The Wichita People
By: Shania Khan 4th
The wichita people
The Wichita people were short and had tan skin. They traveled a lot and they liked to farm.
They lived in the North Central region.
The men called themselves something that meant "raccoon eyes" because they had tattoos around their eyes.
They were farmers and hunters
The women tattooed themselves with zig-zag lines, circles and triangles.
They cooked, cleaned, and took care of the kids.
Shelter
The Wichita people lived in tipis. They lived in tipis because they were nomatic, and tipis are easy to pack up and carry to their next location. Some also lived in grass houses.
A tipi is a cone shaped tent made of wooden poles covered with animal skin.
Culture
They have one chief, who is in charge of everyone in the tribe.
The chief tells everyone what to do and is in charge of keeping them safe.
Their main job was to farm. The men would go out and farm all day. During the winter, they would hunt for buffalos.
The women were in charge of cooking.
The Wichita people liked to party and celebrate often, they would have little group gatherings and have a feast.
Every time they have a celebration or feast they all have certain tattoos painted all over their faces and body.
Clothing
breechcloth
Usually only men wore this. Breechcloth is another word for loincloth which means a single piece of cloth wrapped around the waist, mostly worn by men.
Poncho tops
They made these from woven fiber and deer skin.
Moccasins
They wore moccasins during the cold season to keep their feet warm. They made these out of buffalo and deer skin.
Food
The Wichita people ate:
- corn
- pumpkins
- squash
- melons
- beans
- buffalos
They always chose to live near a river, but they rarely ate fish. Everything they ate, was freshly grown by themselves.