Who Were the Kiowa?

 

→ How do you pronounce the word "Kiowa"? What does it mean?
Kiowa is pronounced "kye-oh-wuh." It is an English corruption of their own tribal name, Gaigwu.

→ Where do the Kiowas live?
The Kiowa Indians are original people of Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. The Kiowa tribe was forced to move to a reservation in Oklahoma during the 1800's, and most Kiowa people are still living in Oklahoma today.

→ How is the Kiowa Indian nation organized?
          The Kiowa Nation has its own government, laws, police, and services, just like a small country. However, the Kiowas are also US citizens and must obey American law. In the past, each Kiowa band was led by a chief, who was usually a respected warrior chosen by a tribal council. Today, the Kiowa tribe is governed by councilmembers who are elected by all the tribal members.

→ What language do the Kiowa Indians speak?
          Most Kiowa people speak English today. However, many Kiowas, especially elders, also speak their native Kiowa language. If you'd like to know an easy Kiowa word, "Hacho" (pronounced hah-choh) is a friendly greeting.
          Today Kiowa is an endangered language because most children aren't learning it anymore. However, some Kiowa people are working to keep their language alive.

→ How do Kiowa Indian children live, and what did they do in the past?
          They do the same things all children do--play with each other, go to school and help around the house. Many Kiowa children like to go hunting and fishing with their fathers. In the past, Indian kids had more chores and less time to play in their daily lives, just like colonial children. But they did have dolls, toys, and games to play. Here is a picture of a hoop game played by Plains Indian kids. Kiowa children also enjoyed running a footrace and swimming in a creek or lake. A Kiowa mother traditionally carried a young child in a cradleboard on her back.

→ What were men and women's roles in the Kiowa tribe?
          Kiowa women were in charge of the home. Besides cooking and cleaning, a Kiowa woman built her family's house and dragged the heavy posts with her whenever the tribe moved. Houses belonged to the women in the Kiowa tribe. Men were hunters and warriors, responsible for feeding and defending their families. Usually only men became Kiowa chiefs, but both genders took part in storytelling, artwork and music, and traditional medicine.

→ What were Kiowa homes like in the past?
          The Kiowa Indians lived in large buffalo-hide tents called tipis (or teepees). Tipis were carefully designed to set up and break down quickly. An entire Kiowa village could be packed up and ready to move within an hour. Originally tipis were only about 12 feet high, but after the Kiowas acquired horses, they began building them twice that size.

What was Kiowa clothing like? Did the Kiowas wear feather headdresses and face paint?
          Kiowa women wore long deerskin dresses painted with yellow and green tribal designs.. Kiowa men wore breechcloths and leather leggings, and usually went shirtless. The Kiowas wore moccasins on their feet, and in cold weather, they wore long buffalo-hide robes. Later, Kiowa people adapted European costume such as cloth dresses and vests, which they decorated with fringes, ribbons, and fancy beading. Here is a site with pictures of Kiowa outfits, and some photos and links about Indian clothes in general.
          Kiowa Indian men didn't wear feather war bonnets like the Sioux. Sometimes they wore turban-like hats made of otter pelts. Traditionally, Kiowa people only cut their hair when they were in mourning. Kiowa men wore their hair in braids, sometimes with a forelock or pompadour in front. Sometimes they wrapped their braids in fur. Here is a website with pictures of Native American braids. Kiowa women wore their hair either loose or braided and wore tribal tattoos on their foreheads. The Kiowas also painted their faces for special occasions. They used different patterns for war paint, religious ceremonies, and festive decoration.

→ What was Kiowa transportation like in the days before cars? Did they paddle canoes?
          No--the Kiowa Indians weren't coastal people, and when they traveled by river, they usually built rafts. Over land, the Kiowas used dogs pulling travois (a kind of drag sled) to help them carry their belongings. Here is a website about Native American dog travois. There were no horses in North America until colonists brought them over from Europe.

→ What was Kiowa food like in the days before supermarkets?
          The Kiowa staple food was buffalo. Kiowa men usually hunted the buffalo by driving them off cliffs or stalking them with bow and arrow. As they acquired horses, the Kiowa tribe began to pursue the buffalo herds for communal hunts, moving their villages often as the buffalo migrated. In addition to buffalo meat, the Kiowa Indians ate small game like birds and rabbits, wild potatos, fruits, and nuts. Though the Kiowas didn't do much farming, corn was also part of their diet. They got corn by trading with neighboring tribes.

→ What were Kiowa weapons and tools like in the past?
          Kiowa hunters used bows and arrows. In war, Kiowa men fired their bows or fought with war clubs and hide shields.

→ What other Native Americans did the Kiowa tribe interact with?
          The Kiowas traded regularly with other tribes of the Great Plains and the Western Plateau. They particularly liked to trade buffalo hides and meat to farming tribes like the Mandan and Pueblo Indians in exchange for corn. These tribes usually communicated using the Plains Sign Language.
          The Kiowas also fought wars with other tribes. Plains Indian tribes treated war differently than European countries did. They didn't fight over territory but instead to prove their courage, and so Plains Indian war parties rarely fought to the death or destroyed each other's villages. Instead, their war customs included counting coup (touching an opponent in battle without harming him), stealing an enemy's weapon or horse, or forcing the other tribe's warriors to retreat. Some tribes the Kiowas frequently fought with included the Osage and Sioux.

→ What are Kiowa arts and crafts like?
          Kiowa artists are famous for their Indian beadwork, hide paintings, and parfleche (decorated rawhide containers.)