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Ancient History in the New World: Integrating Oral Traditions and the Archaeological Record in Deep Time Author(s): Roger C. Echo-Hawk Source: American Antiquity, Vol. 65, No. 2 (Apr., 2000), pp. 267-290 Published by: Society for American Archaeology Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2694059 Accessed: 15/09/2010 20:00

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http://links.jstor.org ANCIENT HISTORY IN THE NEW WORLD: INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD IN DEEP TIME

Roger C. Echo-Hawk

Oral traditionsprovide a viable source of informationabout historical settings dating backfar in time-a fact that has gained increasing recognition in North America, although archaeologists and other scholars typically give minimal attention to this data. The Native American Graves Protection and RepatriationAct (NAGPRA)lists oral traditions as a source of evidence that must be considered by museumandfederal agency officials in makingfindings of cultural affiliation between ancient and mod- ern Native American communities.This paper sets forth the NAGPRAstandards and presents an analytical framework under which scholars can proceed with evaluation of historicity in verbal recordsof the ancient past. The authorfocuses on anArikara narrative and argues that it presents a summaryof human history in the New Worldfrom initial settlement up to the founding of the Arikara homeland in North Dakota. Oral records and the archaeological record describe a shared past and should be viewed as natural partners in post-NAGPRAAmerica. In conceptual terms, scholarship on the past should revisit the biblio- centric assumptions of "prehistory,"and pursue, instead, the study of "ancient American history"-an approach that treats oral documentsas respectable siblings of written documents.

Las tradicionesorales proveen un manatial de informaci6nsobre escenas historicas muy antiguas-una realidadque ha aumen- tado en reconocimientoen NorteAmerica, aunque arqueologos y otros academicos tipicamentele prestan atencidnminima a estos datos. La ley de repatriaciony protecci6n de tumbasindigenas de 1990 lista tradicionesorales como evidencia que debe consid- erar se en el establemientode afiliaci6n cultural entre las comunidadesindigenas del pasado y las de tiempomoderno. Museos, agenciasfederales, tribus indigenasy academicos en los Estados Unidos confrontanun reto especial en dirigir este aspecto de la ley porque existpoca direccion en el uso efectivo de tradicionesorales en el estudio de epocas antiguas. Este articulofija el estdn- dar de la ley de 1990, y tambkenpresenta una estructuraanalitico, donde se puede proceder con la evaluaci6n de la historicidad en el testimonioverbal del pasado. Enfocdndoseen la le yenda de origen de los Indios Arikaray otras narraciones indigenas, el autor enseha como testimoniesorales dan luz a la historia humanaen una epoca muy antigua-en este caso, de la poblaci6n ini- cial del Nuevo Mundo un tiempo reciente en los grandes llanos. Este andlisis tiene implicaciones importantespara la construc- ci6n de modelos de la historia humana.Los testimoniesoral y arqueol6gicose deben ver como complementosla ley de 1990. Esta perspectiva coneptualizaa la historia indigena norteamericanacomo dependienteno solo en documentosescritos una disciplina pero en tradicionesorales.

T hroughout the twentiethcentury, a complex NativeAmerican Graves Protection and Repatriation dialogue on the cultural world of ancient Act (NAGPRA),Congress entrustedfederal agen- NorthAmerica has emergedfrom archaeol- cies and museumswith a mandateto evaluaterela- ogy andother disciplines, unfolding from a vastspec- tionships between ancient and modern Indian trum of journals, books, technical reports, and societies.It is no wonderthat archaeology has played popularmedia. Throughthe developmentof taxo- a prominentrole in this process.The NAGPRAcon- nomic systems and the analysis of artifactassem- cept of "culturalaffiliation" requires that the formal blages and sites, an ever-growing community of affirmationof connectionsbetween groups be based scholars has sought to define culturalunits in the upon a review of readily available evidence, and American archaeologicalrecord, understandrela- archaeologycontributes a valuablesource of infor- tionships between them, and trace processes of mationfor thispurpose. NAGPRA also lists oraltra- change over time. With the passage of the 1990 ditionsas a sourceof evidenceon culturalaffiliations.

Roger C. Echo-Hawk * Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway,Denver, CO 80204-2788 AmericanAntiquity, 65(2), 2000, pp. 267-290 Copyright( 2000 by the Society for AmericanArchaeology

267 268 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000

Verbal literaturesraise a special challenge for ture of great vitality investigatesthe commingled museumand tribal officials who may havelittle com- roots of the modem Arikara,Pawnee, Wichita, and mon groundin assessing such informationfor evi- othergroups, and the verbal literatures of thesegroups dence on ancient history. Although the academic reflecta similarlycomplex history. Linked by a com- communityand NativeAmericans have embraceda mon linguisticheritage, as well as by materialcul- broadspectrum of attitudestoward historicity in oral ture and lifeways, the shared history of diverse literature,extreme perspectives have tendedto dom- populations of the Central and Southern Plains inate discoursebetween these groups.In this polar- extendsinto deep time, revealedin bothoral records ized world, tribal historiansand religious leaders andthe archaeologicalrecord. As a matterof careful frequentlyrely on oraltraditions as literalrecords of scholarship,a rangeof useful analyticaltools can be ancienthistory, while most academically trained schol- appliedto oraltraditions to illuminatetheir historical ars respondwith skepticalrejection of verballitera- content,and under NAGPRA, the carefulstudy of all tureas a vehicle for transmittinguseful information informationcontrols the assessmentof ties among overlong time spans.Tribal leaders, museum admin- modem and ancientNative American communities. istrators,and federalagency officials who may have littleor no backgroundin workingwith oral traditions CulturalAffiliation under NAGPRA are still requiredby NAGPRA,as a practicalmatter, Threecategories of claimantshave standingto assert to renderjudgments and set policies on whatconsti- repatriationclaims underNAGPRA: lineal descen- tutes "evidence."Even partieswho may have every dants,federally recognized Indian tribes, and Native intentionof findingcommon ground face serious prob- Hawaiianorganizations. The rightsspecified for lin- lems in makingeffective use of verbalrecords. eal descendantsin claiminghuman remains and asso- Throughoutmuch of the twentiethcentury, the ciatedfunerary objects reflect the principleaccepted academicstudy of ancientAmerica focused on devel- throughoutAmericansociety that next-of-kin should opingmodels basedon archaeologyand other fields havethe authorityto makesuitable arrangements for of anthropology,with only sporadicattention on oral the dispositionof the remainsof deceased kin. The traditions.The final decades of the century,how- statusof Indiantribes and Native Hawaiians in NAG- ever,saw a dramaticincrease in interestamong schol- PRA is not so much derivedfrom racialclassifica- arsin exploringoral literatures for information about tion as it is drawn from acknowledgmentof the ancientevents, partly as a result of the passage of sovereign rights retainedby these groups in their NAGPRA, but primarilybecause oral documents complexrelationships with the United States.Thus, have potentialfor sheddinglight on historicalset- Native American next-of-kin and sovereign com- tingsdating back far in time, considerablyenriching munities have the ability to assert authorityunder academicconstructions of ancienthuman history. NAGPRAover human remains and associated funer- Theconcept of "prehistory"presumes the absence aryobjects to whichthey can showa connection.This of firsthandwritten records before a specific point connection,"cultural affiliation," has