Sometimes spelled Arapahoe, the Arapaho historically inhabited the Plains areas of Colorado and Wyoming.
The Arapaho were closely allied with the Cheyenne, and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota Sioux. By the 1850s, the Arapaho divided into two tribes, the Northern Arapaho and the Southern Arapaho. Since 1878, the Northern Arapaho have lived with the Eastern Shoshone on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming, and are federally recognized as the Arapahoe Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, while the Southern Arapaho live with the Southern Cheyenne in Oklahoma, where they are enrolled as the federally recognized Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes.
Besides Wyoming and Oklahoma, significant populations of Arapaho reside in Colorado and Nebraska.
The ancestors of the Arapaho are believed to have been among those who migrated from Asia across the Bering Strait, while it was a land mass, arriving on the North American continent about 15,000 years ago.
According to oral tradition, the Arapaho lived in the Great Lakes region before Europeans began coming to the continent. There, they lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle with some agriculture, namely the "three sisters" of corn, squash, and beans.
As Europeans, originally the French, began coming into the Great Lakes region, supplying some of their enemies with firearms, the Arapaho began moving West, eventually finding their way to the Great Plains. The Lewis and Clark expedition encountered some Arapaho people in Colorado in 1804.
By then, they had acquired horses and firearms but continued to use their bows and arrows for hunting buffalo, which provided them with food, clothing, shelter, and tools. By the 19th century, several Arapaho were in the Rocky Mountains.
Sometime in the 1810s, the Arapaho entered into a strong alliance with the Cheyenne. By the middle of the 1820s, the Lakota, Dakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho had pushed the Kiowas and Comanches to the south, although the Arapaho soon made peace with these tribes, as well. One Arapaho tribe became so closely allied with the Comanche that they were adopted into the tribe, becoming a band of Comanche known as Saria Tʉhka.
For quite some time, the Arapaho had good relations with European-American traders and explorers in the Plains region, exchanging bison hides and beaver pelts for firearms and other European goods.
The Arapaho were a warrior culture, however. Most young Arapaho strived to become warriors, which was increasingly done on horseback. Besides making war, Arapaho warriors were responsible for keeping the peace among the camps and between bands and tribes, as well as providing food and security.
Arapaho warriors often painted their faces and bodies, as well as their horses, with war paint. This was believed to provide spiritual power. Feathers were used as symbols of prestige. War chiefs were not elected but chosen for their accomplished acts of bravery in battle, which included counting coups, which could involve touching a living enemy, stealing a weapon from an enemy's grasp, or stealing a horse undetected.
As more and more miners and settlers began coming into the territory, killing buffalo and claiming land, a series of skirmishes led to wars. Toward the end of the American Civil War, and afterward, the U.S. government entered into a campaign that appeared to be a war of extermination against American Indian tribes in the region. The Sand Creek Massacre, in which U.S. troops massacred a village of Cheyenne and Arapaho, led to a series of Indian Wars on the Southern Plains, in which the Arapaho participated, such as Red Cloud's War (1866-1868) and the Great Sioux War (1876-1877), which included the Battle of the Little Bighorn on June 25-26, 1876.
In the late 1880s, the U.S. government divided the Arapaho into two groups: Northern and Southern. The Southern Arapaho were joined with the Southern Cheyenne on the Cheyenne and Arapaho Indian Reservation in Oklahoma, while the Northern Arapaho shared the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming with the Eastern Shoshone.
The Arapaho continue to maintain some of their traditions. Like other American Indian tribes, their language and culture were greatly harmed by forced schools, located well away from the reservation, and designed to assimilate Native American youth into white culture.
There are two Arapaho dialects. The Northern Arapaho has about 200 native speakers, mostly on the Wind River Indian Reservation, and the Southern Arapaho, which has only a handful of native speakers in their 80s or older.
Today, the Arapaho practice a variety of religions, including Christianity, peyotism, and traditional animism.
At the time of the 2010 census, fewer than 11,000 people self-identified as Arapaho, while another 6,000 identified as both Cheyenne and Arapaho.
Topics related to the Arapaho are the focus of this portion of our web guide.
Recommended Resources
Situated in western Oklahoma, the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes are a united, federally recognized tribe of Southern Arapaho and Southern Cheyenne people. Although the Arapaho and Cheyenne are two distinct tribes with distinct histories, they have long been allied. Its administrative offices, educational, health, business, transportation, labor, social services, and elder services are highlighted, along with information about its language and culture. Contacts are included.
https://www.cheyenneandarapaho-nsn.gov/
With locations throughout Oklahoma, Lucky Star Casinos are owned and operated by the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, which operates more than 3,500 slot machines in Oklahoma, as well as table games like blackjack, roulette, and craps. Each of its casinos has full-service and quick-bite restaurants and delis, and its Concho and Watonga locations feature the Box Car Brewery, with hand-crafted beer. Its guest accommodations, concerts, and rewards programs are featured.
https://www.luckystarcasino.org/
National Park Service: Sand Creek Massacre
On November 29, 1864, Chiefs Black Kettle, White Antelope, Left Hand, and others were encamped with about 750 Arapaho and Cheyenne people in a valley by the Big Sandy Creek. They were there in response to a proclamation by the Governor of the Territory of Colorado for the Cheyenne and Arapaho to seek safety and supplies at Fort Lyon. Instead, they were attacked and massacred by the U.S. Cavalry early in the morning. The National Historic Site recognizes the significance of these events.
https://www.nps.gov/sand/
The Northern Arapaho Tribe of Wyoming is one of four groups of Arapaho who originally inhabited the headwaters of the Arkansas and Platte Rivers. Located between the Wind River Range and the Owl Creek Mountains, its 2.2 million acre reserve is shared by the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho. Its location is shown here, along with several photographs, videos, and a history of the Arapaho. The tribal government, tribal programs, and tribal code are posted, and contacts are provided.
https://www.northernarapaho.com/
Sand Creek Massacre Foundation
On November 29, 1864, 675 U.S. Cavalrymen attacked a Cheyenne and Arapaho village, killing 230 people, mostly women, children, and elders at Big Sandy Creek. The Foundation is a non-profit partner of the Sand Creek Massacre Historic Site, furthering its educational purposes. Its board, advisors, and partners are introduced, along with publications, events, and historical information about the events and those preceding it, as well as the aftermath. Contacts are posted.
https://www.sandcreekmassacrefoundation.org/
In 1979, the Northern Arapaho General Council created Sky People Higher Education to promote the higher educational needs of the Northern Arapaho Tribe. Scholarship funds help provide for portions of a student's budget costs for tuition, fees, books, school supplies, room and board, continuing and adult education classes, and applying for other scholarships and programs in higher education. Its goals, contacts, and a downloadable handbook are available on the site.
http://skypeopleed.org/
