| Total population |
|---|
| 7000 (1990)[1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
| United States (Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin) |
| Languages |
| Religion |
|
Medicine Lodge, Native American Church & Christianity |
| Related ethnic groups |
The Ho-Chunk, also known as Winnebago, are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what is now Wisconsin and Illinois. There are two federally recognized Ho-Chunk tribes, the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska.
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The term "Winnebago" originally came from an exonym, that is, a name given to the people by the neighboring Algonquian-speaking tribes, such as the Fox, Sauk, and Ojibway (Ojibwe/Chippewa). Various spellings exist, reflecting the French and English colonists' attempts to record transliterations of the Algonquian words. These include: "Winnebago, Wiinibiigoo, Wuinebagoes, Ouinepegi, Ouinipegouek, and Winipeg". This name has been variously translated as, "people of the stinking water," "people of the filthy water,"[1] "people of the stagnant water'" and "people of the smelly waters."
The Algonquian words do not have the negative overtones attached to the French word puant and the English word "stinky." The French translated and shortened the name to simply les puants (or les puans), which was translated into English as "the Stinkards." Many researchers believe that the waters referred to were either stagnant waters of Green Bay or the aromatic, algae-filled waters of the rivers or lakes where the Winnebago were living in the mid-17th century. The earliest reports indicate that both the French explorers and the First Nations people understood the name to refer to their place of origin, not where they were living at the time of European encounter. They had migrated from earlier territories. While the names Lac des Puans (for Lake Michigan on a map from 1650 ) and Le Baye des Puans (on later maps) led some historians to conclude these referred to the condition of the waters, early records of both bodies reported them as clear and fresh. The waters were named after the American Indian people then living on their shores.
Historians[2] say the Algonquian terms referred to salt-water seas, which do have a distinctive aroma compared with fresh-water lakes. An early Jesuit record says that the name refers to Le Puans origin near the salt water seas to the north.[3] Algonquians also called them "the people of the sea." (A Native people who lived on the shores of Hudson Bay were called by the same name.) When Jean Nicolet and Samuel de Champlain learned of the "sea" connection to the tribe's name, they were optimistic that it meant Le puans were from or had lived near the Pacific Ocean, and that there was a nearby possible connection to China.
In recent studies, ethnologists say that the Winnebago, like the other Siouan-speaking peoples, originated or coalesced on the east coast of North America.[4] The early 20th-century researcher H.R. Holand said they originated in Mexico, where they had contact with the Spanish and gained a knowledge of horses. He cites the records of Jonathan Carver, who lived with the Winnebago in 1766-1768.[5] But, contact with the Spanish could have occurred along the Gulf of Mexico or the south Atlantic coast. Others suggested that the Winnebago originated in salt water areas, to explain how mid-western tribes had a knowledge of the Pacific Ocean, where the earth ends and the sun "sets into the sea." The Ho-Chunk say that their people have always lived in what is now the north central United States.[6] Linguistic and ethnographic studies have generated other deep histories of the various American Indian peoples.
Ho-Chunk is the tribe's name for itself, or autonym. It also has had numerous spelling variations, Hocak, Hotanke, Houchugarra, Hotcangara, Ochungaraw, Ochungarah, Hochungra[1] Hochungara, and Ochangara. Translations include: "the fish eaters," "the trout people," "the big fish people",[7] "the big speech people," "the people of the big voice," "the people of the parent speech",[1] and "the people of the original language." Current elders say it means, "the people of the big voice" or "the people of the sacred language."[6]
The written history of the Ho-Chunk begins with the records made from the reports of Jean Nicolet, who in 1634 was the first European to establish contact with this people. At that time the Winnebago/Ho-Chunk occupied the area around Green Bay in Wisconsin, reaching beyond Lake Winnebago to the Wisconsin River and to the Rock River in Illinois. The tribe traditionally practiced corn agriculture in addition to hunting. They were not advanced in agriculture. Living on Green Bay, they fished, collected wild rice, gathered sugar from maple trees, and hunted game.
