Caddo

Caddo Nation flag
Total population
5,757[1]
Regions with significant populations
United States Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas
Languages
Caddo, English
Religion
Native American Church, Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Pawnee, Wichita, Kitsai Caddo Confederacy: Adai, Cahinnio, Eyeish, Hainai, Hasinai, Kadohadacho, Nabedache, Nabiti, Nacogdoche, Nadaco, Nanatsoho, Nasoni, Natchitoches, Nechaui, Neche, Ouachita, Tula, Yatasi

The Caddo Nation is a confederacy of several Southeastern Native American tribes, who traditionally inhabited much of what is now East Texas, northern Louisiana and portions of southern Arkansas and Oklahoma. Today the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma is a single federally recognized tribe with its capital at Binger, Oklahoma. The different Caddo languages have converged into a single language.

Government and civic institutions[link]

The Caddo Nation was previously known as the Caddo Tribe of Oklahoma. A tribal constitution provides for a tribal council consisting of eight members with a chairperson, based in Binger, Oklahoma.^[2] The tribal complex, dance grounds, and the Caddo Heritage Museum are located south of Binger. 5757 people are enrolled in the tribe, with 3044 living within the state of Oklahoma.^[1] The tribe operates its own housing authority and issues its own tribal vehicle tags.^[1] It maintains administrative centers, dance grounds, several community centers, and an active NAGPRA office.

Several programs exist to invigorate Caddo traditions. The tribe sponsors a summer culture camp for children.^[3] The Hasinai Society^[4] and Caddo Culture Club^[5] both keep Caddo songs and dances alive, while the Kiwat Hasinay Foundation is dedicated to preserving the Caddo language.^[6]

Current tribal officials[link]

• Chairperson: Brenda Shemayme Edwards
• Vice-chairperson: Todd Downing Goodman
• Secretary: Diane Sparks
• Treasurer: Laura Sue Butler Jarvis
• Representative, Fort Cobb: Eloise Harjo
• Representative, Anadarko: Anna Donaghey
• Representative, Binger: Marilyn Williams Threlkeld
• Representative, Oklahoma City: Jennifer Reeder Crump^[7]

Precontact history[link]

Archaeology[link]

Map of the Caddoan Mississippian culture and some important sites

The Caddo are thought to be an extension of Woodland period peoples, the Fourche Maline culture and Mossy Grove cultures who were living in the area of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas between 200 BCE to 800 CE.^[8] The Wichita and Pawnee are related to the Caddo, as shown by their speaking Caddoan languages. By 800 CE this society had begun to coalesce into the Caddoan Mississippian culture. Some villages began to gain prominence as ritual centers, with elite residences and temple mound constructions. The mounds were arranged around open plazas, which were usually kept swept clean and were often used for ceremonial occasions. As complex religious and social ideas developed, some people and family lineages gained prominence over others.^[8] By 1000 CE a society that is defined as "Caddoan" had emerged. By 1200 the numerous villages, hamlets, and farmsteads established throughout the Caddo world had begun extensive maize agriculture.^[8] Their artistic skills and earthwork mound-building flourished during the 12th and 13th centuries.^[9] Spiro mounds, some of the most elaborate in the United States, were made by ancestors of the Caddo and Wichita.^[10] The Caddo were farmers and enjoyed good growing conditions most of the time. However, the Piney Woods, the geographic area where they lived, was affected by the Great Drought, from 1276–1299 CE.^[11]