a specificstatu- in time, and the employmentof this terminologyas tory definitionin NAGPRA,with the meaningthat a primarytaxonomic tool suggeststhat oral traditions "thereis a relationshipof sharedgroup identity which eitherdo not containany informationrelevant to the can be reasonablytraced historically or prehistori- time period or that they preservesomething other cally between a present day Indian tribe...and an than"history." The studyof oral traditionshas only identifiableearlier group." recentlybegun to revealthe degree to which verbal NAGPRA requiresthat, following consultation messages can preservefirsthand observations over with affected communities, federal agencies and long spansof time, but it is clear thatoral and writ- museums make findings of culturalaffiliation for ten documentsboth deserve comparablestatus as humanremains and associated funerary objects held recordsthat can be analyzedfor validevidence about in their collections. Federally recognized Native humanhistory. The replacement of "prehistory"with Americancommunities and lineal descendantsnot "ancienthistory" as a conceptualframework would identified and affiliated through this process can recognizeoral traditionsas recordsof history. assemble and present a preponderanceof the evi- In this paper,I exploreaspects of the ancienthis- dence showing a culturalaffiliation. Museum and tory of CaddoanAmerica. An archaeologicallitera- federalagency officials necessarilysit in judgment Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 269 of any such submissionsof evidence by claimants. NAGPRAprevents the existence of multiplecultural A culturalaffiliation under NAGPRA is deemed affiliationsof humanremains and objects to more to have been "reasonablytraced" when it is sup- thanone present-dayNative American tribe. portedby a "preponderanceof the evidence,"con- In short,all informationthat qualifies as legitimate sisting of more than50 percentof the totalrealm of evidencemust be considered,and supportfor a cul- relevantevidence. This evidencecan be drawnfrom turalaffiliation must be basedon an opinionthat this "geographical,kinship, biological, archaeological, evidence tends to favor- even slightly-a connec- anthropological,linguistic, folkloric, oral traditional, tion. The lack of a completechain of connectionis historical, or other relevantinformation or expert not groundsfor denyingthe existenceof a relation- opinion."In U.S. law, evidenceis loosely definedas ship.Moreover, the preponderanceof evidencestan- informationthat supports a conclusion,and in schol- dardpermits affirmation of a culturalaffiliation even arship,evidence is viewed as informationthat has when much uncertaintyexists. In assessingconnec- survivedcritical scrutiny according to applicableaca- tions over time between "culturalunits," archaeolo- demicstandards. Neither environment is particularly gists as a ruleaim for a higherdegree of certaintythan friendly toward unsupported opinion, religious thatcalled for under NAGPRA. That is, in caseswhere belief, or speculation.Proper findings of cultural evidencepoints to a connectionbetween units, archae- affiliationfavor or disfavora relationshipon thebasis ologistsmay be reluctant,as a matterof professional of fair considerationof the full spectrumof readily accountability,to asserta culturalaffiliation between availableevidence. Since evidencecannot be scien- these unitsif the evidencefalls shortof a fairlyhigh tifically quantifiedor weighed, the existence of a standard,such as "beyonda reasonabledoubt." "preponderance"of it must be determinedthrough Mostscholars prefer not to drawconclusions, pub- informedinterpretation. lish findings,or presentconference papers arguing Under regulationsissued by the National Park for culturalconnections on the basis of a mere pre- Service (NPS) in December1995, a culturalaffilia- ponderanceof the evidence. In addition,when evi- tion has been establishedwhen a preponderanceof dencehovers anywhere near the 50%threshold, little the aboveevidence "reasonablyleads to such a con- agreementmay be forthcomingas to which side of clusion."Three criteriahave been set forth which the line the evidenceshould fall. Therefore,it is rea- must be met to supporta findingof culturalaffilia- sonableto wishfor more evidence in handthan NAG- tion.First, a present-dayIndian tribe must have stand- PRA requires in affirming a cultural affiliation. ing to make a claim; in otherwords, claimant tribes NAGPRAis not intentionallydesigned to facilitate need to be federallyrecognized. Second, evidence thesettling of archaeologicaldebates about taxonomy, mustsupport the existenceof an "identifiableearlier althoughit will sparksubstantive refinement of tax- group."Support for theexistence of suchgroups may onomic assignmentsand relationships. The purpose include evidence that 1) establishes the group's of the law is to ensurethat Indiantribes and lineal "identityand cultural characteristics"; 2) shows"dis- descendantshave roles in determiningthe appropri- tinctpatterns of materialculture manufacture and dis- ate dispositionof NativeAmerican human remains tributionmethods"; or 3) establishesthe group"as a andfunerary objects. This respectsthe statusof these biologicallydistinct population." Other unspecified partiesas sovereigngovernments and as next-of-kin. supportfor the existence of the earliergroup also is For Indian tribes, an ideal assertionof cultural permissibleto includeunder these guidelines. Third, affiliationis one basedupon evidence showing some evidencemust show thatboth groupshave a shared formof transmissionof sovereigntyfrom the earlier groupidentity which can be reasonablytraced and groupto the claimanttribe. To the extentthat archae- a preponderanceof theevidence "must establish that ology contributesevidence on connectionsbetween a present-dayIndian tribe ... .has been identifiedfrom groups, the profession should encourage the pro- prehistoricor historictimes to thepresent as descend- duction of technicalreports purposefully useful to ing from the earliergroup." This finding"should be Indian tribes, museums, and federal agencies in based upon an overall evaluationof the totality of implementingNAGPRA. Applying the lower thresh- the circumstancesand evidence pertainingto the old of a preponderanceof theevidence does notmean connection...and should not be precluded solely that a lower standard of scholarship should be because of some gaps in the record."Nothing in employed. The forming of professional opinions 270 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 aboutcultural affiliation must be based on the best rated by other lines of evidence (e.g., archaeo- possible scholarshipno matterwhich thresholdof logical, linguistic, or ethnographic). For most cultural historians it seems fair to say that certaintyis appliedto theresults of research.The pre- myths can indeed provide historical clues if ponderancestandard is primarilyintended to help used judiciously and in conjunction with inde- guidethe comparisonof conflictingevidence; infor- pendentforms of corroboration.