Indigenous civilization in present-day Southern Plains
The
Caddoan Mississippian culture
was a prehistoric
Native American
culture considered by archaeologists as a variant of the
Mississippian culture
.
[1]
The Caddoan Mississippians covered a large territory, including what is now Eastern
Oklahoma
, Western
Arkansas
, Northeast
Texas
, Southwest
Missouri
and Northwest
Louisiana
of the United States.
Archaeological evidence has established that the cultural continuity is unbroken from prehistory to the present. The speakers of
Caddo
and related
Caddoan languages
in prehistoric times and at first European contact have been proved to be the direct ancestors of the modern
Caddo Nation of Oklahoma
.
[2]
Description
[
edit
]
Development
[
edit
]
The Caddoan Mississippians are thought to be descendants of
Woodland period
groups, the
Fourche Maline culture
and
Mossy Grove culture
peoples who were living in the area around 200 BCE to 800 CE.
[3]
They were linked to other peoples across much of the
Eastern Woodlands
through expansive
trade networks
. During this time period, pottery making was introduced to them by peoples to their East, and by 500 CE the bow and arrow from peoples of the Southwest.
By 800 CE early Caddoan society began to coalesce into one of the earlier Mississippian cultures. Some villages began to gain prominence as ritual centers. Workers were organized to build earthwork
platform mounds
, often used for temples, in addition to building elite residences and constructions. The mounds were arranged around large, constructed, open and level
plazas
. These were usually kept swept clean and were often used for ceremonial occasions involving large groups of people. As complex religious and social ideas developed, some people and family lineages gained prominence over others. This hierarchical structure is marked in the archaeological record by the appearance of large tombs with exotic grave offerings of obvious symbols of authority and prestige.
[3]
By 1000 CE a society now known as "Caddoan" had emerged. This included the increased prominence of ritual centers and the development of a more stratified social hierarchy, with some lineage and kin groups exerting more control over the community. The tomb burials of people thought to be leaders were accompanied by elaborate grave goods, as noted above. In addition, there were sacrificial "retainer" deaths and burials of both family members and followers at the death of such leaders.
[3]
Major sites such as
Spiro
and the
Battle Mound Site
were constructed in the
Arkansas River
Valley and the
Red River
Valley, respectively. As the largest and most fertile areas in the Caddoan region, these areas could support the most productive maize agriculture. Agricultural surpluses supported the growth of the dense populations of such major centers.
[4]
By 1200 CE, the numerous villages, hamlets, and farmsteads established throughout the Caddo world had begun extensive
maize
agriculture.
[3]
The Caddoans also developed a distinct type of pottery making. It was described in 1540 by members of the
Hernando de Soto expedition
as some of the finest they had seen, even in their homeland of Spain.
Since the late 20th century, recent excavations have revealed more cultural diversity within the region than had been expected by scholars, particularly in sites along the Arkansas River. Caddoan Mississippian towns had a more irregular layout of earthen mounds and associated villages than did towns in the Middle Mississippian heartland to the East, along the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. They also lacked the wooden
palisade
defensive fortifications often found in the major Middle Mississippian towns.
Living on the western edge of the Mississippian world, the Caddoans may have faced fewer military threats from other peoples. Their societies may also have had a somewhat lower level of
social stratification
. Their location at the western edge of the Eastern Woodlands may account for these differences. Because the climate west of the woodlands was drier, it hindered maize production and related populations. The lower population on the plains to the West may have meant the Caddoans did not have to compete with many neighboring chiefdoms.
[4]
But Caddoan populations peaked around 1400 CE, for reasons that are still unclear. After this point, many ritual centers begin to decline in population. A more dispersed settlement system developed, with the bulk of the people living on scattered homesteads and small farms rather than in large villages. The earlier broad cultural unity of the area also began to break down, with many distinct local variations developing.
[3]
Trade
[
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]
Caddoan Mississippian peoples were connected to the larger Mississippian world to the East and other cultures to the Southwest by trade networks that spanned the North American continent. Artifacts found in "The Great Mortuary" (Craig Mound) at the Spiro site included colored
flint
from New Mexico, copper from the
Great Lakes
area, conch (or
lightning whelk
) shells from the
Gulf Coast
, and
mica
from the Carolinas.
[5]
Other materials from trade included wood,
basketry
, woven fabric, lace, fur, feathers, and carved
stone statues
. Some artifacts came from as far away as
Cahokia
in present-day
Illinois
,
Etowah
and
Ocmulgee
in
Georgia
, and
Moundville
in
Alabama
. Many featured the elaborate symbolism of the
Southeastern Ceremonial Complex
, a multiregional and pan-linguistic trade and religious network.
Archaeological finds, as well as later Spanish records, also indicate that Caddoan peoples had contact with southwestern groups such as the
Jumanos
and
Puebloans
, with whom they traded for
turquoise
and cotton fabrics.
[6]
The Spiro site is the only Mississippian site where an artifact from
Mesoamerica
has been found. This is a piece of black
obsidian
from
Mexico
, which likely reached this site through Caddoan Mississippian trade with peoples to the Southwest.
[7]
Using these valued materials, Mississippian artists created exquisite works of art expressing their
cultural identity
and their complex spiritual beliefs.
Language
[
edit
]
The Caddoan Mississippians were speakers of many Caddoan languages.
