The Nabedache were a Native American tribe from eastern Texas.Sturtevant, 617 Their name, Nabáydácu, means "blackberry place" in the

Caddo language Caddo is a Native American language, the traditional language of the Caddo Nation. It is critically endangered, with no exclusively Caddo-speaking community and only 25 speakers as of 1997 who acquired the language as children outside school ins ...

.Sturtevant, 629 An alternate theory says their original name was Wawadishe from the Caddo word, , meaning "salt."Nabedache Indian Tribe.
''Access Genealogy.'' (retrieved 11 Sept 2009)

History

The Nabedache was the western branch of the

Hasinai The Hasinai Confederacy (Caddo: ) was a large confederation of Caddo-speaking Native Americans who occupied territory between the Sabine and Trinity rivers in eastern Texas. Today, their descendants are enrolled in the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma an ...

branch of the

Caddo Confederacy The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, who ...

. Their traditional territory was located between the Neches and Trinity Rivers. In 1686, French explorer, Henri Joutel, encountered the tribe living at the headwaters of the Neches River, near present-day

Houston County, Texas Houston County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 22,066. Its county seat is Crockett. Houston County was one of 46 entirely dry counties in the state of Texas, until voters in a November ...

. In 1690 Spanish Francisco monks accompanying explorer Domingo Ramon founded a mission, San Francisco de los Tejas Mission in Nabedache territory. European contact brought devastating diseases, and the Nabedache suffered an epidemic in 1690-91. In the ensuing century, their principal village, was 12–15 miles west of the Neches River.Krieger, Margery H
Nabedache Indians.
''The Handbook of Texas Online.'' (retrieved 11 Sept 2009) The village was called San Pedro for the nearby Arroyo San Pedro. Spanish chroniclers observed that women, as well as men, could be priests and hold high ranks. In the late 18th century,

polyandry Polyandry (; ) is a form of polygamy in which a woman takes two or more husbands at the same time. Polyandry is contrasted with polygyny, involving one male and two or more females. If a marriage involves a plural number of "husbands and wives" ...

was also observed.Bolton, 88 The tribe moved further up the Neches between 1779 and 1784. Ultimately, they were forced to relocate to the Wichita Reservation in

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

in the 19th century. Today they are enrolled in the

Caddo Nation of Oklahoma The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, wh ...

Synonymy

The tribe is also known as the Nabadacho, Nabaydacho, Nabordakhes, Inecis, Ynecis, Navedacho, and Naoudiche.

Notes

References

* Bolton, Herbet E
''The Hasinais: Southern Caddoans As Seen by the Earliest Europeans.''
Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2002. . * Sturtevant, William C., general editor and Raymond D. Fogelson, volume editor. ''Handbook of North American Indians: Southeast''. Volume 14. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 2004. .

External links

''Access Genealogy.'
Nabedache Indians
from the Handbook of Texas Online {{authority control Caddoan peoples Native American history of Texas Native American tribes in Texas