(Parks 1985:57) mationthat fails to qualifyas evidencehas no weight underthis standard. Only a small numberof twentieth-centuryschol- Spiritualinformation holds great value to tribes ars have looked to oral traditionsfor insights into since the treatmentof the deadin everyhuman soci- ancient historical events and culturalsettings, but ety is a fundamentallyreligious activity. Such knowl- suchstudies appeared with increasing regularity dur- edge can usefullyguide the developmentof research ing thefinal decades of thecentury (Bacon 1993; Bahr projectsand tribal repatriation agendas, but personal et al. 1994;Begay and Roberts 1996; Benn 1989;Ellis visionaryexperiences of a religiousnature are sub- 1967,1979;Fewkes 1898;Hall 1983,1997; Henning ject to highlyidiosyncratic interpretation and should 1993; Levi 1988; MacGregor 1943; Malotki and not be submittedor acceptedas evidenceon cultural Lomatuway'ma 1987; Mann and Fields 1997; affiliationunder NAGPRA. In mattersof academic Moodie et al. 1992; Patterson-Rudolph1997; Pen- scholarship,spiritual insights and unsupported opin- dergastand Meighan 1959; Schlesier 1987; Sheppard ions-no matterhow popularor strongly stated- 1998;Strong 1934; Teague 1993; Vehik 1993). These typically elude criticalanalysis and cannot qualify publications integrate knowledge derived from as historicalevidence. archaeologywith knowledge from oral traditions, revealing,in some cases, vastly richerdepictions of Oral Traditionsunder NAGPRA Using humanhistory than can be uncoveredthrough the The study of oral literatureas history featurestwo archaeologicalrecord alone or oral traditionsalone. majorsubdivisions: oral history and oral traditions. As a matterof convenienceand necessity, admin- Oral history is best defined as the verbal memoirs istratorsat museumsand federalagencies must rely of firsthandobservers, while oral traditionsare ver- heavily upon archaeologicalliterature as a guide to bal memoirs that firsthandobservers have passed NAGPRA cultural affiliations for ancient human along to others. Oralhistory is the focus of a bona remainsand funerary objects, but the law calls for a fide and well-establishedsegment of the academic new commitmentto investigatingand utilizingoral community,receiving much attentionfrom cultural traditions. Oral traditions must be considered anthropologists,ethnohistorians, and other scholars. togetherwith extantarchaeological, biological, and The investigationof oral traditionsthat pertainto otherpertinent available evidence, and the full weigh- ancientsettings lacks a similarlystrong disciplinary ing of all of this evidencemust establish that it tends infrastructure, but the most widely accepted to favor or disfavora culturalaffiliation. Archaeol- approachfor academicstudy of verballiterature per- ogists andhistorians form conclusions about human tainingto bothshallow time anddeep time is to seek historythrough the analysisof evidencefrom many independentcorroboration of statementsand set- realms of scholarship, and oral traditionsshould tings discussedin oral records(Fentress and Wick- properlybe viewed as simplyone morebody of evi- ham 1992:76-86; Ritchie 1995:95-101). Douglas dence.Opinions will varyin creating,comparing, and Parkshas succinctlycharacterized the range of views weighingcategories of evidence.This process should embracedby anthropologists: therefore ideally include some effort at dialogue Anthropologistsare by no meansin agreement between interestedparties to establish a common on the historicalvalidity of eventsand locations understandingof appropriateapproaches to weigh- occurringin myths.Some, like RobertLowie, ing this evidence. completely rejected all myths as accurate If necessary,it mightbe helpfulto treatthe "archae- sourcesof anyhistorical fact, while others,like ological"evidence as consistingof multipleseparate PaulRadin, believed that historical events and pastcultural patterns can be reconstructedfrom units,such as osteologicalanalysis, radiocarbon dates, myths.Perhaps the majority,though, subscribe mortuarytreatment, and artifactualevidence-with to EdwardSapir's belief thatauthentic informa- oral traditionsincluded as one more additionalcate- tion can be foundin mythswhen it is corrobo- gory, perhapswith its own subdivisions,depending Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 271

uponthe varietyof oraltraditions that can be applied who have studied oral traditionsfor information in a givensituation. Clearly, the weighing of evidence aboutancient times. underNAGPRA can never be a purelyscientific exer- As a generalmatter of academicscholarship, oral cise, with totallyobjective measurements of weight informationis regardedas a weak sourceof evidence assignedto eachapplicable body of evidence.Instead, whenit cannotbe corroborated.One authority on oral the evaluationof the evidencemust be performedin history,Donald Ritchie, observes that "the more con- a mannerthat can be justifiedas reasonable. troversialthe subject,the less an interviewcan stand Assertions of cultural affiliation necessarily alone"-a view aimedat verbal memoirs of firsthand involve the assemblingand interpreting of informa- observers,but which is especially trueof oral tradi- tion,and it is reasonableto approachthis task by scru- tionshanded down from firsthand observers (Ritchie tinizing each element of evidence according to 1995:94, 99-100). If an oral traditionabout ancient applicableacademic standards.A standardrule of times cannotbe supportedby otherevidence, skep- historiographyis thatsource materials, whether con- ticism and even rejectionis warranted.In formulat- sisting of writtenrecords or oral documents,should ing ideas aboutthe past, people are free to adoptan be criticallyevaluated rather than simply taken at face uncriticalapproach to oraltraditions, but when such value. Reconciling data from differentsources and informationis submittedas evidence, then scholars assessingthe reliability of eyewitnessesprovides his- are obligatedto treatit accordingly.The standards torianswith the basic meansof critiquingmaterials, of compatibilityand reasonabilitymay have utility but in situationswhere no otherevidence exists for in salvaging some evidence from oral information comparativepurposes and eyewitnesses cannot be thatcannot be successfullyidentified through more scrutinizedfor reliability,two analyticalstandards, reliablemeans, but critical assessment in scholarship which I term "compatibility"and "reasonability," means that some informationwill be acceptedand can provide minimal assurance of historicity or some will be rejectedas useful evidence. potentialhistoricity. NAGPRA requires the consid- The NAGPRA consultationprocess may elicit erationof oraltraditions that arguably contain actual oral traditionsfrom tribes(in additionto published evidence aboutthe historicalpast. oraltraditions), but the studyof this informationcan First,the historicalcontent of the oral or written yield minimalor questionableresults. For adminis- informationshould be compatiblewith the general tratorswho wish to establish or enhance positive context of humanhistory derivedfrom other types relationshipswith Indian tribes, it will be a challenge of evidence.In cases whereexisting models aresub- to solicit oral traditions,obtain such information, stantiallymodified or overturned,then a rationaljus- andthen do a crediblejob in utilizingit accordingto tification for accepting such changes needs to be applicableacademic standards. The energydevoted presented.In otherwords, if acceptanceof informa- to such effortswill vary and may yield problematic tion from an oral traditionwould generateconflict outcomes, but no archaeologistdeliberately strives with an existing model of historicalsettings based for minimalscholarship as a basis for drawingcon- on osteology, then such acceptance must include clusions.Since NAGPRAcultural affiliations rely on appropriatescholarship that leads to justifiable doubt a preponderanceof evidence based on information as to theosteological evidence. The osteologicalevi- from relevantsources, the law shouldnot be readas dence and the conclusionsbased on it cannot sim- a carte blanche empowermentof the view that all ply be disregarded. oraltraditions ought to be acceptedas literalhistory. Second, the oral informationmust presenta per- Appropriateanalysis can identifythe historicalcon- spectiveon historicalevents that would be accepted tent in oral recordswith at least minimalreliability. by a reasonableobserver. Under this standard, all evi- AnalyticalCriteria for Oral Traditions denceused to constructpast historical settings should pass a level of scrutinythat might be appliedby a In an importantwork that appeared in its mostrecent well-informedthird party with no vested interestin form in 1985, JanVansina, a scholarof Africanhis- the outcome. Defining the standardsthat this edu- tory, arguedthat a "three-tiered"hourglass pattern cated bystanderwould follow may always prove a can be perceived in the preservationof historical matter of art ratherthan science, but presumably informationby oralmeans. In the top portionof this such a person would value guidance from experts hourglass,a great deal of chronologicallyordered 272 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 informationtypically exists that tapersoff in quan- only vague chronologicalindicators