Although their Siouan language indicates either contact or common origin with the other peoples of this language group, the oral traditions of the Ho-Chunk speak of no other homeland other than what is now large portions of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota. These traditions suggest that they were a very populous people and the dominant group in Wisconsin in the century before Nicolet's visit. While their language was Siouan, their culture was similar to the Algonquian peoples. Current elders suggest that their pre-history is connected to the mound builders of the region.[6] The oral history also indicates that in the mid-16th century, the influx of Ojibwa peoples in the northern portion of their range caused some movement to the south. They had some friction with the Illiniwek, as well as a division of the people: the Chiwere group (Iowa, Missouri, Ponca, and Oto tribes) moved west because the reduced range made it difficult for such a large population to be sustained.[8]
Nicolet reported a gathering of approximately 5,000 warriors as the Ho-Chunk entertained him. Historians estimate that the population in 1634 may have ranged from 8,000 to more than 20,000. Between that time and the first return of French trappers and traders in the late 1650s, the population was reduced drastically, with some reporting it dropped below a total of only 500 people. The result was the Ho-Chunk's loss of dominance in the region. Numerous Algonquian tribes migrated west to escape the problems caused by the powerful Iroquois tribes' aggressiveness in the Beaver Wars.
The reasons given by historians for the reduction in population vary, but they agree on three major causes: the loss of several hundred warriors in a storm on a lake in the course of a military effort. One account says this took place on Lake Michigan after the warriors had repulsed the first attack by Potawatomi from what is now Door County, Wisconsin.[9] Another says the number was 600.[10] Another says it was 500 lost in a storm on Lake Winnebago during a failed campaign against the Fox,[11] while still another says it was in a battle against the Sauk.[12] Even with such a serious loss of warriors, the historian R. David Edmunds notes that it was not enough to cause the near decimation of the whole people; he suggests two additional causes.[13] The Winnebago apparently suffered from a widespread disease, perhaps an epidemic of one of the European infectious diseases, such as smallpox. (Ho-Chunk accounts said the victims turned yellow, which is not a trait of smallpox).[8] Historians have rated disease as the major reason for the losses in American Indian populations. Historic accounts say that many of the Ho-Chunk's traditional enemies, the Illinois, came to help the tribe at their time of suffering and famine, aggravated by the loss of so many hunters. The Winnebago reportedly attacked the Illinois and ate the dead. Enraged, Illinois warriors retaliated and killed nearly all the Winnebago.
After peace was established between the French and Iroquois in 1701, many of the Algonquian peoples returned to their homelands. The Ho-Chunk were relieved of the pressure on their territory. After 1741, while some remained in the Green Bay area, most returned inland.[8] From a low of perhaps less than 500, the population of the people gradually recovered, aided by intermarriage with neighboring tribes and with some of the French traders and trappers. A count from 1736 gives a population of 700. In 1806, they numbered 2,900 or more. A census in 1846 reported 4,400, but in 1848 the number given is only 2,500. Like other American Indian tribes, the Ho-Chunk suffered great losses during the smallpox epidemics of 1757-58 and 1836; in the 19th-century epidemic, they lost nearly one-quarter of their population.[8] Today the total population of the Ho-Chunk people is about 12,000.
Through a series of forced moves imposed by the U.S. government in the 19th century, the tribe was relocated to reservations increasingly further west: in Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota and finally Nebraska. Through the period of forced relocations, many tribe members returned to previous homes, especially in Wisconsin, despite the US Army's repeated roundups and removals. The U.S. government finally allowed the Wisconsin Winnebago to homestead land in the state, where they have achieved federal recognition as a tribe. The Ho-Chunk in Nebraska have gained independent federal recognition as a tribe and have a reservation in Thurston County.
Waukon and Decorah, county seats of Allamakee and Winneshiek County, Iowa, respectively, were named after the 19th-century Ho-Chunk chief Waukon Decorah.
Before Europeans ventured into Ho-Chunk territory, the Ho-Chunks were known to hunt, farm and gather anything they could. With the changing seasons, Ho-Chunk families would move from area to area to find food. For example, many families would return to Black River Falls, Wisconsin to pick berries in the summer
The main role of the Ho-Chunk man was as a hunter. They would catch fish by spearing them and then clubbing the fish to death. The men would also hunt game such as muskrat, mink, otter, beaver, and deer.[14] A few of the men were also trained to create jewelry and other body decorations out of silver and copper for both men and women.[15] In order to become men, boys would go through a puberty fasting in which they try and acquire a guardian spirit for without it, their lives would be miserable.
