfoot Sioux are a division of the Lakota people, Titonwan, or Teton. Sihásapa is the Lakota word for “Blackfoot”, whereas Siksiká has the same meaning in the Blackfoot language. The Sihásapa lived in the western Dakotas on the Great Plains, and consequently are among the Plains Indians.
There are three branches of the Blackfeet peoples-the Northern Blackfeet (Siksika), the Blood and the Piegan or Pikuni. The tribe call themselves “Niitsitapi” (nee-itsee-TAH-peh) meaning “the real people.” The reservation’s economy is primarily agriculture based.
Ancient Native American Last Names
The Blackfeet Nation works hard to retain its culture in the modern era. Annual celebrations of Blackfeet culture include the North American Indian Days Celebration and The Heart Butte Indian Days, featuring traditional dancing, singing, drumming, stick games, and rodeos.