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The Chitimacha Indians were the original inhabitants of the Mississippi Delta area of South Central Louisiana. Tradition asserts that the boundary of the territory of the Chitmacha was marked by four prominent trees. The Chitimacha were divided into four sub tribes, they being the Chawasha, the Chitimacha, the Washa and the Yagenachito. This confederation was split into around fifteen villages. At the time of Columbus’ discovery of America the combined strength of the four groups was about 20,000. Although the Chitimacha were to have virtually no contact with Europeans for two more centuries, they were to feel the devastating effect of the white man’s diseases. Epidemics had reduced their number by half by the time the French began to enter the Mississsippi Valley around 1700. At that time the Chawasha had about 700 people, the Washa about 1400, the Chitimacha some 4,000 and about 3,000 for the Yagenichito.
According to the Chitimacha themselves, their name comes from the term ‘Pantch Pinankanc’ meaning ‘men altogether red.’ The name Chawasha is a Choctaw term for ‘Raccoon Place.’ Washa is also Choctaw and means ‘Hunting Pace.’ Yaganechito means ‘Big country.’ The Chitimacha spoke a dialect of the Tonikan tongue which had many distinct characteristics. Unfortunately this language has since died out, with modern day Chitimacha speaking Cajun French.
Archaeological finds suggest that the Chitimacha have been living in Louisiana for a very long time, perhaps as long as six thousand years. Prior to that they came from somewhere east of the Mississippi. The fifteen or so villages that the French came across at the beginning of the 18th Century were self governing groups. However there was a central governing authority which was vested in the person of the Grand Chief. The villages of the Chitimacha were situated in the midst of swamps and rivers. This provided a natural defence to enemy attack and made these villages almost impregnable. Extra fortification, then, was deemed as being unnecessary. The villages were rather large, with an average of about five hundred inhabitants. Dwellings were constructed from whatever resources were available. Typically they would comprise walls which were a framework of poles plastered with mud or palmetto leaves and thatched roofs.
The territory of the Chitimacha provided an ideal opportunity for the raising of crops and, consequently, agricultural produce provided the mainstay of their diet. The women were responsible for the tending of the crops. Corn was the main crop grown, supplemented by beans, squash and melons. The women also gathered wild foods and nuts. The men hunted for such game as deer, buffalo, turkey and alligator. Of course, fishing was also important to the Chitimacha. Crops would be stored in an elevated winter granary to supplement hunting and fishing over this period.
The main mode of transport for the Chitimacha was by means of dugout canoe. These vessels were constructed from cypress logs. The largest of these canoes could hold as many as forty people. The homeland of the Chitimacha could not provide one essential, that being stone. Stone was needed to fashion arrowheads and tools. To obtain these they would trade crops for it with tribes to the north. To compensate for this lack of stone, the Chitimacha also made use of such weapons as the blow gun and the cane dart. Fish bones were also used as arrowheads.
The Chitimacha were distinctive in that they followed the custom of flattening the foreheads of their male babies. Adult men would typically wear their hear long and loose. They were skilled practicioners of the art of tattooing, often covering their face, body, arms and legs with tattooed images. In accordance with the humid conditions the men would normally only wear a breechcloth whereas the women only wore a short skirt.
The Chitimacha were divided into class system, with nobles and commoners. So large was the distinction between the two that they spoke different dialects. Intermarriage between the classes was forbidden.
Between the years 1706 –18 the Chitimacha engaged in a long, bitter war with the French. The result was that the eastern Chitmacha were nearly wiped out. Those that survived were resettled by the French along the Mississippi River. Disease and alcohol now took their toll on the tribes. By 1784 the combined numbers of the tribes had fallen to just 180. In the early part of the Nineteenth Century they were absorbed by the Houma. In the early Twentieth century, however, the Chitimacha tried to re-establish their tribal identity. From just six families in 1880, the numbers have grown to reach a present figure of about 900. In 1917, the Chitimacha were officially recognised by the United States Government.
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