IowaOtoeMissouria

The Iowa, Otoe, and Missouria Tribes are three historically distinct Native American tribes that have consolidated into a single federally recognized entity, the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska, and the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma. Originally, the Iowa people were known by their own name, Ioway, meaning "sleepy people" or "beautiful people." They primarily inhabited the woodlands and prairies of present-day Iowa and Missouri. The Otoe, whose name is believed to derive from a term meaning "and" or "their" and relates to their relationship with other tribes, also resided in the same general region. The Missouria, whose name means "people of the big river" or "wooden canoe people," were closely related to the Otoe and shared a similar territory along the Missouri River.

These tribes shared linguistic and cultural similarities, often intermarrying and forming alliances. During the 18th and 19th centuries, pressures from westward expansion, conflicts with other tribes, and disease led to significant population decline and forced removals. They eventually ceded much of their ancestral lands and were relocated to reservations. The Iowa and Otoe tribes were consolidated onto a reservation in present-day Nebraska and Kansas, while the Missouria were initially located in separate areas before also joining the Otoe on a reservation in present-day Oklahoma. Today, their descendants continue to maintain their cultural heritage and governance through their respective tribal nations.