Description
This course examines the history and culture of the Arikara from pre-contact, through contact, to the present. Through the letters, reports, writings, and journals of early explorers, traders, merchants, and missionaries, and through the oral literature and teachings of the Arikara, the course will explore the Arikara way of life and the subsequent changes wrought by the immigrations of other people to Arikara territory. The Seven Societies of the Arikara and their importance to the Arikara culture will be explored. The Earth Lodge as a symbol of the extended family and a woman's power of ownership will be examined, as will the economically beneficial agrarian practices of the Arikara women.