in its relation- tity as the storiesmove fartherback in time.The sec- ship to historicalevents mentioned in otheroral tra- ond "tier" is actually a gap of information that ditions of the society in question. Vansinaterms the "floatinggap." The bottom tier Test2. The oraltradition should be presentedin its containsinformation that has been fused into a dis- nativecontext as a storyabout events that are presumed organized period of origins lacking any coherent to be historical.In some cases, a specific elementin sense of relativechronology. This body of knowl- an oral traditionmight be presumedto be historical, edge flares out to encompassa mass of information while the traditionitself is viewed as fictional.For aboutundated events beyond living memory,and as example,we mightagree that Gone with the Windis societiesmove forwardin time, the floatinggap also a workof fiction,whereas a majorevent described in can move forward,with the lower tier in the hour- the story-the CivilWar- actuallyoccurred. glass absorbinginformation that has lost chrono- Test3. The historicalcontent of verballiterature logical specificity. mustbe supportedor verifiedthrough evidence gath- The primaryfocus of Vansina'sOral Traditionas ered from independent,non-verbal sources, such as Historywas on "verbalmessages" concerning events througharchaeological data, written records, or other of recentcenturies, and the authormade no effortto accepted sources of evidence about the historical establishcriteria for determining the possible longevity past.In otherwords, to the greatestdegree possible, of orallytransmitted information. The portionof the the "historical"messages in oral traditionsmust be hourglassthat encompasses discussions of "origins" generallyconsistent with constructionsof the past thushas no definitefloor againstwhich the sandsof thatare based on non-verbalsources and are broadly time fall. WhileVansina warned us thatevents men- viewed as reasonablyacceptable (or at least theo- tionedin "origin"stories may only dateback several reticallypossible) models of the historicalpast. centuriesor less, he also acknowledgedthat "heavily If oral traditions(or specific elementswithin the fossilized"information can persistin origin stories, texts) pass these various tests, then a presumption andsuch traditions "may or may not remain stable over favoringhistoricity can exist-narratives failing the long periods of time" (Vansina1985:21-22). This thirdtest may point the way to neededfuture research underscoresthe fundamental necessity for scholarsto in archaeology.Improbable results from the appli- evaluatethe historicalinformation in a givenoral tra- cationof these tests shouldbe subjectedto the stan- dition by measuring its content, where possible, dardsof compatibilityand reasonabilityfor further againstother relevant data about the past. evaluation.Finally, oral records which have survived On a case-by-casebasis, threemain possibilities long-term social developments may not survive can be saidto exist. First,a given narrativemay have unscathed.Verbal literature represents an inherently been simplymanufactured at some pointin the near malleablemedium of discourse,and changesoccur or distantpast as an entertainingfiction or for other in textual content from generation to generation, nonhistoricalpurposes. Second, a given narrative thoughthe "rate"of such changemay be quite vari- may offer an unadornedaccount of ancienthistori- able.I conceptualizesome of these changesin terms cal eventsor settings,carefully preserved and handed of a "principleof memorability." down over unknownspans of time. Finally,a given My principleof memorabilitypredicts that the narrativemay contain some historicalinformation transmissionof historicaloral traditionsover long thathas become encrustedwith fictionaltrappings. periodsof time will inevitablyintroduce changes to With this rangeof possibilities,how can we distin- texts involvingone or moreof the following factors: guish individualverbal texts? I have identifiedthree 1) elisions,omissions, or conflationswill mostlikely tests as appropriateto this process: serve to enhancethe entertainmentvalue or memo- Test1. The oraltradition or elementof a tradition rable qualityof historicalinformation; 2) the most shouldtend to fit into JanVansina's classification of memorableelements of a historicalnarrative may be a "groupaccount" and/or "traditions of origin and emphasizedat the expense of complex,detailed data; genesis" (Vansina 1985:19-24). In terms of his 3) dataand storiesthat are viewed as importantdoc- "hourglass"pattern, the verbalinformation selected umentsmay incorporateelements that begin as spec- for analysis shouldclearly fall into the bottompor- ulative interpretationand end up as elements that tion of the hourglass;that is, it shouldat best exhibit enhance the entertainmentvalue and color of the Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 273 data/story;4) only those historical stories that are storiescan persist for millennia(Lankford 1987:243; seen as inherentlyvaluable texts and display ele- Thompson 1966:xxi-xxiii; Wiget 1985:6). More- mentsmaking the text morememorable will survive over, a spectrumof oral traditionsfrom aroundthe long transmissionperiods; and 5) informationabout world have potential for shedding light on Pleis- the ancient past will more likely persist if it is tocenesettings (Echo-Hawk 1994). These include the encrustedwith nonhistoricalcultural meanings and enduranceof memoriesof such phenomenaas Arc- narrativeelements that are specific to transmitting tic Circlepatterns of solarmovements, the observed societies. In short,for a verbaltext on ancienthis- transitionfrom Arctic Circle to lower latitudediur- toricalevents to endurefor millennia,it mustbe col- nal/nocturnal cycles, descriptions of permafrost orful as well as explanatory. thawing/freezing,Pleistocene weather patterns, the The principleof memorabilityhelps to explain existence of European and American glacial ice why oral traditionsgenerally do not respectthe ten- sheets, sea-level changes associatedwith ice sheet dency of historiansto hold forth at length in dry expansion and melting, glacial lakes, the onset of detail on obscure events of the past. Over time, Holocene seasonality,and human interactionwith densely"footnoted" verbal narratives must inevitably extinct megafauna.Verbal literature arguably pre- give way before the interpretedversions of story- serves glimpses and echoes of the long-vanished tellers who can enliven the dullest historicalnarra- Pleistocene world of our ancestors, so we should tive by emphasizingits most memorableaspects. also search oral records for perspectiveson more With the principle of memorabilityin mind, it is recenttime periods. unnecessaryto postulatethe existenceof successive Scholarsgenerally do not see value in assessing generationsof carefullytrained oral historianswith oral traditions against an archaeological record eidetic memoriesto explainthe long-termpreserva- extendingback much further in time thana thousand tion and transmissionof verbal information.Sys- years or so, because it is widely assumedthat some tematictraining of oralhistorians does occurin many form of barrieror boundaryprevents information societies,but this may not adequatelyexplain verbal frombeing effectively conveyed into the present from durabilityeven in those situations.It wouldbe a rare distanttime periods. Although scholarship has estab- humansociety thathas ever been wholly withouta lished the malleablenature of verballiterature, it is storyteller,and even a dull storytellercan transmit difficultto find viable argumentsthat set justifiable the specificsof memorablestories. In fact, we might limits of transmissiontime. Most scholarswould be presumethat the very inventionof writtenmethods dismayedto discoverthat little or no supportexists of preservinginformation resulted from social needs in scholarshipthat sustains their favored presumption thatrequired the preservationof informationso dull on the limits of verbal durability,whether the pre- and bland that even the best storytellerscould not sumedlimit is set at 100years or 10,000years beyond hope to retain such dry