logo
Lewis and Clark in Kansas





Tribal Nations

The Kanza Indians
Prior to the 1600s, the Kaws lived with other Siouan-speaking tribes known collectively as the Dhegiha Siouan group. At this time, the group lived in the land east of the Mississippi River and north of the Ohio River. They migrated west down the Ohio River and by the 1600s separated into five distinct tribes; the Kaws, Quapaws, Omahas, Osages and Poncas. There are several possible reasons for the westward migration including pressure from other tribes moving in from the east, moving bison herds and tribal factionalism. By the late 1600s the Kaws established themselves on the west side of the Missouri River in present-day Doniphan County, Kansas.

Kaw Life
In Kaw culture, men played the role of hunters and trappers. Twice a year the Kaw would travel west to hunt the bison, the mainstay source of food for the tribe. They also hunted deer and elk for their meat and their hides, which were often traded with Spanish, French, English and American traders in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Warrior mentality prevailed within Kaw culture so most men were trained in the art of war. While the Pawnees were the Kaws' principal enemy, the tribe also fought with the Iowas, Otoes, Kiowas, Comanches, Cheyennes, Osages, and the Sac and Fox tribe. The use of horses allowed the Kaws to travel great distances leading to more frequent interaction among the tribes. Boys and young men were trained early to defend the tribe against enemy attacks. Feuding and raiding between neighboring tribes was commonplace and stealing other tribes' horses was viewed as a legitimate way of acquiring wealth. The presence of European fur traders heightened tensions between tribes due to increased trade competition. Ne-Ca-Que-ba-na, meaning The One Who Runs Down Men, was a legendary Kaw warrior who was said to have once captured 150 horses, then distributed them to three Kaw chiefs.

Unidentified Kaw man, 1870 Kaw women looked after the children of the tribe and played a more domestic role than the men. Women were in charge of drying meat for preservation as well as dressing bison robes and other animal skins. They planted, tended and harvested crops of corn, beans, pumpkins, potatoes and squash and foraged for nuts, berries and roots to supplement their diet. In addition to processing and storing food, women also cooked all meals and would often accompany the men on bison hunts.

The task of making clothing for the tribe also fell to the women. They would use animal skins decorated with porcupine quills and later, beadwork. Both men and women wore deerskin moccasins and leggings. Men wore blue or red breech-cloths held on with a girdle. Women wore a coarse cloth secured at the waist with the belt and sometimes a shoulder garment. While women wore their hair in long braids, men wore their hair in a narrow strip on the top of their heads and would pluck their arm and chin hair, as well as their eyebrows. Both sexes would often tint their hair with vermilion, but men might also wear eagle tail feathers on their heads as well as display beads, tin trinkets or porcelain sticks in their ears. Many men also wore tattoos.

Children learned their roles in Kaw society from a very early age. Girls learned domestic skills from their mothers and grandmothers. Between the ages of 10 and 12, a Kaw girl could carry a 100-pound load of firewood on her back for up to nine miles. Kaw boys were seldom disciplined. The Kaws believed this would help them grow up to be more aggressive warriors. Adolescent boys would go on a vision quest around the ages of 12 or 13 where they would venture into the wilderness alone, without food or water, for four days. The visions of animals and supernatural phenomena experienced on his quest would help determine how the boy would identify himself. These visions would be painted on war shields and teepee covers.


(Return to the top of the page)

 Customs and Beliefs
The family structure, particularly marriage, was influenced by the division of the tribal camping circle. Containing 16 clans, the circle would be split into two sides. Lineage was traced through the male and no Kaw man could take a wife from a clan on his side of the tribal circle. Men did practice polygamy, most commonly with a wife's sisters. Divorce was acceptable, but had to be reached by mutual agreement. Both men and women were free to marry again.

The way the Kaw lived changed as the tribe moved west and separated from the larger Dhegiha Siouan tribe. The physical structure of the Kaw home evolved as the tribe migrated. The early Kaw lodges built in the Ohio River valley were constructed of a pole frame covered with a thick mat of leaves, bark and branches. Their dwellings on the Plains incorporated wood and earth for the lower structure. Bison and deer hides covered the pole frame to provide shelter. Teepees were used during the twice yearly hunting expeditions as temporary housing.

Kaw living on reservation near Council Grove The Kaws worshiped and paid homage to Waucondah, meaning the Great Spirit. Rather than being viewed as a separate entity, Waucondah existed as a quality manifest in all things natural. The natural world represented their Creator and thus commanded the Kaws' ultimate respect.

In addition to the Great Spirit, the Kaws offered prayer songs to 27 lesser deities using a cloth prayer chart. Music and dance were a dominant part of Kaw spiritual and celebratory life. Animal hide drums and deer's foot rattles kept the rhythmic beats while lively chants and instrumental accompaniment created the melodies. Both men and women participated in dancing, but women were commonly the song-makers. Seventeen different dances in all have been identified. Various themed dances were held-family, thanksgiving, medicine, track finding, hide, calumet, war and death being the most popular.

The Kaw established elaborate funeral practices and mourning customs. Women would prepare bodies by painting the face and covering the body with bark and a buffalo robe. The body of the deceased might have been buried in a shallow grave facing east, believed to be a life-giving orientation. Other bodies were buried in a seated position, facing west, with their arms crossed and knees flexed. The worldly possessions of the deceased person would be buried in a separate pit. Garments, weapons, utensils, pipes and food would help the person along their journey into the afterlife. The spirits of the deceased were believed to travel to a spirit village, often thought to be located at or near the previous site of the Kaw village.

Men and women mourning the loss of a loved one publicly displayed their grief. Women would fast, scarify their face and hands and often covered their bodies with clay. After one year of mourning, women were free to marry whomever they chose. However, it was not uncommon for a Kaw woman to marry her husband's oldest brother if he had one. The mourning process for men was longer, up to 18 months. They fasted from sunrise to sunset, scarified their bodies and rubbed mud on their faces. For the tribe as a whole, the death of a warrior often meant an expedition against a tribal enemy in order to place the Kaw, rather than the enemy, on equal footing with the Great Spirit.

(Return to the top of the page)
Learning about our Tribal Nations
Native American Heritage Museum As part of the bicentennial commemoration in Kansas, the Native Cultures Subcommittee of the Bicentennial Commission has produced a Native American Cultures Resource Handbook that includes information on cultural protocol and communications, Native American contacts and information on Kansas tribes. The committee has partnered with The Brown Foundation to produce a Native American edition of "The Brown Quarterly" newsletter. Their Tribe-specific Native American Heritage Boxes will be ready by April 2004 and can be used by Kansas schools.

Find more information on educational programs and specific information on the Heritage Boxes.

To learn about Kansas' historic tribes and the four resident tribes, visit these web sites:
Native American Resource Handbook

To request a copy of the Native American Resource Handbook contact the Kansas Lewis & Clark Bicentennial Commission, email: kslewisandclark@charter.net

See an updated history of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska

Print an updated history of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska

(Return to the top of the page)

Interactive Trail | Kansas Attractions | News and Events
Tribal Nations | Education | About Us | Related Links