Comanche Research Paper free essay sample

How often does someone come across such a puzzling and unusual aspect of his/her background? I always thought that I was just half-Korean and half-White, but learning that I am also Native American really got my gears turning as far as learning more about my ancestral background. My dad told me about how Cynthia Ann Parker, Quanah’s mother, was captured as a hostage at age nine. At first she was treated horribly; she was beaten and starved on a daily basis, but after marrying Peta Nacona, the chief, she became an integrated part of the Comanche and adopted their ways. She denied all requests from her White family to return to them because she had fallen in love with the land, the community, and the lifestyle of the Comanche (Williams, â€Å"Cynthia Ann Parker†). I found this fact very interesting because the basis of all the stories between Whites and Indians that I have heard always included hatred between the two races. Having just a brief introduction into my Native background, I now have the opportunity to write a research paper and really analyze my ancestry. The only thing that I knew about the Comanche prior to this research paper was that they were known as the most violent and brutal of all Indians and that they were the finest horsemen of all other tribes (Moore, â€Å"The Texas Comanches†). I found that there was so much more to the Comanche than my initial stereotypes. My goal in writing this research paper is to further understand the violent and mysterious history of the Comanche people and to try and seek out a softer and more traditional side of this otherwise savage tribe. II. Background Information To be able to understand the Comanche Indians completely, one must learn their history. It is important to learn about the wars they fought, the foods they ate, and the land they thrived on. In this section of my essay, I will assess the Comanche’s lifestyle from their separation from the Shoshone to their surrender to the U. S. However, before I go into the more gruesome details, I have to explain the origin of the Comanche. When I heard the word â€Å"Comanche†, I quickly wanted to know what it meant. Although the origin of the word is uncertain, the most likely explanation is that it was a Spanish corruption of their Ute name, Kohmahts, which means â€Å"those who are against us† (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). In their own language, Numic, the Comanche referred to themselves as â€Å"Nemene† or ‘the people’, but to surrounding tribes, the Comanche had various names, such as Bodalk Inago (snake men) from the Kiowa, Catha (having many horses) from the Arapaho, Shishinowutz-hitaneo (snake) from the Cheyenne, and Gyaiko (enemy) from the Kiowa (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). The Comanche name has been interpreted in many ways, and each individual tribe from all around the Plains had a different name to call the Comanche, many referring to them as ‘the enemy’. But the Comanche had more to their lives and culture than their name entails. The Comanche came from what is now northeastern Wyoming, and they were originally part of the Shoshone Indians, but after stealing horses from Spanish settlements in 1640, bands of Comanche separated from the Shoshone and moved toward the Southern Plains to see if they could prosper as a separate tribe. When the Comanche first separated from the Shoshone, their population was estimated to be around 10,000, but throughout their migration, their population grew to as high as 20,000. Anthropologists believe that the reason for this sudden jump in population is because travelling Eastern Shoshoni joined them, and in addition, many women and children were kidnapped from both rival tribes and Mexican settlements, thus joining their great migration (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). When the Comanche left what is now Wyoming, they left in bands. As a result, the Comanche was not a unified tribe. There were eight to ten individual divisions and sixteen bands (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). Because the Comanche left the Shoshone at different times, they were not one cohesive unit. This made everyday life different for the Comanche. Even though the Comanche are a part of the Native American cultural group, they have not possessed or practiced many of the average traditions that other tribes had. Each of the individual bands had different traditions and different ways of life based off of where they were situated and who their leader was. When someone thinks of an Indian, one may think of headdresses, dancing, campfires, storytelling, and close-knit communities. Not to say that the Comanche did not appreciate these classic symbols of Native American tradition; however, the Comanche’s biggest concerns were hunting, making money, and building their cattle and horse herds. Just like many of the Southern Plain Indians, they were nomadic buffalo hunters; but unlike many tribes, the Comanche were constantly on the move. They did not have much time to dwell on creating long lasting traditions, so in a nutshell, they were, and still are, an anthropological oddity. Many Hollywood films have given the Comanche Indians the stereotypical image of the ‘wild savage’. This may seem harsh, but in many ways, their reputation is deserved. The Comanche stole almost every horse and mule in New Mexico and northern Mexico. Moreover, they degraded the numbers available in Texas. The Comanche were not just thieves; they were murderers and abductors as well. During raids of rival tribes, they would kidnap women and children and sell them to New Mexico as servants, and whomever they had no need for would be killed (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). As the Comanche raised in the rankings of surrounding tribes, the harnessed abilities that the Plains had not yet seen. When the Comanche acquired the horse from the Spaniards, they quickly harnessed its potential, and for their time period, they mastered its abilities. In order for the Comanche to be able to continue to expand their horse empire, they had to learn how to obtain more horses at no cost to them. The Comanche had perfected the art of horse stealing, they even bragged that they â€Å"let† the Spanish remain in their region of the Southern Plains to raise Comanche horses (Ryden, â€Å"The Comanche and His