materialor meet the chal- the living memoryof firsthandobservers. lenge of interestingbored audiences. It is importantto constructa reasonedbasis for All analyticaltools, suchas the standardsof com- determininga possible chronologicalboundary for patibilityand reasonability and the principle of mem- the maximumlength of time thatverbal information orability,have utility only to the degreethat they can of any intricacycan be sustained.To date, where be successfullyemployed to reconcilediverse realms suchboundaries have been drawn, their existence has of informationand help build workablemodels of reliedlargely upon the absenceof demonstrablecon- the past.Archaeologists necessarily have a primary nectionsbetween oral traditions and other acceptable focus on the materialmanifestations of pastpopula- evidence about datable past events. A reasonable tions, but if oral traditionscan be successfullyinte- boundaryfor thelong-term preservation of verballit- grated with the archaeological record, this has eraturemight be linked to the beginningsof com- importantimplications for the construction of ancient plex social interactionrequiring the regulationof historicalsettings. knowledge, and the oldest settings and events dis- playedin humanorigin storiesare bounded by their A Spoken Past artifactualnature as recordsgenerated in communal, The durabilityof oralliteratures is a matterof debate, multigenerational social settings (Echo-Hawk butfolklorists generally accept the idea thatfictional 1994:150-162). 274 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000

On this basis, I speculatethat the majorityof oral undergovarious forms of majorand minorchanges traditionsthat contain historical information gener- in populationcomposition. Oral traditions can erase atedby firsthandobservers can go backno fartherin these complexities,looking into the distantpast to time thanabout 40,000 years, thoughthis boundary see an exact reflectionof a group'scontemporane- mustvary greatly from region to region.Many schol- ous social state, but societies simply do not travel ars suggest thathuman history over the last 40,000 unchangedinto the presentfrom the distantpast. years is primarilya story of sustainedsocial com- Migrationstories constitute a widespreadform of plexity, and this arguesstrongly for the concurrent origin story in North America. Such stories com- preservationof oralinformation. If thelevel of human monly referto multiplelocations as stoppingpoints social interactionup to a given pointin time does not in thejourney of an ancestralgroup - restareas along requirethe preservationand regulationof informa- a migrationsuperhighway. These narrativescan pre- tion, then therecan be little need for the generation serve firsthandobservations of population move- of a literaturethat provides a sense of grouphistory. ments and sojourns of specific tribal groups in Scholarsdo not typicallylook for historyin cre- variouslocalities, but other historical processes might ationand origin stories. In fact,the term "pseudo-his- also be at work. What sounds like one population tory"has been coined as a descriptionthat reflects movingintact from place to place,for example, might the general attitudeof scholars who study Native actually reflect a history in which several groups American stories about human origins (Wheeler- from variouslocations came togetherin some fash- Voegelinand Moore 1957:72).Academic suspicion ion over time. The memoriesof populationsubdivi- of originstories gelled in the views of RobertLowie sions residing at different contemporaneoussites (1917), who issued a scathingdenunciation of oral across a given region might come to be portrayed traditionsas a source of history.Lowie's extreme amongconsolidated descendants as a migration,per- views were not uniformlyendorsed among his col- haps with the storyof one subgroupeventually pre- leagues, but creation/origin stories subsequently served as the history of the whole society. Despite becamethe exclusivedomain of culturalrather than theseproblems of interpretationand theory, it seems historicalscholarship. Analysis of origin storiesfor unlikelythat migration stories were fabricatedfrom cultural content representslegitimate intellectual purelycultural materials, or as colorfulexpressions inquiry,but the identificationof culturalmeanings in of creative imaginings. Since migrationtraditions statementsand scenarios does not automaticallypre- can potentiallyexplain, as well as obscure,a variety clude historicity. The principle of memorability of pastcircumstances, ideal assessments of such sto- expectshistorical elements to betterendure in verbal ries would utilize archaeologicaland other evidence literaturewhen embedded in meaningfulcultural data. to help assess traditionsof populationmovements Oraltraditions, like other forms of information, from one region to another. createa boundedworld in whichsome aspectsof past An extensive body of Caddoancreation, origin, historical processes are illuminated, while other andmigration stories have been published.Scholars aspectsmay be submergedand hidden from view or havesuggested, with varying degrees of caution,that otherwisedistorted. Thus, oral accountsof the past historical settings may be found in these stories do not provideus with the equivalentof a carefully (Blaine 1979;W. Wedel 1979), but few studieshave fossilizedduplication of the structuresof ancienthis- appeared,and archaeologistshave generally given toricalevents. In terms of the known intricaciesof little or no considerationto oraltraditions. It is grad- historicalprocesses that accountfor specific social ually becoming clear, however,that evidence from formationsat any point in time, origin stories may both oral traditionsand the archaeologicalrecord featureechoes of such circumstances,but the prin- can worktogether to morerichly reveal the ancestry ciple of memorabilityexplains how verballytrans- and ancienthistory of CaddoanAmerica. Looking mitteddocuments tend to oversimplifypast settings. westward to the Rocky Mountains and adjoining One indicationof this deceptionat work is thatori- regions, specific details of this historyloom out of gin storiesoften give the impressionthat particular the distantpast. social groupshave moved through time andspace as Talesof Travelers unchangedmonolithic cultural units. Most typically, however, populations intermingle, fission, and A numberof Arikaraorigin stories of severaldiffer- Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 275 ent types have been recordedand published, includ- displeasedwith theirdoings; that now he was to give ing versions of an emergence story (Dorsey and them rules and laws to go by; and that the people Murie 1904a:12-17, 18-23, 23-25, 26-30, 31-32, were to select a manwhose name shouldbe Nesaru, 32-35; Gilmore 1930, 1987:31-32, 173-175, chief' (Dorsey and Murie 1904a:16). 184-188; Grinnell1916:186-194;). In this story,the Arikaratraditional history unfolds as a set ofjour- people emergedfrom the earthand followed Mother neys fromvarious places into the CentralPlains and Corn upon a greatmigration, encountering various then up the Missouri River to their presenthome- obstacles.In one version,the leaderof the "migra- land.These storiesassociate very specific locations tion" was a woman known simply as "Mother" with Arikaraancestors, including Nebraska, South (Dorsey and Murie 1904a:37-38), but most of the Dakota,the RepublicanRiver in Kansas,the Black accountsname Mother Corn as the centralplayer in Hills of South Dakota,the Cross Timbersof Okla- the historicalformation of the Arikaracommunity. homa and Texas, the Rocky Mountains,and possi- In a version published by George Bird Grinnell bly the GrandCanyon andArctic Circle. In searching (1916; also see Grinnellca. 