Besides having a guardian spirit, men would also try and acquire protection and powers from specific spirits, which was done by offering various things along with tobacco.[16] For example, a man could not go on the warpath without first performing the war-bundle feast, which contained two parts. The first part honored the night-spirits and the second part honored the Thunderbird spirit. The blessings that these spirits gave the men were embodied in objects that together made the war-bundle. These objects could include feathers, bones, skins, flutes, and paints.[14]
After the boys became men, they were allowed to court women and to do this, they would visit women in their menstruation lodges. Women were separated from their families during this time because of the Ho-Chunk belief that a women’s menstruation was bad, which is why men would only visit at night so as to avoid the shame of associating with a women during this time. After courting, a man would then elope with a woman that his family chose. Elopement here was in no way a negative connotation as Westerners believe, but was an accepted and practiced form of marriage in the Ho-Chunk culture.[17]
After getting married, the main role of the Ho-Chunk wife was to gather corn, squash, roots, berries, and sap from maple trees, which they used to create syrup and candy. Women would also tan hides, create mats, make clothing, and care for the children.[15]
Before the United States government removed the Ho-Chunk from their native land of Wisconsin, there was only one tribe made of 12 different clans. These clans are listed below.
| Name | Translation |
|---|---|
| wakan’dja | Thunderbird |
| wo'nayi'rê uañ'kcîk | People of War |
| tca'xcêp | Eagle |
| ru'tcgê | Pigeon |
| hūn'tc | Bear |
| cûñ'kcûñk | Wolf |
| waktcexi' | Water-spirit |
| tca' | Deer |
| hûnwau' | Elk |
| tce' | Buffalo |
| ho' | Fish |
| wak'an' | Snake |
This tribe is headquartered in Black River Falls, Wisconsin.[19] Formerly known as the Wisconsin Winnebago Tribe, they changed their name to the Ho-Chunk Nation. There were 7,192 tribe members as of May 23, 2011; 5,042 lived in Wisconsin, and 2,150 lived somewhere else. 3,158 are males, 3,674 are females, 1,972 are minors, 4,619 are adults, and 601 are elders. The tribe owns 4,602 acres (18.625 km²) scattered across parts of 12 counties in Wisconsin and one county in Minnesota. The largest concentrations are in Jackson County, Clark County, and Monroe County in Wisconsin. Smaller areas lie in Adams, Crawford, Dane, Juneau, La Crosse, Marathon, Sauk, Shawano, and Wood Counties in Wisconsin.
The tribe operates six casinos in Wisconsin: Ho-Chunk Gaming Wisconsin Dells in Baraboo, Ho-Chunk Gaming Black River Falls in Black River Falls,[20] Ho-Chunk Gaming Nekoosa in Nekoosa,[21] Ho-Chunk Gaming Wittenberg in Wittenberg,[22] Ho-Chunk Gaming Tomah in Tomah, and Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison in Madison.[23]
The tribe has a reservation in northeastern Nebraska[25] and western Iowa. The Winnebago Indian Reservation lies primarily in the northern part of Thurston County, but small parts extend into southeastern Dixon County and Woodbury County, Iowa. There is a small plot of off-reservation land of 116.75 acres (0.4725 km2) in southern Craig Township in Burt County, Nebraska. The total land area is 457.857 km² (176.78 sq mi). The 2000 census reported a population of 2,588 persons living on these lands. The largest community is the village of Winnebago, with other communities in Emerson and Thurston, Nebraska.
The Omaha also have a reservation in Thurston County. Together, both tribes cover the whole land area of Thurston County. The Winnebago tribe operates the WinnaVegas Casino in the Iowa portion of the reservation. This land was west of the Missouri River, but the United States Army Corps of Engineers changed the course of the Missouri River, and the reservation land was divided into Iowa and Nebraska. So, although Iowa is east of the Missouri River, the tribe successfully argued that this land belonged to them under the terms of a predated deed. This land has a postal address of Sloan, Iowa, since rural addresses are normally covered by the nearest post office.
The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska is governed by an elected nine-person council. The administration is as follows:
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