Atakapa

 

·       Atakapa People lived in river valleys, along lake shores and coasts, from present day Vermilion Bay, Louisiana to Galveston, Tx.

 

·       The Choctaw people used the term Atakapa for these people.

 

·       They called themselves the “Ishak” which translates as “The People”.

 

·       Within the Ishak there were two moieties and the Ishak identified as: “The Sunrise People” or “The Sunset People”.

 

·       Where stilled fishermen.

 

·       Known for their dugout canoes made from a single tree trunk.

 

·       Built giant mounds that served as a place of worship and sites for their leadership to come together.

 

·       Atakapa buried those who passed away in small mounds.

 

·       Atakapa ate bears, deer, alligator, clams, ducks, oysters, turtles and occasionally buffalo.

 

·       Clothing was of breech cloth for men and skirts for women.  Some groups tattooed their faces and bodies.

 

·       Weapons of choice were the tomahawks, small axes which help them to make a quiet attack on their enemy.

 

·       Atakapa were fierce warriors despite facings significant challenges in defending their homeland.

 

·       Atakapa language is unique and not clearly related to any known Native American language.

 

·       They constructed stilt houses in the marshlands that allowed them to live above the water, providing protection from floods and dangerous wildlife.

 

·       Atakapa inheritance was traced through the female line.  The family ties and social status were primarily determined by the mother’s lineage.

 

·       Although the Ishak People were decimated by infectious disease after contact with European, the survivors joined other Nations.

 

·       Decedents still live in the traditional territory of Southern Louisiana and Texas.

 

·       2009 Atakapa-Ishak nation was federally recognized as a Native American Tribe by the United States Government.