Native American People

Do you know where the name Kansas comes from? Many people have an understanding of the Kansa natives do you? Kansa natives were a very important part of Kansas history.The Kansa people taught Americans a lot about survival in this part of the continent.

Acording to BigOrrin.com the word Kansa translates to “South winded people”. While there are no longer any Kansa people that speak the language, we have figured out what some words mean like “Hawe" (pronounced ha-way) is a greeting used by women and girls. Women translates to Wak'ó and Man is Nika in Kansa the language.

Gender roles were a big thing back then. Kansa men were hunters and sometimes went to war to protect their family. Women were farmers, they cared for the children, and provided meals for the family. The Kansa tribe had four ways to get food which included hunting/fishing, gathering fruits, farming, and raising animals. Men would hunt for buffalo, deer, and small game. Women would raise crops such as corn, squash, beans, and sunflowers. Both genders would gather wild potatoes, berries, and roots. Kansa men used bows and arrows to hunt. In war they would use clubs, bows, and hide shields as weapons. Bigorrin.com says children would have very little time to play because of chores,but when they did play they played with dolls most of the time. Sometimes they would play the hoop game which is throwing a dart into a hoop with squares inside and each square had a different value

For shelter the Kansa people lived in longhouses. When in war the men would use teepees so when they needed to travel to fight, they can stop and camp when needed. In the ending days of the Kansa tribe and the beginning of Kansas the tribe setup a reservation for commemorating their Kansa lives. The Kans tribe has since evolved into the Kaw nation.

For more information you can visit the Emporia Museum or in Council Grove the Kaw reservation. For more online information visit the following