Texas And S.W. We stayed back there [in the swamp] as long as there was hostility to us. The flood waters never reached the top and people could camp up there and be safe. Such groups as the Akokisas and Deadoses lived west of the lower Neches River, while the Atakapas proper occupied the territory east of the . . Can you talk more about the different clans that you mentioned on the map and the places they belong to? [21][33], The men made their tools for hunting and fishing: bows and arrows, fish spears with bone-tipped points, and flint-tipped spears. Today its cloudy with pollution and you dont want to get that nasty water on you. [31] It is believed that most Western Atakapa tribes or subdivisions were decimated by the 1850s, mainly from infectious disease[31] and poverty. William Byrd Powell (17991867), a medical doctor and physiologist, regarded the Atakapan as cannibals. They would come by and shoot into our house and we were roughed up at school. Europeans encountered the Choctaw first during their exploration, and adopted their name for this people to the west. I have been living with these people for about eleven years; I am happy and satisfied here, and have not the least desire to return to Europe. The Atakapan people were made up of several bands. Louis LeClerc Milfort, a Frenchman who spent 20 years living with and traveling among the Muscogee (Creek), came upon the Atakapa in 1781 during his travels. Over the next 300 years the bands of the Attakapas were being constantly pushed from their camps and old hunting grounds by the explorers, other tribes . The French historian Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz lived in Louisiana from 1718 to 1734. Share. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. Evidence indicates that the Hans people, whom lvar Nez Cabeza de Vaca encountered in 1528, may have been part of the Atakapan group. Zydeco, the good time dance is their gift to our country. Sturtevant, William C., general editor and Raymond D. Fogelson, volume editor. Weve been here several thousand years. It is believed that the Atakapans or Atakapas practiced cannibalism on their defeated enemies. In the summer, families moved to the coast. The Atakapan people were made up of several bands. [38] The Atakapas Ishak Nation of Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana unsuccessfully petitioned the US federal government for recognition on February 2, 2007. The city of Lafayette, Louisiana, is planning a series of trails, funded by the Federal Highway Administration, to be called the "Atakapa-Ishak Trail". It is located adjacent to Highways 190 and 111 at the junction. Relics of Atakapa-Ishak names include Anacoco, Calcasieu, Carencro, Lacassine, Mamou, Mermentau, Opelousas, Teche and others. Those on the upper coast inhabited the land to perhaps a distance of several weeks walk. Join us now: For tribes, for nature, for all humanity . Extra Fun Facts - They used alligator oil for insect repelant - They used bark for baby carriers and spanish moss for diapers - They worshiped the sun It is believed that most Western Atakapa tribes or subdivisions were decimated by the 1850s, mainly from infectious disease and poverty. Back to Native American websites for kids They depended on the labor of Black enslaved people to keep the plantations operating. Atakapa is an ethnic slur from the Choctaw language meaning "cannibal". She is a board member for the Native American Journalist Association. [31] Armojean Reon (ca. sun worship among the tribes of the Gulf Coast. The homes of chiefs and medicine men were erected on earthwork mounds made by several previous cultures including the Mississippian. Shortly after that a rival Indian tribe, the Appalousa (Opelousas), coming from the area between the Atchafalaya and Sabine rivers, exterminated the Eastern Atakapa. Customarily, a father would rename himself at the birth of his first son or if the son became famous. It is more clearly defined as part of the Atakapa foot trails in the Atakapas homeland that reached as far up as parts of present-day Natchitoches, Rapides, and Sabine Parishes and parishes lying along all the S.E. The people put alligator oil on exposed skin to repel mosquitoes. The Lewis and Clark expedition encountered the Plateau Yakama tribe during their explorations in 1806. Protests where I grew upwhere lynchings and KKK marches have occurred in my lifetimecould signal a shift in the region long plagued by racial terror. Meat was served to my entire detachment; and during the time of about six hours that I remained with this man, I learned that he was a European; that he had been aJesuit; and that having gone into Mexico, these people had chosen him as their chief. He told me: You see here about one-half of the Atakapas Nation; the other half is farther on. Its like theyre trying to wipe us off the map and forget we ever existed. They left behind breathtaking buildings and mysterious graves. Genealogy,