The Nakoda (also known as Stoney or ) are an

Indigenous people Indigenous peoples, also referred to as first peoples, first nations, aboriginal peoples, native peoples (with these terms often capitalized when referred to relating to specific countries), or autochthonous peoples, are culturally distinct e ...

Western Canada Western Canada, also referred to as the Western Provinces and more commonly known as the West, is a region In geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia'', literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the stud ...

and, originally, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. They used to inhabit large parts of what is now

Alberta ("Strong and free") , image_map = Alberta in Canada 2.svg , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , official_lang = English , capital = Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital ...

Alberta

Saskatchewan ("From Many Peoples Strength") , image_map = Saskatchewan in Canada 2.svg , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , official_lang = English language, English , capital = Regina, S ...

and

Montana Montana () is a state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * The State (newspaper), ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper ...

Montana

, but their reserves are now located in Alberta and in Saskatchewan, where they are scarcely differentiated from the

Assiniboine The Assiniboine or Assiniboin people ( when singular, Assiniboines / Assiniboins when plural; Ojibwe The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe The Anishinaabe are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples re ...

. Through their language they are related to the

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language From this origin, Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Da ...

and

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

nations of the

Great Plains The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland ''Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions'' is a satire, satirical novella by the English schoolmaster Edwin Abbott Abbott, first publi ...

and the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range A mountain range is a series of mountains ranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with simila ...

, part of the large

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language From this origin, Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated ...

Sioux

Nation. They refer to themselves in their own

language A language is a structured system of communication Communication (from Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken in the ...

as "

Nakoda Nakoda may refer to: *Nakoda people, an indigenous people in the US and Canada *Nakoda, Rajasthan, a village in India *Nakoda, Maharashtra, a town in India {{dab ...

", meaning ''friend'', ''ally''. The name "Stoney" was given them by white explorers, because of their technique of using fire-heated rocks to boil broth in rawhide bowls. They are very closely related to the

, who are also known as ''Stone Sioux'' (from the

Ojibwe The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe The Anishinaabe are a group of culturally related Indigenous peoples resident in what are now called Canada and the United States. They include the Odawa, Saulteaux, Ojibwe (inc ...

). Alberta's Nakoda First Nation comprises three bands: Bearspaw, Chiniki and

Wesley Wesley is a name with an Anglo-Norman etymology Etymology () The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is ...

. The Stoney were "excluded" from

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park#REDIRECT National park A national park is a park in use for Conservation (ethic), conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, s ...

between 1890 and 1920. In 2010 they were officially "welcomed back".

Stoney groups

The Stoney are descendants of individual bands of

and

Nakota Nakota (or Nakoda or Nakona) is the endonym An endonym (from Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece Greece ( el, Ελλάδα, , ), officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country located in Southeast Eur ...

, in particular of western groups of Assiniboine, from which they spun out as an independent group at about 1744. The Stoney were divided geographically and culturally into two tribal groups or divisions with different dialects, which in turn were further divided into several bands: Wood Stoney ( – ‘Big Woods People’, often called ''Swampy Ground Assiniboine'', northern tribal group) * Alexis' band (Stoney, Métis,

Woodland Cree The ''Saāwithiniwak'' or Woodland Cree, are a Cree people, calling themselves Cree, Nîhithaw in their own dialect of the language. They are the largest Amerindian, indigenous group in northern Alberta and are an Algonquian peoples, Algonquian pe ...

) * Paul's band ( Danezaa, Stoney, Woodland Cree,

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ) or Haudenosaunee (; "People of the Longhouse") are an indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples, also referred to as First people, Aboriginal people, Native people, or autochthonous pe ...

) Mountain Stoney ( or ''Hebina'' – ‘Rock Mountain People’, often called ''Strong Wood Assiniboine'', ''Thickwood Assiniboine'', southern tribal group) * Sharphead's band (, ''Wolf Creek Stoney'' or ''Pigeon Lake Stoney'', often called ''Plains Assiniboine'') (Stoney, Métis) *

Stoney Nakoda First Nation Stoney Nakoda First Nation ( sto, Îyârhe Nakoda) is a Nakoda Nakoda Mewanagar is a village in the Barmer District Barmer District is a district in Rajasthan Rajasthan ( ; literally, "Land of Kings") is a States and union territorie ...

, Comprising the three following bands: *# Wesley's (Goodstoney's) band (Stoney,

Plains Cree

, Métis) *# Chiniki's band (

Métis The Métis (; ) are Indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples, also referred to as first peoples, first nations, aboriginal peoples, native peoples (with these terms often capitalized when referred to relating to specific countries), or au ...

, Stoney, Plains Cree) *# Bearspaw's band (Stoney, Cree)

Treaties

Members of the Nakoda nations of

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD 5–67), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Christian mi ...

and

Alexis Alexis may refer to: People Mononym * Alexis (poet) Alexis ( grc-gre, Ἄλεξις; c. 375 – c. 275 BC) was a Greek comic a medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation *Medium bomber, a class of war plane *Tecma ...

signed an adhesion to

Treaty 6 Treaty 6 is the sixth of the numbered treaties The Numbered Treaties (or Post-Confederation Treaties) are a series of eleven treaties A treaty is a formal legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is ...

in 1877. In 1877, representatives of the Nakoda Nations of Bearspaw, Chiniki and Wesley met with representatives of the

British Crown The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...

to discuss the terms of

Treaty 7 Treaty 7 is an agreement between the Crown The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories ...

. In exchange for use of traditional native lands, the Crown agreed to honor their right to self-government and an ancestral way of life. They were also promised reserve lands, 279 km² situated along the

Bow River The Bow River is a river in Alberta ("Strong and free") , image_map = Alberta in Canada 2.svg , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , official_lang = English , capital = E ...

between the

Kananaskis River The Kananaskis River is a mountain river in western Alberta, Canada. It is a tributary of the Bow River, crossing the length of Kananaskis Country. The river was named by John Palliser in 1858 after a Cree. Course The Kananaskis originates in th ...

and the Ghost River, which became the Big Horn, Stoney and Eden Valley

reserves Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vil ...

, shared between the Bearspaw, Chiniki and Wesley tribes.

Notes

{{authority control Plains tribes First Nations in Alberta Native American tribes in Montana

Stoney groups

Treaties

See also

Further reading

Notes