Horse†). Because the Comanche had superb horsemanship skills that no others, including European and Spanish settlers, possessed, this gave them a great advantage in warfare, hunting, and stealing. These abilities gave the Comanche a leg up in the fight to become the kings of the Plains. Between 1700 and 1875 the Comanche battled nearly every tribe in the south plains, including the Crow, Pueblo, Arikara, Lakota, Kansa, Pawnee, Navaho, Apache, Ute, Wichita, Waco, Tonkawa, Osage, Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo, Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Seminole, and Chickasaw. But keep in mind that much of the bloodshed was due to other tribes stealing Comanche horses. Comanche’s also fought the Kiowa, Kiowa-Apache, Cheyenne, and Arapaho but they eventually made peace and formed airtight alliances with other tribes (Sultzman, â€Å"Comanche History†). Historically, the Comanche have been treated like the kings of the land for a few reasons. They were feared for their violent raids, while at the same time, they were also treasured for their skills with horses and cattle. When the first White settlers came to Texas, the Comanche did not faze them because they had already driven out the Apaches and the Mexicans. As a result, they felt they had nothing to worry about (â€Å"The Comanche Indians†). But once the Comanche first raided a White settlement, the Comanche gained respect from some of the Whites, and hostility from others. As a consequence of their actions, the Comanche had a bad reputation, and other tribes, even their own allies, feared them. The Comanche took the settling of the Whites as a mixed blessing. The settlers were a new source of cattle, horses, artillery, foreign goods, and hostages to steal. However, that also meant more people to battle to save their land. Although the Comanche were fearless warriors, they were also lied to and swindled. Like every other Native American tribe in North America, the Comanche eventually lost their battles with the White man. The famous Council House fight in San Antonio in 1840 is often used as an example to show how the Comanche were not always the bad guys. The Texans put up the white flag of surrender to entice 33 Comanche chiefs into town to have a meeting and make peace. The objective of the meeting was for the Texans to get back the hostages that the Comanche’s were holding, but when the Comanche chiefs only brought one hostage, the Texans opened fire, killing them all (â€Å"The Comanche Indians†). This event is the start of the Comanche loosing their land, heritage, and lifestyle. The Comanche’s past was dark, gruesome, violent, and unique. Through all of the raids, battles, and constant travelling, the Comanche managed to keep their independence until the very end when the last Comanche chief, Quanah Parker, finally relieved his tribe into the reservation system on June 2nd, 1875 (â€Å"Quanah Parker†, Lonestar Internet). All of the thieving, battling, and raiding behind the Comanche tribe has shaped their present day lives in ways their ancestors may not have hoped for. III. Life Now Today, there are approximately 10,000 full blooded Comanche Indians left in the U. S. , the majority of them live in Lawton, Oklahoma, while the rest reside in Texas, California, and New Mexico. Although many Indians continue to live on their tribal reservations, the Comanche do not (Quanah Parker, Lone Star Internet). The Comanche have not been â€Å"reservation Indians† since 1901, although many Comanche still live on their parents allotted land. Quanah Parker had no choice but to capitulate to the White man when he realized that there was no other choice. Continual warfare with the U. S. Army forced him and his band — the last free Comanche people — to surrender at Fort Sill in present-day Oklahoma, where they were sent to the Kiowa-Comanche-Apache Indian Reservation. This is no longer a reservation, but it still operates today as The Comanche Nation Complex and a gathering place (Quanah Parker, United States History). Although the historic Comanche people did not have typical traditions and beliefs, every year the Comanche hold a tribal homecoming powwow at The Comanche Nation Complex in Lawton. At the powwow, there is traditional dancing, plenty of tribal food, and contests varying from fashion shows to rodeo activities. The homecoming powwow is the biggest gathering of the year, lasting three days and attracting over 10,000 people, and all of the benefits go towards the Comanche educational system (â€Å"The Comanche Nation of Oklahoma†). Although many Comanche families are very close-knit, the struggle to preserve the Comanche language, Numic, is a huge concern among Comanche elders. Changes in the language began in the late 1800’s when Comanche children were taken from their homes and forcibly placed in boarding schools, where they were discouraged from speaking Numic and were maliciously punished for doing so. Over the past 100 years or so, conservation programs have sprung up sporadically, but typically fail because they are lead by individual tribal members and do not receive enough monetary support; however, in 1993 the Numu Tekwapuha Nomnekatu, which means: Comanche Language and Cultural Preservation Committee, was formed. The Comanche Language and Cultural Preservation Committee were formed with hopes that it could bring back Numic to a â€Å"living language† (â€Å"The Comanche Language†). Finding information on the Comanche in present day was extremely difficult. Because the Comanche are not reservation Indians, the government does not keep close track of their social status and the official Comanche Nation website does not mention current traditions and beliefs and whether their traditions and beliefs have changed over the course of time. Combing over dozens of websites for useful information, I found mostly information about language preservation. With further research, I hope to find the Comanche’s true social status for 2010/2011. IV. Influences From my research, I have learned that the Comanche have not really had a great influence on United States mainstream society as a whole; however, they have had significant influence on the state of Oklahoma. After the Louisiana Purchase, the Five Civilized Tribes (i. e. Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole) were relocated from the southeastern part of the United States to Indian Territory.