Chickasaw Nation facts for kids

Quick facts for kids The Chickasaw Nation Chikashsha I̠yaakni' (Chickasaw)
Indian reservation
Flag Seal
Location (red) in the U.S. state of Oklahoma
Constitution	August 30, 1856; 168 years ago (1856-08-30)
Capital	Tishomingo, Oklahoma (Historically); now Ada, Oklahoma (1907-present)
Area
• Total	7,648 sq mi (19,810 km2)
Population  (2010)
• Total	38,000
Demonym(s)	Chickasaw
Time zone	UTC−06:00 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−05:00 (CDT)
Area code(s)	580, 405 and 572

The Chickasaw Nation (Chickasaw: Chikashsha I̠yaakni) is a federally recognized Native American tribe with headquarters in Ada, Oklahoma, in the United States. They are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, originally from northern Mississippi, northwestern Alabama, southwestern Kentucky, and western Tennessee. Today, the Chickasaw Nation is the 13th largest tribe in the United States.

The nation's jurisdictional territory and reservation includes about 7,648 square miles of south-central Oklahoma, including Bryan, Carter, Coal, Garvin, Grady, Jefferson, Johnston, Love, McClain, Marshall, Murray, Pontotoc, and Stephens counties.

These counties are separated into four districts, the Pontotoc, Pickens, Tishomingo, and Panola, with relatively equal populations. Their population today is estimated to be over 70,000, with the majority residing in the state of Oklahoma.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, European Americans considered the Chickasaw one of the historic Five Civilized Tribes, along with the Cherokee, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole nations, due to their agrarian culture and later adoption of centralized governments with written constitutions, intermarriages with white settlers, literacy, Christianity, market participation, and slave holding.

The Chickasaw language, Chikashshanompa’, belongs to the Muskogean language family. This is primarily an oral language, with no historic written component. A significant part of their culture is passed on to each generation through their oral history, consisting of intergenerational stories that speak to the tribe’s legacy and close relationship with the Choctaw. The similarities in the language of the Chickasaw and the Choctaw have prompted anthropologists to propose a number of theories regarding the origins of the Chickasaw Nation, as it continues to remain uncertain.

Clans within the Chickasaw Nation are separated into two moieties: the Imosak chá'a' and the Inchokka' Lhipa', with each clan having their own leaders. Their tradition of matrilineal descent provides the basic societal structure of the nation, with children becoming members of and under the care of their mother’s clan.

History

Hernando de Soto is credited as being the first European to contact the Chickasaw, during his travels of 1540. He discovered them to have an agrarian society with a sophisticated governmental system, complete with their own laws and religion. They lived in towns.

The Chickasaw remained in their homelands of western Tennessee and northern Mississippi until the 1830s. After decades of increasing pressure to cede their land from the Federal and state governments, the Chickasaw finally agreed to cede their remaining Mississippi Homeland in the Treaty of Pontotoc Creek and relocate west to Indian Territory.

Map of Chickasaw Nation, 1891

During Indian removal of the 1830s, the United States government first assigned the Chickasaw to a part of Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River controlled by the Choctaw Nation; their area in the western area of the nation was called the Chickasaw District. It consisted of Panola, Wichita, Caddo, and Perry counties.

Although originally the western boundary of the Choctaw Nation extended to the 100th meridian, virtually no Chickasaw lived west of the Cross Timbers, due to continual raiding by the Plains Indians of the southern region. The United States eventually leased the area between the 100th and 98th meridians for the use of the Plains tribes. The area was referred to as the "Leased District".".

The division of the Choctaw Nation was ratified by the Choctaw–Chickasaw Treaty of 1854. The Chickasaw constitution establishing the nation as separate from the Choctaws, was signed August 30, 1856, in the new capitol of Tishomingo (now Tishomingo, Oklahoma). The first Chickasaw governor was Cyrus Harris. The nation consisted of five divisions; Tishomingo County, Pontotoc County, Pickens County, and Ponola County. Law enforcement was by the Chickasaw Lighthorsemen, although non-Indians fell under the jurisdiction of the Federal court at Fort Smith.

Following the Civil War, the United States forced the Chickasaw into new peace treaties because of the support of many of the Five Civilized Tribes for the Confederacy. Under the new treaty, the Chickasaw (and Choctaw) ceded the "Leased District" to the United States. In 1868, the Chickasaw Montford T. Johnson, with Jesse Chisholm's help, secured an agreement with the Plains tribes to establish a ranch on the new western edge of the Nation. His ranch was never raided, although often threatened. He and his family remained the only permanent residents of the area until the settlement of Oklahoma after it was admitted as a state.

Under the Dawes Act, the Chickasaw nation was dissolved, with government functions transferred to the federal government before statehood, by agreement negotiated with the Dawes Commission. Following the breakup of the nation, the Chickasaw became citizens of the United States. The US allotted the communal land in plots for individual households of registered members. Land left over was declared "surplus" and made available for sale to non-Indians, so they lost much of their tribal lands.

