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Index of Native American cultures
Native American arts
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Blackfoot Tribe
Is the name of the tribe "Blackfoot" or "Blackfeet"? Where did this name come from?Where do the Blackfeet Indians live?How is the Blackfeet Indian nation organized?What is the population of the Blackfoot nation?What language do the Blackfeet speak?What was Blackfoot culture like in the past? What is it like now? Blackfeet flag | Here is the homepage of the Blackfeet Indian tribe of Montana. They have lots of information about Blackfeet history and culture on their site. You can also visit the home page of Blackfoot elder Long Standing Bear Chief. You can find information there about Blackfoot traditions in the past and today. You can read simple articles about the Blackfoot Indians here and here. |
How do Blackfoot Indian children live, and what did they do for recreation? Blackfoot doll | Blackfoot children do the same things all children do--play with each other, go to school and help around the house. Many Blackfoot children like to go hunting and fishing with their fathers. In the past, Indian kids had more chores and less time to play, just like colonial children. But they did have dolls, toys, and special games. Here is a picture of a hoop game popular in the Black feet tribe. Blackfoot mothers, like many Native Americans, carried their babies in cradleboards on their backs--a custom which many American parents have adopted now. |
What were Blackfoot men and women's roles? Women dragging tipi poles | Blackfoot women were in charge of the home. Besides cooking and cleaning, a Blackfoot woman built her family's house and dragged the heavy posts with her whenever the tribe moved. Houses belonged to the women in the Blackfoot tribe. Blackfoot men were hunters and sometimes went to war to defend their families. Most Blackfoot chiefs and warriors were men. Both genders took part in storytelling, artwork and music, and traditional medicine. |
What were Blackfoot homes like in the past? Blackfoot tepees | The Blackfoot lived in buffalo-hide houses called tipis (or teepees). Here are more tipi pictures. Since the Blackfeet moved frequently to follow the buffalo herds, a tipi was carefully designed to set up and break down quickly, like a modern tent. An entire Blackfoot village could be packed up and ready to move within an hour. Today, Native Americans only put up a tepee for fun or to connect with their heritage, not as shelter. Most Blackfoot people live in modern houses and apartment buildings, just like you. |
What was Blackfoot clothing like? Did they wear feather headdresses and face paint?  Man's war regalia |
Blackfoot women wore long deerskin dresses. Men wore buckskin tunics and
breechcloths with leggings.
Blackfoot dresses and war shirts were fringed and often
decorated with porcupine quills, beads, and elk teeth. Both Blackfeet women and men wore
moccasins
on their feet and buffalo-hide robes in cold weather. Later, Blackfoot people adopted some
European costume such as calico dresses and felt hats. Here are more
pictures of Blackfoot clothing,
and some photos and links about
Indian clothing in general.
Blackfeet chiefs wore tall feather headdresses, different from the long warbonnets of the Sioux. Here are some pictures of these different styles of Native American headdresses. Men wore their hair in three braids with a topknot or pompadour, and women wore their hair loose or in two thicker braids. Blackfeet people painted their faces for special occasions. They used different patterns for war paint, religious ceremonies, and festive decoration. Today, some Blackfoot people still wear moccasins or a buckskin shirt, but they wear modern clothes like jeans instead of breechcloths... and they only wear feathers in their hair on special occasions like a dance. |
What was Blackfoot transportation like in the days before cars? Did they paddle canoes? Dog travois | No--the Blackfoot Indians weren't coastal people, and when they traveled by river, they usually built rafts. There were no horses in North America until colonists brought them over from Europe, so the Blackfeet used to use dogs pulling travois (a kind of drag sled) to help them carry their belongings over land. Once horses were introduced the Blackfoot culture quickly adopted to them and the people became much more migratory. |
What was Blackfoot food like in the days before supermarkets? Bison hunt | The Blackfoot staple food was buffalo. Blackfoot men usually hunted the buffalo by driving them off cliffs or stalking them with bow and arrow. As they acquired horses, the Blackfoot tribe began to pursue the buffalo herds for communal hunts, moving their villages often as the buffalo migrated. In addition to buffalo meat, the Blackfoot Indians also ate small game like ground squirrels, nuts and berries, and steamed camas roots as part of their diet. |
 Blackfoot pouch | Blackfoot artists are known for their fine quill embroidery and beadwork. Here are some photo galleries of Blackfeet art and artifacts for you to look at. |
 Blackfoot archer |
What were Blackfoot weapons and tools like in the past? Blackfoot hunters and warriors fired arrows from powerful long bows or fought with clubs and hide shields. Traditionally most warriors were men, but some Plains Indian women, especially widows, would ride to war with the men. The Blackfoot woman demonstrating a war bow in this picture is a World War II veteran. What kinds of stories do the Blackfeet tell?There are lots of traditional Blackfoot legends and fairy tales. Storytelling is very important to the Blackfoot Indian culture. Here is a story about a man who tried to steal the Sun's pants. |
What about Blackfoot religion?What other Native Americans did the Blackfeet tribe interact with?Who were some famous Blackfeet Indians? Chief Crowfoot | One famous Blackfoot Indian chief was Crowfoot, who led the Blackfoot people in Canada during the second half of the 19th century. Crowfoot was an accomplished warrior and a gifted diplomat. He was most famous for negotiating peace between the Blackfoot Nation and the Canadian government, and for fighting alcoholism among the Blackfoot people. Crowfoot was also the adopted father of the Cree chief Poundmaker, and became close friends with the Sioux leader Sitting Bull. You can read online biographies of Crowfoot here and here. |
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