1890:File# 156, "Ree for historicityamong these Arikara migration narra- Cosmology"),the people received assistance for their tives, we should not necessarilylook for the move- journeythrough the gift of a bundleto a young boy, ment of one monolithic Caddoan-speaking andcorn is not mentionedin the narrativeuntil after populationfrom one implied or named location to the arrivalof the Arikarain the CentralPlains (also the next. Interactionamong people of diverse cul- see Dorsey and Murie 1904a:26-30 for compari- tures must accountfor the Arikarapeople at every son). As a group,the extantversions of the Arikara point in time, so it may be moreuseful to searchthe emergence story convey a general impression of places mentionedin the Caddoanorigin stories for somewhatdisordered geographic settings and his- evidence thatpeople in those regionscontributed to torical events floating in time. Ancient humanhis- the formationof laterCaddoan populations. tory unfoldsin a swirl of details. Like theArikara stories, Skidi Pawnee origin sto- In the course of the greatjourney, as the people ries envisiona greatjourney beset with obstacles.In encountereach obstacle,a portionof the population the Pawnee stories, however,Morning Star makes becomes scattered.The barriersgenerally include thejourneyand overcomes various obstacles in com- an impassablebody of water,a great forest, and a pany with Sun, and the two male deities encounter deep canyon, appearingin variableorder, with dif- obstacles that differ greatly from those met by fering descriptions. One story, for example, humansin theArikara story. The significanceof these describes the water as "wide, thick ice and deep differencesin originstories is not immediatelyclear water"(Dorsey and Murie 1904a:33). Anothernar- from the standpointof historicalcontent, but both rativestates that when the people firstemerged from the Arikaraand Skidi origin stories touch upon the the earth, they found themselves on "an island in themeof relationshipsbetween the sexes. The Skidi big waters"(Dorsey and Murie 1904a:28),and after story can be said to emphasizethe deeds of a male crossing over to a place of darkness,they eventu- deity, while the Arikarastory places a female deity ally developeda stonetechnology and emerged from at the center of unfolding events. These elements the darkness. can be investigatedfor coexisting culturaland his- The migrationincludes a periodof sedentarylife, toricalcontent. In termsof history,for example,sto- when the people settleddown "forsome time"after rieson thetheme of genderrelations often interweave passing the third obstacle while Mother Corn the cultivation of corn and the empowermentof "returned to the heavens" (Dorsey and Murie women, andsuch associationscan be investigatedin 1904a:15-16). At this place they learnedto gamble, the archaeologicalrecord. and when players from two differentcommunities People of the AncientBlue Mountains met to compete at "shinnyball and four sticks,"the losers attacked the winners and a pitched battle Sometime around1890, George Bird Grinnellcol- ensued.An alternateversion associated the cessation lected several Arikaraorigin accounts and subse- of fightingwith the foundingof a new social order: quentlypublished them as an emergence/migration "WhenMother-Corn returned from the heavensshe story.This storybegins with a series of movements broughtwith her a man who said that Nesaru was by all of humanity from an undergroundworld 276 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 beyond variousobstacles until the people "cameto mately left the Blue Mountainsand immigratedto some highhills calledthe Blue Mountains..." (Grin- theMissouri River, where they split into the Arikaras, nell 1916:186-194).This published version does not Mandans,and Pawnees,with each groupreceiving stipulatethe location or furtheridentity of the Blue corn of differentsizes. Membersof one of the other Mountains,but the originalmanuscript of this nar- eight groups resided in the Black Hills of South rative,held at the SouthwestMuseum in Los Ange- Dakotaat the time when horses first appeared,and les, specifies that "Blue Mountains"is the Arikara these people subsequentlymoved to join theArikara name for the Rocky Mountains (Grinnell ca. on theMissouri River. In thepublished version, Grin- 1890:File# 156, "Ree Cosmology"). nell excludedmention of the Black Hills group.It is It is not clear why Grinnellexcluded the refer- difficultto match these events to a model in which ence to the Rocky Mountainsfrom the published "Blue Mountains"refers to Blue Butte in North version,but it would have been reasonablefor him Dakota,so for this reason,it is appropriateto inves- to believe thathe was dealing with a tale of largely tigate Grinnell'soriginal presumption that the Blue non-historicalcharacter. He may have felt it appro- Mountainsare the Rocky Mountains. priateto sparehis audiencefrom the distractionof This origin story features minimal explicit ponderingthe apparenthistorical specificity of the chronologicalindicators, and it is clear that it was "RockyMountains" as a locationfor Arikara ances- presentedin its native setting as a historicalnarra- tors in a narrativethat he presumedto be made up tive ratherthan as a fictional story. It is therefore of a mostly imaginedevents or pseudo-history. appropriateto investigatewhether the story can be The referenceto the Rocky Mountainscould be reasonablyreconciled to historical settings of the an errorof some kind, particularlysince no other recentor ancientpast. In otherwords, can otherevi- availableArikara origin story mentions either the dence identifyprobable or possible ancestorsof the Blue Mountainsor the Rocky Mountains.Chester Arikaras,Pawnees, or Mandanssomewhere in the Ellis (personalcommunication 1999) suggests that Rocky Mountains? Grinnell'smention of the Blue Mountainsis proba- It can be suggested,as a beginningpoint, that the bly a referenceto Blue Butte nearMandaree, North storypreserves at least a broadhistorical framework Dakota,rather than the Rocky Mountains.Grinnell in its referencesto a darkorigin point and the Mis- could have dropped the reference to the Rocky souri River. The place of origin, described as an Mountainsfrom the publishedversion because he underworld,can be interpretedas an ancientmem- becameaware in some fashionthat it misrepresented ory of theArctic Circle and the Beringianhomeland the actualstory. Thus, it shouldnot be assumedthat of theancestors of peoplewho settledin NorthAmer- this referenceis historicaland that it refers to the ica duringthe final millenniaof the Pleistocene.A Rocky Mountains.Due to the state of knowledge varietyof origin stories and creationstories world- aboutthe archaeological record for the Rocky Moun- wide have potentialfor relatingto the Pleistocene tainsand adjacent regions at circa 1900,Grinnell was worldscape(Echo-Hawk 1994). Emergenceorigin not in a positionto conductany useful investigation storiesare common throughout North America, with on this point.Before proceedingwith such an inves- most referringto undergroundworlds, while others tigation,it is possible to devise a generaloutline of simply portraya darkregion of earth from which narrativeelements that may be amenableto histori- humansemerge to populatethe earth.One surveyof cal analysis. 120 such storiesfound thatover half were linkedto In the manuscriptversion of the story recorded migration stories (Wheeler-Voegelin and Moore by Grinnell,humanity journeyed forth from a dark 1957:66-67). Scholars generally see purely undergroundworld and encounteredthree major metaphoricalcontent in the emergencetheme (see, obstacles:a large body of water,a thick forest, and for example,Vecsey 1988:34-63), and this also is a huge ravine.After passing beyond the ravine,the the preferredinterpretation of emergenceorigin sto- peopleentered the Blue Mountains,where two gam- riesadopted by someNative American religious lead- blers argued and then fought. This broughtabout ers (Fergusonand Hart 1990:21). divisiveconflict among all thepeople, and some left, I view the theme of emergencefrom an under- eventually separatinginto eight wanderinggroups world/region of darkness, as a distorted remem- that spoke diverselanguages. The ninth groupulti- brance of Beringia and the Arctic Circle. My Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 277

