Cayuse people

The Cayuse, whose name probably derived for stones or rocks from the French-Canadian word cailloux, were a Native American tribe in the Columbia Plateau in the northwest of the United States of America. The Cayuse called themselves how many indigenous peoples of the Americas, simply Te - taw -ken - ' We the people '.

Prior to the submission by the whites Cayuse lived in northeastern Oregon as neighbors of the Umatilla and Nez Perce. As the Nez Perce were the Cayuse successful horse breeder, and to this day carries a breed its name.

History

Until the forties of the 19th century, the Cayuse were a feared among the smaller tribes of the area strain. They also performed as middlemen in trade with other tribes. By 1847 a measles epidemic gathered up a large part of the tribe then and only left about 400 survivors. Then killed the Cayuse in the field of Sahaptin in the " Whitman Massacre " the missionary Marcus Whitman and his family, whom they held responsible for the measles epidemic. Due to the high losses caused by measles and by fighting with the whites, the Cayuse were finally forced the United States to sign a peace treaty and move to the Umatilla Reservation.

Today

Today there is no Indian tribe, the Cayuse more. The survivors went to the other tribes of the reserve, the Walla Walla and the Umatilla, on and are now among the so-called " Umatilla Confederated Tribes ".

Language

The language of the Cayuse, which is referred to as Waiilatpuan, is now regarded as isolated and extinct - in 1805 spoke most Cayuse the dialect of the Lower Nez Percé.

Others

The Cayuse are also named after a military helicopter of the United States Army, as part of the practice: to call the Hughes OH -6 " Cayuse " helicopter types with names of Indian tribes.