﻿42 
  

  

  THE 
  OMAHA 
  TRIBE 
  

  

  [ETIi. 
  ANN. 
  27 
  

  

  the 
  Ponca 
  give 
  the 
  name 
  hu'thuga, 
  the 
  word 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  Omaha 
  

  

  also 
  to 
  designate 
  their 
  tribal 
  circle. 
  

  

  Rites 
  and 
  Customs 
  of 
  the 
  (Jentes 
  

  

  1. 
  waca'be 
  gens 
  

  

  To 
  the 
  Hi'cada 
  subgens 
  of 
  the 
  Wa- 
  

   ca'be 
  gens 
  belonged 
  the 
  keeping 
  of 
  the 
  

   ritual 
  songs 
  sung 
  at 
  the 
  ceremony 
  hold 
  

   when 
  the 
  first 
  thunder 
  was 
  heard 
  in 
  

   the 
  spring. 
  This 
  subgens, 
  whose 
  tabu 
  

   was 
  birds, 
  was 
  spoken 
  of 
  as 
  the 
  Eagle, 
  

   group 
  of 
  the 
  gens, 
  and 
  the 
  people 
  were 
  

   supposed 
  to 
  be 
  connected 
  with 
  thun- 
  

   der. 
  At 
  death 
  they 
  went 
  to 
  the 
  thun- 
  

   der 
  villages, 
  and 
  their 
  voices 
  would 
  be 
  

   heard 
  in 
  the 
  thunder-storms. 
  They 
  

   were 
  forbidden 
  to 
  climb 
  trees, 
  as 
  by 
  so 
  

   doing 
  they 
  would 
  be 
  going 
  upward, 
  thus 
  

   Thi'xida; 
  tabu, 
  blood, 
  (b) 
  i-gtho-'ci^ne- 
  anticipating 
  their 
  deaths 
  and 
  therefore 
  

  

  deweti 
  (ing1h>"'<;in<;nca'c, 
  puma; 
  weti, 
  to 
  . 
  . 
  . 
  . 
  .. 
  T 
  . 
  . 
  . 
  

  

  shortening 
  their 
  lives. 
  In 
  the 
  legend 
  

   (see 
  p. 
  48) 
  the 
  people 
  of 
  this 
  gens 
  were 
  

   said 
  to 
  wear 
  wreaths 
  of 
  cedar 
  ; 
  in 
  all 
  the 
  

   cognate 
  tribes 
  cedar 
  was 
  associated 
  

   with 
  thunder 
  rites 
  (note 
  the 
  Ni'ka 
  

   wako 
  n 
  dagi 
  of 
  the 
  Osage 
  (p. 
  60) 
  ; 
  the 
  

   Cedar 
  Pole 
  of 
  the 
  Omaha 
  (p. 
  229) 
  ; 
  the 
  

   association 
  of 
  the 
  bear 
  and 
  the 
  eagle 
  in 
  

   the 
  Tha'tada 
  gens 
  of 
  the 
  Omaha 
  (p. 
  1 
  59) 
  ; 
  

   also 
  the 
  connection 
  of 
  thunder 
  with 
  war 
  

   and 
  of 
  the 
  eagle 
  with 
  war 
  and 
  thun- 
  

   der. 
  The 
  position 
  of 
  the 
  Waca'be 
  gens 
  

   in 
  the 
  Ponca 
  tribal 
  

  

  Fig. 
  2. 
  DiagTam 
  of 
  Ponca 
  hu'thuga. 
  

  

  1. 
  Waca'be. 
  Black 
  bear. 
  Subgentes: 
  (a) 
  

   Waca'be; 
  tabu, 
  fat 
  of 
  the 
  black 
  bear. 
  (6) 
  

   Hi'cada 
  (stretched, 
  referring 
  to 
  the 
  stretch 
  

   of 
  the 
  legs 
  in 
  running); 
  tabu, 
  birds. 
  2. 
  

   Thi'xida. 
  Meaning 
  lost. 
  Subgentes; 
  (a) 
  

  

  dwell 
  in); 
  tabu, 
  blue 
  (or 
  green) 
  paint. 
  3. 
  

   Ni'kapashna. 
  A 
  man's 
  skull. 
  Subgentes: 
  

   (a) 
  Taha'to" 
  itazhi 
  (la, 
  deer; 
  ha, 
  skin; 
  to", 
  

   possess; 
  i'tazhi, 
  do 
  not 
  touch); 
  tabu, 
  deer. 
  

   (6) 
  Teci 
  Q 
  'de 
  itazhi 
  (te, 
  buffalo; 
  c/"'<i<, 
  

   tail; 
  itazhi, 
  do 
  not 
  touch); 
  tabu, 
  buffalo 
  

   tail. 
  4. 
  Pc^'caxti. 
  Real 
  or 
  original 
  Ponca. 
  

   Subgentes: 
  (a) 
  Po"'eaxti; 
  (6) 
  Mo°ko"' 
  

   (mystery 
  or 
  medicine); 
  one 
  tabu, 
  buffalo 
  

   head. 
  5. 
  Washa'be. 
  A 
  dark 
  object, 
  as 
  seen 
  

   against 
  the 
  horizon: 
  tabu, 
  skin 
  of 
  buf- 
  

   falo 
  calf. 
  6. 
  Wazha'zhe. 
  An 
  old 
  term. 
  

   Subgentes: 
  (a) 
  Wazha'zhe 
  (real 
  Wa- 
  

   zha'zhe^ 
  name 
  said 
  to 
  refer 
  to 
  the 
  snake 
  

   after 
  shedding 
  old 
  skin 
  and 
  again 
  in 
  full 
  

   power, 
  (b) 
  Wazha'zhexude 
  (gray 
  Wa- 
  

   zha'zhe); 
  refers 
  to 
  the 
  grayish 
  appearance 
  of 
  

   the 
  snake's 
  cast-off 
  skin; 
  one 
  tabu, 
  snakes. 
  

   7. 
  Nu'xe. 
  Ice: 
  tabu, 
  male 
  buffalo. 
  

  

  circle 
  was 
  similar 
  to 
  

   that 
  of 
  the 
  We'zlii 
  n 
  shte 
  gens 
  in 
  the 
  Omaha 
  tribal 
  

   circle, 
  which 
  was 
  also 
  associated 
  with 
  thunder. 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  a 
  custom 
  in 
  the 
  Ponca 
  tribe 
  for 
  each 
  gens 
  

   to 
  have 
  its 
  peculiar 
  manner 
  of 
  marking 
  arrows, 
  so 
  

   there 
  should 
  be 
  no 
  dispute 
  in 
  hunting 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  gens 
  

   ti 
  ) 
  which 
  a 
  fatal 
  arrow 
  belonged. 
  This 
  mark, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  did 
  not 
  exclude, 
  or 
  interfere 
  with 
  a 
  man's 
  pri- 
  

   vate 
  mark. 
  The 
  arrow 
  of 
  the 
  Waca'be 
  had 
  the 
  

   shaft 
  red 
  about 
  one-half 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  the 
  feathers. 
  

  

  The 
  symbolic 
  cut 
  of 
  the 
  children's 
  hair 
  consisted 
  in 
  closely 
  crop- 
  

   ping 
  one 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  head 
  and 
  leaving 
  the 
  other 
  side 
  untouched 
  to 
  the 
  

   neck 
  (fig. 
  3.) 
  

  

  Fig. 
  3. 
  Cut 
  of 
  hair, 
  Wa- 
  

   ca'be 
  gens 
  (Ponca). 
  

  

  