In the second half of the 20th century, the Chickasaw reorganized their tribal government. They adopted a new constitution on August 27, 1983 to manage their business affairs.

Culture

Language

Chikashshanompa’, a traditionally oral language, is the primary and official language of the Chickasaw Nation. Over 3,000 years old, Chikashshanompa’ is part of the Muskogean language family and is very similar to the Choctaw language. There has been a great decline over the years in the number of speakers, as the language is spoken by less than two hundred people today, with the majority being Chickasaw elders. The Chickasaw language was often discouraged in students attending school (often even including tribally run schools).

In 2007, the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma enacted and began promoting the Chickasaw Language Revitalization Program. A focus of this program is the Master Apprentice Program, which pairs a language-learning student with an individual already fluent in Chikashshanompa’ in attempts to gain conversational fluency. Other attempts at language revitalization have included establishing university language courses, creating a language learning app, and running youth language clubs.

Religion and cultural practice

At the core of Chickasaw religious beliefs and traditions is the supreme deity Aba' Binni'li' (lit. the One sitting / dwelling above), the spirit of fire and giver of life, light, and warmth. Aba' Binni'li' is believed to live above the clouds along with a number of other lesser deities, such as the spirits of the sky and clouds, and evil spirits.

The Chickasaw Nation follows the traditional monogamous marriage system, with the groom obtaining the blessings of the wife’s parents and following with a simple ceremony soon after. Marriage ceremonies were all arranged by women. ..... As the Chickasaws practice matrilineal descent, children usually follow their mother’s house or clan name.

The Green Corn Festival is one of the largest and most important ceremonies of the Chickasaw Nation. This religious festival takes place in the latter half of summer, lasting two to eight days. It serves as a religious renewal in addition to thanksgiving, as all members of the tribe give thanks for the year’s corn harvest and pray to Aba' Binni'li'. Major events held during the celebration include a two-day fast, a purification ceremony, the forgiveness of minor sins, the Stomp Dance (the most well-known traditional dances of the Chickasaw), and major ball games.

Economy

The Chickasaw Nation operates more than 100 diversified businesses in a variety of services and industries, including manufacturing, energy, health care, media, technology, hospitality, retail and tourism. Among these are Bedré Fine Chocolate in Davis, Lazer Zone Family Fun Center and the McSwain Theatre in Ada; The Artesian Hotel in Sulphur; Chickasaw Nation Industries in Norman; Global Gaming Solutions, LLC; KADA (AM), KADA-FM, KCNP, KTLS, KXFC, and KYKC radio stations in Ada; and Treasure Valley Inn and Suites in Davis. In 1987, with funding from the U.S. federal government, the Chickasaw Nation operated just over thirty programs with the goal of developing a firm financial base. Today, the nation has more than two hundred tribally funded programs and more than sixty federally funded programs providing services in sectors such as housing, education, entertainment, employment, and healthcare.

Governor Anoatubby highly prioritizes the services available to the Chickasaw people. Two health clinics (in Tishomingo and Ardmore), as well as the Chickasaw Nation Medical Center in Ada, were established in 1987. Not long after, many additional health clinics and facilities opened, with even a convenient housing facility on the campus of the Chickasaw Nation Medical Center designed to relieve families and patients of travel and lodging costs if traveling far from home.

Increases in higher education funding and scholarships have enabled many students to pursue higher education, with funding increasing from $200,000 thirty years ago to students receiving more than $15 million in scholarships, grants, and other educational support.

The Chickasaw Nation is also contributing heavily to the tourism industry in Oklahoma. In 2010, the Chickasaw Cultural Center opened, attracting more than 200,000 visitors from around the world as well as providing hundreds of employment opportunities to local residents. In this year alone, the Chickasaw Nation also opened a Welcome Center, Artesian Hotel, Chickasaw Travel Shop, Chickasaw Conference Center and Retreat, Bedré Fine Chocolate Factory, and the Salt Creek Casino.

In 2002, the Chickasaw Nation purchased Bank2 with headquarters in Oklahoma City. It was renamed 'Chickasaw Community Bank' in January 2020. It started with $7.5 million in assets and has grown to $135 million in assets today. The Chickasaw Nation also operates many historical sites and museums, including the Chickasaw Nation Capitols and Kullihoma Grounds, as well as a number of casinos. Their casinos include Ada Gaming Center, Artesian Casino, Black Gold Casino, Border Casino, Chisholm Trail Casino, Gold Mountain Casino, Goldsby Gaming Center, Jet Stream Casino, Madill Gaming Center, Newcastle Casino, Newcastle Travel Gaming, RiverStar Casino, Riverwind Casino, Treasure Valley Casino, Texoma Casino, SaltCreek Casino, Washita Casino, and WinStar World Casino. They also own Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, and Remington Park Casino in Oklahoma City. The estimated annual tribal economic impact in the region from all sources is more than $3.18 billion.

Notable people