MandanHidatsa

MandanHidatsa refers to two closely related Indigenous peoples of the upper Missouri River region in what is now North Dakota: the Mandan and the Hidatsa. Historically, they maintained strong ties through shared villages, trade, and culture, and were part of a larger alliance often described as the Three Affiliated Tribes, together with the Arikara.

Geography and livelihoods: The Mandan and Hidatsa lived in large earth-lodge villages along the Missouri River and its tributaries, including the Heart and Knife rivers. Their economy blended agriculture—maize, beans, and squash—with bison hunting, fishing, and extensive trade networks with neighboring Indigenous groups and European traders. Settlements were organized around central plazas and multi-family earth lodges.

Language and culture: The Mandan and Hidatsa languages are closely related Siouan languages, and many speakers today are bilingual in Hidatsa or Mandan and English. Cultural life included shared ceremonial practices, social organization, and artistic traditions. The groups are noted for earth-lodge architecture and, in later years, for winter counts—calendar records painted on hides kept by families.

European contact and modern era: First sustained contact occurred with French traders in the 17th–18th centuries, followed by increased interaction with Americans in the 19th century. The Lewis and Clark expedition met Mandan villages in 1804 near the Heart River. Epidemics and forced relocations affected communities in the 1800s. Today, the Mandan and Hidatsa are part of the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation (the Three Affiliated Tribes) on the Fort Berthold Reservation in North Dakota, where language and cultural preservation efforts continue.

Today’s status: Members pursue cultural revival, language preservation, and economic development within the Three Affiliated Tribes framework and allied federal recognition.