10/06/2025
Happy Monday! 😀 IT'S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES ' DAY!🏹
Author | C. Knighten
Source | Google's AI
Growing up with a father in the military🪖...we hopped from base to base all over the United States. From the Mid-West, East Coast, to the South West....I have lived all over this country and even abroad when I was 3. I don't remember much of Germany, to be honest....bits and pieces. The point of sharing that is to explain, that in all of those places I had never experienced prejudice until I moved to the South. It is a sad way to live, in my opinion.....liking or disliking someone based on the color of their skin. Never making the effort to know them....who they are or what they are about?
I share that to say, that yes, I am Native Indian....or Native American as many state today. My preference is I am an American with Native Indian heritage. My mother's heritage was Cherokee, Choctaw and Chickasaw, yes an interesting combination. My father., however, was English.....traveling over to escape English rule and leaving behind a family crest. Sadly, I have no proof....other than pictures of my great grandparents. They worked diligently to look and behave as if they were white.... to adapt to the white mans' world and not stand out as natives. Can you imagine giving up your heritage to blend in.....today??
INDIGENOUS TRIBES OFTHE UNITED STATES:
There are hundreds of Indigenous tribes native to the United States, including large and well-known groups like the Cherokee, Navajo, Sioux, Choctaw, Blackfeet, Apache, and Haudenosaunee (Iroquois). Each of these diverse communities have their own unique cultures, languages, and histories, and are often categorized by their historical geographical regions such as the Northeast, Southeast, Plains, Southwest, Plateau, Pacific Northwest, and California.
NATIVE TRIBES BY REGION:
🪶Northeastern Woodlands: Tribes like the Wampanoag, Iroquois (Haudenosaunee), and Shawnee have a historical connection to this area.
🪶Southeastern Woodlands: This region is home to the Creek, Cherokee, Choctaw, and Seminole nations, who are historically known as the "Five Civilized Tribes".
🪶Plains: The Plains region includes numerous tribes from the Sioux (including the Lakota), Cheyenne, and Arapaho.
🪶Southwest: Tribes in the Southwest include the Navajo (Diné), Apache, Pueblo peoples, and Hopi.
🪶Pacific Northwest: This area is characterized by tribes such as the Makah and the Chinook.
🪶California: Tribes in this region include the Chumash, Paiute, and Hoopa.
RESOURCES FOR IN DEPTH INFORMATION:
Given the vast number of tribes, it's not possible to list them all here, but you can Because of the vast numbers of tribes....a post cannot contain it all, here are better resources for your reference.
🪶First Nations Development Institute: Provides a list of various tribes.
🪶U.S. Department of the Interior (BIA): The Bureau of Indian Affairs lists federally recognized tribes.
🪶Native American Cultures in the United States on Wikipedia: Offers detailed classifications of tribes by cultural area.
My granny and her sisters....who could of applied and been accepted onto one of the tribes Rolls. however they, too were afraid of the discrimination that identifying their heritage might cause. Sigh....it is sad....sad that people would choose to give up their heritage, so others would not be prejudice against them and simply see them a human beings?!
For all of the technology and advancements we have made.....we have yet to bring down the walls the create prejudice.....we have yet to leap over them and pass them up and simply treat each other with true kindness.....understanding and intelligence. I pray that someday we can achieve this .....because we will always be better together!
Have a great day and wonderful week!😀
