The Hasinai Confederacy (

Caddo The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, who ...

: ) was a large confederation of

-speaking Native Americans who occupied territory between the

Sabine The Sabines (, , , ; ) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains (see Sabina) of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divided int ...

and

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

s in eastern Texas. Today, their descendants are enrolled in the

Caddo Nation of Oklahoma The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language. The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, w ...

and the Natchitoches Tribe of Louisiana.

Name

The name ''Hasinai'' means "our own people" in Caddoan. The Spanish knew the Hasinai as the ''Tejas'' or ''Texas'', from a form of greeting meaning "friend", which gave the state of Texas its name. Variants of ''Hasinai'' include: ''Hasini'', ''Asenai'', ''Asinai'', ''Assoni'', ''Asenay'', ''Cenis'', ''Senis'', ''Sannaye'', ''Asinaiz'', ''Asinayes'', ''Assinais'', ''Azinais'', ''Azinays''.

Government

When the Spanish and the French encountered the Hasinai in the 1680s, they were a centrally organized chiefdom under the control of a religious leader, known as the Grand Xinesi. He lived in a secluded house and met with a council of elders. The chieftainship consisted of several subdivisions, which have been designated "cantonments". Each was under the control of a Caddi. There were also men designated as Canahas and Chayas, who helped the Caddi run the system.

History

During the 17th century, the Hasinai traded with the Jumano at the western Hasinai city of Nabedache. Some consider the residents of Nabedache to have been a distinct people designated by that name.

Historic populations

It is estimated that in 1520, the people who would become the Hasinai, the

Kadohadacho The Kadohadacho (Caddo: Kadawdáachuh) are a Native American tribe within the Caddo Confederacy. Today they are enrolled in the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma. History The Kadohadacho traditionally lived at the borders of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and ...

and the Natchitoches, numbered about 250,000. Over the next 250 years, the population of these Caddoan-speaking peoples was severely reduced by epidemics of endemic diseases carried by Spanish and French colonists and spread through indigenous trading networks. Native Americans had no acquired immunity to the new diseases, and suffered high mortality. In 1690, the Hasinai numbered in the vicinity of 10,000 people or a little more. By 1720, as a result of infectious diseases such as

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

, the Hasinai population had fallen to 2,000.Anderson, ''The Indian Southwest'', p. 57

Closely related peoples

Arikara The Arikara ( ), also known as Sahnish,
''Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation.'' (Retrieved Sep 29, 2011) ...

Chitimacha The Chitimacha ( ; or ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands in Louisiana. They are a federally recognized tribe, the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana. The Chitimacha have an Indian reservation in St. Mary Parish near Charento ...

* Natchitoches *

Pawnee Pawnee initially refers to a Native American people and its language: * Pawnee people * Pawnee language Pawnee is also the name of several places in the United States: * Pawnee, Illinois * Pawnee, Kansas * Pawnee, Missouri * Pawnee City, Nebraska * ...

* Tula

Notes

References

* Edmonds, Randlett. ''Nusht'uhtiʔtiʔ Hasinay: Caddo Phrasebook''. Richardson, TX: Various Indian Peoples Publishing, 2003. .

External links

The Hasinai Society of the Caddo Nation

Tides.sfasu.ed−Texas Tides: Location of the Tribes of the Hasinai Confederacy in 1716

Texasbeyondhistory.net: Life and Times of the Caddo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasinai Caddoan peoples Native American tribes in Oklahoma Native American tribes in Texas Native American history of Texas