principleof memorabilityexplains why this infor- At the end of the Arikarastory, the MissouriRiver mationwas not handeddown into the presentas an referencemust relate to morerecent historical settings exact, unchangeddescription of Beringia.The his- involvingCaddoans of theCentral Plains tradition and toricalspecificity of a land of lingeringdarkness as Coalescenttradition along the MissouriRiver. a place of origin became preserved as an under- The compatibilityof thisgeneral chronology with world-a conceptthat lends itself moreeasily to cul- knownhistory may distractattention from the degree turallymeaningful metaphorical usage. In termsof to which the episodes of the storyactually represent communityidentity, the preservationof a stricthis- discreteevents thathave become artificiallyassoci- torical accountof Beringiawould serve a less use- ated over time. It also remainspossible that any or ful purpose than the more memorablestory of an all elementsof the storyare better explained as social underworldthat opens convenientlyupon a particu- discoursethat documents cultural behavior, fictional lar homeland. New World origin stories preserve color, or speculative musings ratherthan history. memoriesof ancientBeringia because they areman- Thus, the potential historical significance of the ufacturedfrom preexisting historical narratives rather episodes as well as theirrelationships to each other thanfrom imaginativeconfabulation. Origin stories offer legitimatetopics of inquiry. that associate a place of darknesswith the "first" Althoughthe finalevents of Grinnell'sversion of humansare exceedingly rarein the Old World-a the Arikaraorigin story occur in recentcenturies, it situationthat I explainin historicalterms. is unlikelythat the episodeinvolving residence in the These stories need careful assessmentagainst a Blue Mountainsoccurred in anypostcolumbian time varietyof historicalbackdrops in orderto associate period. No Caddoan or Mandan occupation sites them with specific time periods, but the theme of have been identified for any region of the Rocky darknessoccurs in associationwith a varietyof other Mountains,and no historicaldocuments preserve a elementsthat are congruent with Pleistoceneworld- recordof Arikara,Pawnee, or Mandangroups resid- scapes,so suchconnections must be studied.In light ing in the Rocky Mountains.A non-Caddoangroup of this arguableconnection to the Pleistocene, the residingin the mountainsat ca. 1700 or earliercould referencein theArikara story to a greatbody of water have joined the Arikaraon the MissouriRiver, but, as an obstaclecould representa retainedmemory of aside from the oraltradition, no evidenceof such an thegiant proglacial lakes that formed along the edges event has yet been identified.Whether these moun- of the retreatingice sheets after about 15,000 B.P. tain people were Caddoanspeakers or some other Pawnee storiesassociating a giantbuffalo with cat- group,the implied antiquity of manyof the described astrophicflood events could point to circumstances events suggests that it would not be reasonableto involvingthe formation of GlacialLake Missoula and seek confirmationof the storyby looking for recent Glacial Lake Columbia, and several stories told Caddoanearthlodge cities in the mountains.Sug- amongthe Flatheadand Shoshone also may concern gestedreferences in the storyto thePleistocene world Lake Missoula and its remnant,Flathead Lake in give noticethat some narrativeelements could reflect Montana(Echo-Hawk 1994:186-189). a potentialantiquity dating far back in time. The Arikarastory includes an obstacledescribed Statementsthat can be interpretedas chronolog- variouslyas a "deep chasm" or "deep crevice"or ical markersin the story are sparsebut significant, "deepravine." Given the associationsof underworld providingclues to the antiquityof the residencyin = Beringia,water obstacle = GreatBasin proglacial the Blue Mountains.The occupation of the Blue lakes, and Blue Mountains=RockyMountains, then Mountainsbegan and ended during a time before the impassable chasm must refer to the Grand horsesfirst appeared, so thisportion of the storymust Canyon.Framing the story in terms of a migration be set in some period priorto ca. 1650-1700. The may obscurethe real significanceof "obstacles"as adoptionof ideology associatedwith corn cultiva- reflectingthe geography of theworld known to ances- tion is also said to have occurredafter these moun- tors of the Arikara-a worldbounded by the mem- tainimmigrants settled in the CentralPlains, with the ory of proglaciallakes to the north,great forests to suggestionthat the people were awareof corn when the northwest,the GrandCanyon to the south, and they resided in their high altitudehomeland in the the Rocky Mountainsto the east. Only in deep time Blue Mountains.In addition, the traditionasserts do the obstaclesassume a viablehistorical presence. that the initial settlersof the Blue Mountainswere 278 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000

believed to have given rise to descendantgroups by Black as enjoyingan unbroken,continuous pres- speakingmany mutually unintelligible languages- encein theMiddle Rockies of Montanaand Wyoming in fact, the narrativepurports to describethe earliest for about5,000 years, but in the SouthernRockies, humanoccupation of the region. cultural continuity extends for a much longer The following sequence of events exists in the period-up to aboutA.D. 1300, when the expansion oraltradition: 1) the origins of ancientancestors of of Numicspeakers apparently replaces Mountain tra- manyIndian tribes are associatedwith settingsthat ditioncultures in the archaeologicalrecord. A survey could relate to the terminalPleistocene, including of the distributionin time and space of Paleo Indian a memory of long Beringian arctic nights and a projectilepoints in southwesternColorado led Bon- memoryof proglacialinland seas; 2) at an unknown nie Pitblado(1998) to concludethat the extantpat- date,a populationresiding west of the RockyMoun- tern,although based on limiteddata, provides support tains expandedinto or migratedinto some region for Black's contentionthat the Mountaintradition of the Rockies;3) these settlersof the Rocky Moun- has strongcultural roots in the West. tains contributedto the composition of many dif- Mountaintradition populations maintained a con- ferent later groups; 4) at some point in time, tinuing connectionwith the West, but they are not possibly priorto or duringthe generalperiod of the viewed by Black as culturallyuniform throughout formulationof Mother Corn ideology, this Rocky the millenniaof theirpresence in the archaeological Mountainpopulation helped to form Plains popu- record. Instead,he endorses the view set forth by lations,particularly the Arikara, Pawnees, and Man- J. D. Keyserin a 1985publication, that cultural diver- dans; and 5) a group residing in the Black Hills sity among"local groups" becomes especially appar- joined the Arikaracommunities at the time when ent in the SouthernRockies after 5000 B.P. Black horses first appear.As mentionedearlier, it may be acknowledges(1991:4) that the materialculture of inadvisable to seek an exact description of an Mountaintradition sites bears great similarity to sites unfoldingchronology of episodes in the oral tradi- associatedwith Numic speakers,but he nevertheless tion, but this generaloutline seems reasonableas a defersto theNumic Expansion model of replacement startingpoint for research. of residentMountain tradition populations by Numic As requiredby the standardsof analysisset forth speakinggroups ancestral to the Ute and Shoshone. earlier,confirmation for the scenarioset forthin the Black offers no model for the fate of the Moun- Arikarastory, or elements of it, must be sought in taintradition peoples, nor does he speculateas to the thearchaeological record or other historical evidence. linguisticidentity of thesepopulations. Who didthey The suggested correspondenceof certainnarrative become? If they left their Rocky Mountainhome- elementsto Pleistocene settingsin the GreatBasin land, where did they go? What are the connections would gain substance if evidence were available between the Mountain tradition,Western Pluvial showing that Paleo Indians in the region became Lakestradition, DesertArchaic tradition in the Great ancestralto populationsin the Rocky Mountains- Basin,Numic sites, Osharatradition, Puebloan com- populations who subsequently gave rise to the munities,and otherneighboring groups