Lakota History

The Battle of the Little Bighorn in Montana in 1876 has become known as the quintessential clash of cultures between the Lakota Sioux and whites. The men who led the battle—Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, and Colonel George A. Custer—have become the stuff of legends, ingrained in the lore of the...

Most of the world remembers Crazy Horse as a peerless warrior who brought the U.S. Army to its knees at the Battle of Little Bighorn. But to his fellow Lakota Indians, he was a dutiful son and humble fighting man who, with valor, spirit, respect, and unparalleled leadership, fought for his people's land, livelihood, and honor. In this fascinating biography, Joseph Marshall, himself a Lakota Indian, creates a vibrant portrait of the man, his times, and his legacy.

This first complete account of the Lakota Indians traces their rich and often surprising history from the early 16th to the early 21st century. Pekka Hämäläinen explores the Lakotas' roots as marginal hunter-gatherers and reveals how they reinvented themselves twice: first as a river people who dominated the Missouri Valley, America's great commercial artery, and then - in what was America's first sweeping westward expansion - as a horse people who ruled supreme on the vast high plains.   

The most common depictions of Native Americans feature mounted warriors and iconic events such as the Battle of the Little Bighorn and the Wounded Knee Massacre. The best-known Native American leaders include Chief Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, and most people’s impression of such a leader includes the wearing of a feathered headdress. All these archetypes have one thing in common: they are all Sioux, and many are Lakota, one of the coalition of seven Sioux Nations.

Rich with storytelling, history, and folklore, The Lakota Way offers a fresh and compelling outlook on spiritual and ethical living. Joseph M. Marshall III, a gifted storyteller, historian, and a member of the Sicunga Lakota Sioux, has dedicated his entire life to spiritual fulfillment and to...

Here are six stories from Joseph Marshall’s award-winning book, The Lakota Way, read by the author and enriched with musical performances by noted American Indian musicians Keith Bear, Joseph Fire Crow, and Andrew Vasquez. Rich with history and folklore, these traditional Lakota stories about...

Mary Brave Bird grew up fatherless in a one-room cabin, without running water or electricity, on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Rebelling against the aimless drinking, punishing missionary school, narrow strictures for women, and violence and hopeless of reservation life, she joined the new movement of tribal pride sweeping Native American communities in the '60s and '70s.

Sitting Bull was born in 1831 near the Yellowstone River in Montana. He was originally named "Jumping Badger" and nicknamed "Slow" due to his careful nature. Sitting Bull was 14 years old when he went on a raiding party with his father, uncle Four Horns, and Lakota warriors. They took horses from a camp of Crow warriors.

Crazy Horse was as much feared by tribal foes as he was honored by allies. His war record was unmatched by any of his peers, and his rout of Custer at the Little Bighorn reverberates through history. Yet so much about him is unknown or steeped in legend. Crazy Horse: A Lakota Life corrects older, idealized accounts - and draws on a greater variety of sources than other recent biographies - to expose the real Crazy Horse: not the brash Sioux warrior we have come to expect but a modest, reflective man whose courage was anchored in Lakota piety.

A broad range of perspectives from natives and nonnatives makes this book the most complete account and analysis of the Lakota ghost dance ever published. A revitalization movement that swept across native communities of the West in the late 1880s, the ghost dance took firm hold among the Lakotas, perplexed and alarmed government agents, sparked the intervention of the US Army and culminated in the massacre of hundreds of Lakota men, women, and children at Wounded Knee in December 1890.

On December 29, 1890, the US military entered the Lakota Pine Ridge Indian Reservation with the intention of disarming the natives. When met with resistance, the cavalry opened fire on the Lakota in a massacre that killed several hundred men, women, and children. A few months later, some of the Lakota survivors met with the Commissioner of Indian Affairs in Washington to state their side of the story. These powerful testimonies present this horrific event from the perspective of those most hurt by it.

Witness the epic fight for Native American sovereignty and cultural survival against relentless frontier expansion. Perfect for a thought-provoking commute, this deeply researched narrative transports you directly to the campfires and battlefields of the Northern Plains. Lose yourself in the...

Experience a gripping Native American history of cultural resilience, sovereignty, and power on the American Plains. Perfect for an engaging daily commute, this historical nonfiction journey charts the dynamic rise of the Dakota, Lakota, and Nakota peoples. Witness how a fierce indigenous...

Experience the fierce resilience of the Oceti Sakowin in this gripping history of Indigenous sovereignty and survival. Perfect for an educational commute, this immersive narrative journeys far beyond well-known battles to explore centuries of spiritual traditions, political adaptation, and...