[2]
The Caddoan languages once had a broad geographic distribution, but many are now extinct. The modern languages in the Caddoan family include
Caddo
and
Pawnee
, which were spoken by historic tribes of the area. Both are now spoken mainly by tribal elders.
Sites
[
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]
European contact and relations with United States
[
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]
When the Spanish
conquistador
Hernando de Soto
led an expedition into the southeastern region of North America in the 1540s, his party
encountered Native American groups
recorded as the
Naguatex
,
Nishone
,
Hacanac
, and
Nondacao
. These names are now believed to have referred to
Caddo
villages.
It is estimated that in 1520, the many tribes of people numbered about 250,000.
[13]
Over the next 250 years the population of these Caddoan-speaking peoples was severely reduced by epidemics of
infectious diseases
inadvertently brought by Spanish and French colonists and spread by indigenous trading networks. Sometime after the coming of the Europeans, the Caddo organized into three confederacies?the
Natchitoches
,
Hasinai
, and the
Kadohadacho
. All Caddoans were linked together by a common language.
[
citation needed
]
In the early 19th century, under the
Indian Removal Act
the United States forced the Caddo to cede their lands and move to
Indian Territory
. European Americans were eager to settle in the fertile river valleys of their territory. Later they were required to accept allotment of their communal lands, prior to the admission of Oklahoma as a state in 1907.
Caddo today
[
edit
]
The Caddo Nation of Oklahoma (previously known as the Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma) reorganized and set up a constitutional government in the 20th century and is a
federally recognized tribe
. A tribal constitution provides for an elected tribal council of eight members with a chairperson. The tribe is based in
Binger, Oklahoma
.
[14]
The tribal complex, dance grounds, and the Caddo Heritage Museum are located south of Binger.
In 2008, a total of 5000 people were enrolled in the tribe, and 2500 of these live in the state of Oklahoma. The tribe operates its own housing authority and issues its own tribal vehicle tags.
[15]
They maintain administrative centers, dance grounds, several community centers, and an active
NAGPRA
office.
The Caddo have established several programs to invigorate Caddo traditions. The tribe sponsors a summer culture camp for children.
[16]
The Hasinai Society
[17]
and Caddo Culture Club.
[18]
Both keep Caddo songs and dances alive. The Kiwat Hasinay Foundation is dedicated to preserving the Caddo language.
[19]
See also
[
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]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Peregrine, Peter N.
(1995).
Archaeology of the Mississippian culture: a research guide
.
Garland Publishing
. p.
165
.
ISBN
978-0-8153-0336-7
.
- ^
a
b
"Tejas-Caddo Fundamentals-Caddoan Languages and Peoples"
. Archived from
the original
on 2020-06-14
. Retrieved
2010-02-04
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
"Tejas-Caddo Fundamentals-Caddo Timeline"
. Retrieved
2010-02-04
.
- ^
a
b
"Tejas-Caddo Fundamentals-Mississippian World"
. Archived from
the original
on 2010-01-21
. Retrieved
2010-02-04
.
- ^
"Spiro Mounds-A Ceremonial Center of the Southern Cult"
. Archived from
the original
on 11 June 2011
. Retrieved
8 September
2013
.
- ^
Foster, William C. (17 February 2009).
Historic Native Peoples of Texas
. Univ of TX + ORM.
ISBN
978-0-292-79461-0
.
OCLC
1289763912
.
- ^
Pauketat, Timothy R.
(2004).
Ancient Cahokia and the Mississippians
.
Cambridge University Press
.
ISBN
978-0-521-52066-9
.
- ^
"Locality information for Faunmap locality Belcher Mound, LA"
. Archived from
the original
on 2011-08-20
. Retrieved
2010-02-22
.
- ^
"The Caddo Indians of Louisiana"
. Archived from
the original
on 2009-11-09
. Retrieved
2010-02-22
.
- ^
"Historical-Belcher"
. Archived from
the original
on February 20, 2021
. Retrieved
2010-02-22
.
- ^
"History of the Ouachita Mountains"
. Archived from
the original
on 2009-06-28
. Retrieved
2010-02-23
.
- ^
"Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects in the Possession of the Louisiana State University Museum"
. Retrieved
2010-02-22
.
- ^
Juliana Barr,
Peace Came in the Form of a Woman: Indians and Spaniards in the Texas Borderlands
(Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2007) p. 20
- ^
Constitution and By-Laws of the Caddo Indian Tribe of Oklahoma.
Archived
2013-06-30 at
archive.today
National Tribal Justice Resource Center
. (retrieved 13 September 2009)
- ^
Oklahoma Indian Affairs Commission.
2008 Pocket Pictorial
Archived
April 6, 2010, at the
Wayback Machine
. Page 5 (retrieved 13 Sept 2009)
- ^
Hasinai Summer Youth Camp.
Archived
2009-01-05 at the
Wayback Machine
Hasinai Society.
2008 (retrieved 13 Sept 2009)
- ^
General Information.
Archived
2009-01-05 at the
Wayback Machine
Hasinai Society.
2008 (retrieved 13 Sept 2009)
- ^
Edge, Donald.
Caddo Culture Club.
Archived
2009-07-04 at the
Wayback Machine
Caddo Nation: Heritage and Culture.
(retrieved 13 Sept 2009)
- ^
Background.
Kiwat Hasinay Foundation.
(retrieved 13 Sept 2009)
External links
[
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]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Caddo
.
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