Assiniboine
The Assiniboine are a Native American group traditionally residing in northeastern Montana, northwestern North Dakota, and adjacent areas of Canada. They speak a Siouan language and historically had complex relationships with neighboring tribes, marked by both conflict and alliances. The Assiniboine separated from the Sioux in the mid-17th century and, over time, became buffalo hunters in the northern Plains, transitioning from foot to horseback hunting, which significantly enhanced their mobility and efficiency. Their lifestyle included living in tipis and following buffalo herds, which provided them with essential resources.
Culturally, they participated in spiritual practices common to Plains Indians, such as the Sun Dance and vision quests, which played critical roles in their community life. Despite a decline in population due to disease and conflicts, the Assiniboine formed alliances with other tribes, such as the Atsina, to resist external pressures. Today, they predominantly reside on reservations in Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, where they face challenges such as poverty and cultural preservation. Nevertheless, the Assiniboine continue to take pride in their heritage and community support, striving to maintain their cultural identity and improve their living conditions.
Assiniboine
- CATEGORY: Tribe
- CULTURE AREA: Plains
- LANGUAGE GROUP: Siouan
- PRIMARY LOCATION: Alberta and Saskatchewan (Canada), Montana (US)
- POPULATION SIZE: 9,942 in US (Fort Peck Indian Reservation and Off-Reservation Trust Land, MT; 2019-2023 American Community Survey); 1,305 living in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2022)
The Assiniboine (including groups sometimes called the Stoneys) lived in northeastern Montana, northwestern North Dakota, and adjacent Canada. They spoke a language of the Siouan language family, but their associations with the Sioux were generally antagonistic, as were their relations with the Blackfoot. They had a close and long-standing alliance with the Cree and became friendly with the Atsina after decades of fighting them. The Assiniboine were not important participants in the Plains Indian wars and were assigned to several reservations in Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.
Early History and Traditional Lifestyle
The Assiniboine separated from the Sioux in the mid-seventeenth century while still living in the eastern woodlands. They moved into southern Ontario, where they became associated with the Cree. They trapped furs for Europeans and acted as intermediaries between western Indians and European traders until the establishment of trading posts on western rivers gave the traders direct access to those Indigenous peoples.
With the westernmost members of the Cree, they moved into the northern Plains and took up buffalo hunting, at first on foot, using dogs to bear their belongings on their treks across the Plains. Around the middle of the eighteenth century, they obtained horses, and although they probably never had as many as other Plains Indians, the buffalo hunt and tribal movements in pursuit of the buffalo became easier and more efficient.
They followed the buffalo herds across the prairies and plains and obtained most of their food and material goods from them. They lived in tipis of buffalo hides sewn together and stretched across a group of poles. Readily put up and taken down, the tipi was ideal housing for a mobile society. Men hunted, butchered their prey, defended the tribe in war, and made weapons and shields. Women cooked; gathered seeds, fruits, and vegetative parts of plants; preserved foods for future use; made clothing and tipi covers; struck camp; and put up camp with each move. They gathered in large groups to hunt buffalo and broke up into smaller groups for the winter.
The Assiniboine fought almost constantly with the Blackfoot, Crow, Sioux, and Atsina over buffalo ranges and horses. These wars and diseases (especially smallpox and measles) introduced by Europeans precipitated a decline in the Assiniboine population and in the tribe’s ability to hold its territory. Around 1870, the Atsina-Blackfoot alliance disintegrated, and the Assiniboine and Atsina became allies. This association may have been what enabled the two small tribes to resist constant Blackfoot and Sioux aggression.
Assiniboine ceremonial and spiritual life was typical of Plains Indians. They held the Sun Dance, an elaborate spiritual ceremony lasting for days. Generally held when the tribe gathered for the buffalo hunt, the Sun Dance was intended to ensure a successful hunt; it was also used to invoke supernatural assistance in other undertakings or to express gratitude for past assistance. Individuals went on vision quests, which involved days of fasting and praying in a secluded place, to obtain their personal “medicine” or source of power. The message, or inspiration, they received on the quest gave subsequent direction to their lives.
Men were organized into warrior societies, each with a particular responsibility in the life of the tribe. Men became eligible for membership as they accomplished feats of bravery and practiced generosity. Chiefs were also chosen based on these characteristics. While masks were not generally a part of Plains Indian ritual, members of the Assiniboine Fool Society (who mocked and acted contrary to societal standards to emphasize their importance) wore masks.
Transition and Contemporary Life
The Assiniboine contributed little resistance to the European American conquest of the Plains, partly because of the early interaction between Assiniboine and White explorers in the fur trade, as well as the reduced Assiniboine population because of disease and Indigenous warfare. They were placed on several reservations, representing a small fraction of the land over which they once hunted, in Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. In Montana, the Assiniboine (along with the Sioux) live on the Fort Peck Reservation. The Assiniboine in Canada live both on and off reserves in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
The Assiniboine face poverty, unemployment, lack of education, and threats to their culture that other Indigenous groups face. Yet they have clung to their culture throughout government attempts at assimilation. One aspect of that culture in which they take particular pride, a willingness to assist one another in times of trouble or need, will be a great help in efforts to improve the tribe’s condition and conserve Assiniboine culture.
Indiana University’s Institute for Indigenous Knowledge supports the preservation of Assiniboine culture by recording oral traditions from the last generation of fluent speakers. The university program has created a reference dictionary and teaching materials to pass on the Indigenous language to future generations.
Bibliography
"Assiniboine." The Canadian Encyclopedia, 4 Aug. 2020, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/assiniboine. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
"Assiniboine History." Fort Belknap Indian Community, ftbelknap.org/history. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
"The Assiniboine." National Park Service, 24 Apr. 2021, www.nps.gov/fous/learn/historyculture/assiniboine.htm. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
"Assiniboin in Canada." Joshua Project, joshuaproject.net/people‗groups/10462/CA. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
"Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux Tribal History." Fort Peck Tribes, fortpecktribes.org/visitor-opportunities/tribal-history. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
"Reclaiming a Culture: How IU Is Helping an Indigenous Community Restore Its Endangered Language." Indiana University, 11 Oct. 2019, news.iu.edu/live/news/26391-reclaiming-a-culture-how-iu-is-helping-an. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.