Location: Nebraska
The Skidi Pawnee, or the Wolf Pawnee are one of the four confederated bands in the Pawnee Nation. The Skidi band at one time consisted of nineteen separate villages along the Loup River in central Nebraska. They lived there until, in 1858, they joined the three other Pawnee bands to live on a reservation in southern Nebraska. Several years later they were relocated to Oklahoma. The Skidi are much like the other Pawnee in habitation and dress but their social organization is quite unique.
The Skidi lived in earth lodges but also used conical tipis made of buffalo hide. The earth lodge was usually a dome-shaped structure about 40 feet in diameter and 15 feet tall. On the east side there was a passageway entrance about 12 feet tall, 7 feet wide, and 8 feet long. On the west side was kept the wiharu, or sacred altar. This altar consisted of a buffalo skull facing the entrance of the lodge and a sacred bundle or other religious items hanging from the ceiling of the lodge. During the winter a sweat lodge was built on the north side. On the south side food and provisions were stored underground. Sleeping platforms made of willow rods and woven reed mats were set up along the north and south sides. The actual bed was a tanned buffalo robe and a pillow of smoke-tanned hide stuffed with deer or antelope hair. The Skidi only used tipis in the summer months for following the buffalo herds; the use of both of these types of homes was mostly a luxury of the well-to-do.
The Skidi dressed similarly to other plains tribes, but they were known for, like the other Pawnee bands, the distinct way the men wore their hair. Skidi Pawnee men usually wore just a loincloth and moccasins the summer, but in the winter they added leggings and a buffalo robe. Women wore a dress of tanned buffalo hide, leggings, and moccasins. Both men and women pierced their ears and wore many earrings. The men plucked all the hair from their faces and shaved their heads except for a ridge down the center that they would sometimes spike up with buffalo grease for certain occasions.
The Skidi’s social organization was based on rank, not clan. In each of the nineteen villages there was a chief, usually the son of the chief before him. Next in rank were the four Nahikuts, or braves who would settle disputes among the villagers. Then came the four Kurahoos, or priests who were in charge of religious ceremonies. Also, there were the Kurau, or medicine men. Next in rank were the Narawiraris, or warriors who had proven themselves in battle. Finally there was the rest of the village including those with no rank and the poor. The Skidi Pawnee, even though their numbers have shrunk, still make valuable contributions to our society today.
Dorsey, George Amos. Traditions of the Skidi
Pawnee. New York: Kraus Reprint Co., 1969.
“Pawnee Nation of
Oklahoma.” Pawnee Nation Housing Authority Website. 3 June, 1999.
http:/pawneenation.com/ 16 Oct. 1999
Written by: Christina Berberich