doyoumisterjones:

As you may know, the word ‘Sioux’ is considered to be a slur amongst members of the Oceti Sakowin. It is not our word for ourselves, but rather a name given to us by another nation and perpetuated by the Europeans / Euro-Americans.

You also may have noticed that our official tribe names often contain the word ‘Sioux’ (‘Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe’ for example.) The reason for this is entirely legal. When our treaties were drafted, they were written as an agreement between the US Government and the ‘Sioux Nation.’ For this reason, we cannot fully abandon the name. However, when we’ve had opportunities, we’ve dropped the name in places we can (’Oglala Lakota County,’ for example, a name chosen by the rezidents.)

Simply put, members of the Oceti Sakowin generally don’t refer to themselves as ‘Sioux’ and, if we can’t change it legally, at least we can continue to assert our identity on our terms. So, if you choose to respect that, here’s a quick Oceti Sakowin education guide:

Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) 

Oceti Sakowin (encompasses all language dialects) is the simplest and broadest replacement for ‘Sioux.’ You can use this term if you aren’t aware of the specific language group to which ‘Sioux’ refers. Within the Oceti Sakowin are three main groups, which are further divided into seven subgroups:

Isanti Oyate (Santee — Dakota Dialect)

• Ble Wakantunwan (Mdewakanton*) – Spirit Lake
• Wahpetunwan (Wahpeton) – Leaf Village
• Wahpe Kute Tunwan (Wahpekute) – Leaf Archers
• Sinsin Tunwan (Sisseton) – Swamp Village

Wiciyela Oyate (Yankton/Yanktonais — Dakota Dialect ; commonly mislabeled as Nakota* Dialect)

• Ihanktunwan – End of Horn Village
• Ihanktunwanna – Little End of Horn Village

Tinte Oyate (Tetons — Lakota Dialect)

• Tinte Ta Tunwan (Tintatunwan Oceti Sakowin) – Plains Nation

Within the Tinte Ta Tunwan / Tintatunwan Oceti Sakown (#7), there are another seven subdivisions:

Tintatunwan Oceti Sakowin – Lakota

• Oglala – Scatters Their Own (Pine Ridge Indian Reservation)
• Sicangu – Burnt Thighs (Rosebud Reservation, Lower Brule Reservation)
• Hwohwoju

  (Mnikiwoju/Mniconjou) – Swamp Plant  (Cheyenne River Reservation)

• Itazipcola

  (Itazipco) – No Bow  (Cheyenne River Reservation)

• Owohe Nunpa

  (Oohenunpa)

  – Two Paunch Boiler (Cheyenne River Reservation)

• Sihasapa – Black Feet (Cheyenne River Reservation, Standing Rock Reservation)
• Hunkpapa – End of Horn (Standing Rock Reservation)

*modern terminology

*In the past, the term Nakota has been applied to the Yankton, but this is a mistake. The Yankton speak Dakota. Nakota speakers are Assiniboine / Hohe and Stoney, who broke off from the Yankton at a time so long ago their language is now nearly unrecognizable to Lakota and Dakota speakers.