throughout Arikarain some arguablemanner. As detailedbelow, the Rockies and GreatPlains? The Arikaraoral tra- the basic model of the Arikarastory is strikingly dition suggests thatwe look for archaeologicalevi- compatiblewith currentexplanations of the archae- dence of Mountain traditionpeople entering the ological recordin Colorado. CentralPlains to join the Caddoan-speakingances- tors of the Arikara. TheMountain Tradition Black lists a numberof complexesthat fall under In formulatinga new taxonomic constructfor the the Mountaintradition umbrella, and he lists other centraland southern Rocky Mountains, Kevin Black groups that might belong, but their membershipis (1991) arguesthat about 9500 B.P.,late Paleo Indian in some doubtdue to evidence of having "relation- (WesternPluvial Lakes tradition) populations began ships with low-land-based cultures"-in other to immigratefrom the GreatBasin into the Rocky words, archaeologistshave caughtthem consorting Mountainsas a result of environmentalconditions, with Plains flatlanders. One of these groups is takingup residencethroughout a broadregion from "Woodland/Hogback"in Colorado,considered sus- Montanato Colorado.The Mountain tradition is seen pect because of ceramic technology adoptedfrom Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 279

Plains Woodlandtradition neighbors and from the later radiocarbontests showed this bundle to date succeedingCentral Plains tradition.Along the Col- back to about270 B.C. (Stigerand Larson1992). It oradoFront Range northof Pike's Peak, an evolv- is likely thatMountain tradition people knew of corn. ing mosaic of groups is represented by sites It was firstbrought from Mesoamerica into thenAmer- extendingthroughout eastern and centralColorado, ican Southwestduring the Late Archaic after 1500 identifiedunder various taxonomic schemes as the B.C., and by A.D. 200 it had spread into eastern Hogbackphase or complex. The presence in Hog- NorthAmerica (Cordelland Smith 1996:210-211, back sites of potterythat draws upon ceramictradi- 247). It has a limitedpresence in the foothillsof east- tions of the easternPlains for more than 600 years ernColorado south of ColoradoSprings prior to A.D. suggests a long-termrelationship with neighborsin 200 (Zier and Kalasz 1991), and the earliestknown the CentralPlains. presenceof cornin theheartland of the CentralPlains Definition of the Hogback phase has proven a occurs aboutA.D. 250, but it is not until afterabout challengefor archaeologists,as well as reconciling A.D. 1000 that systematic cultivationof corn and this phase to the morass of taxonomic schemes otherplantsbecame widespread in the CentralPlains appliedto the Coloradoregion. As summarizedby (Adair 1988:114-115), creatingfertile ground for Peter Gleichman, Carol Gleichman, and Sandra MotherCorn ideology. Karhu(Gleichman et al. 1995:122-123), the Hog- If, as the Arikaraoral traditionimplies, Mother back phase spans a time from about A.D. 500 to Corn ideology and some form of migrationwere 1200. This phase includes various sites along the unfoldingduring the same era,then these dates sug- ColoradoFront Range northof Pike's Peak as well gest thatan appropriatetime to look for an emigra- as relatedsites in the mountains.A key characteris- tion from the mountains to the plains would be tic of Hogbacksites is thatthey featurepottery influ- sometime after AD 900. It is therefore proper to enced by technological developments in the east searchthe archaeological record of theRocky Moun- ratherthan the west or south.For this reason,Black tain region for candidatecircumstances that could leaves open the possibilitythat this may representa arguablypertain to the Arikarastory. In the Arikara Plainsgroup rather than an indigenousMountain tra- oral tradition,the people looked out from the Blue dition population. Although the Gleichmans and Mountainsand "saw a beautifulcountry" that seemed Karhuprovide no assessmentas to the originsof the desirableto dwell in, but they decided not to leave Hogback phase, they argue that it represents an theirmountain homeland until a latertime (Grinnell indigenous population that simply imitated the 1916; Grinnellca. 1890:File #156, "Ree Cosmol- ceramictechnology of thePlains Woodland and Cen- ogy"). The people of the Blue Mountainshad an tralPlains tradition. interestin the nearbyplains, and this could reflect a Grinnell'sversion of theArikara story focuses on memory of the Hogback lifestyle, which involved a youngboy who at one pointhad been given a bun- periods of residencein both the mountainsand the dle by the Creator,and at differentpoints, the boy High Plains. opensthe bundle and finds objects that help to resolve The Arikarastory urges us to look for long-term dilemmasof variouskinds. After entering the Plains, historicalprocesses that contributed to the formation the boy findscorn within the bundleand distributes it in the Blue Mountainsof multiplegroups speaking to the Arikaras,Pawnees, and Mandans.This could differentlanguages. On the basis of geographyalone, be readto suggestthat some interaction with corn cul- Puebloan,Caddoan, Numic, andAthapaskangroups tivatorsoccurred while the peopleresided in the Blue all presentthemselves as candidatesfor havingCol- Mountains,but corn only assumedprominence in the oradoMountain tradition ancestry, and modem com- lifewaysof thesepeople after migration into the plains. munities as diverse as the Tewa Pueblos, Navajos, Hogbacksites do notfeature corn horticulture, but Arikaras, Pawnees, Mandans, Hidatsas, Crows, the archaeologicalrecord does indicate that Hog- Hopis, Utes, Shoshonis, Comanches, and others back folk could have been familiarwith corn from could well be descendedfrom various Mountain tra- its presenceamong neighboring groups. During the ditiongroups in Colorado.Pueblo origin stories gen- 1940s Clarence Hurst excavated the Cottonwood erally referto ancestralmovements from the north. Cave site in western Coloradoand found a bundle One Tewa Pueblo oral traditionmentions the Col- containingcorn in a pit cappedby a stone slab, and orado Sand Dunes region as an origin point (Jean- 280 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000

con 1931manuscript: no pagenumber), and Zuni ori- accountsof the past would have ultimatelyfailed to gin accountsassociate one groupof ancestorswith inspiretheir successors to retainsuch information. the Rocky Mountains (Ferguson and Hart 1990:21-23). TheApishapa Phase Standingalone, the archaeologicalrecord is often Connectionsbetween the Arikara oral traditions and hard-pressedto explain the fate of specific groups, the RockyMountain archaeological record are made but for the Mountaintradition some clues are avail- possiblethrough theApishapa phase and possibly the able. Based upon the similarityof materialculture Soprisphase. The Soprisphase (also known as Upper to Numic sites, as well as indicationsof ongoingties Purgatoire complex) flourished during AD of Mountain traditionpeople to neighbors in the 1000-1225, in the vicinity of Trinidad,Colorado GreatBasin, it seems reasonableto presumethat, for (Baugh 1994:273-274; Crum 1996:70-71;). The the most part, Mountain tradition groups were people of the era of the Soprisphase were immedi- absorbedinto the Utes, Shoshones,and other Numic atelypreceded in the archaeologicalrecord by a pop- speaking tribes. One Southern Ute oral tradition ulationthat built pithouses similar to structuresfound places Pike's Peak at the centerof the worldcreated in easternColorado, supporting the idea thatgroups for the Mouache Band (Arbogast et al. 1996, Pt throughoutthe region gave rise to Sopris. Study of 2:Tape2, p. 4; Tape3, p. 12). This traditionsupports humanremains indicates that the Soprispopulation the idea that long-term populationsof the region could have also included Athapaskan speakers could have contributedin some mannerto the Utes. (Baugh 1994:275), but this interpretationis based A Shoshoneoral traditionalso might have some upon dental characteristicsthat are not unique to bearingon the ancienthistory of theColorado region. Athapaskans.This complex continuedto ca. A.D. According to Robert Lowie (1909:233), although 1225, relying upon corn cultivationas well as hunt- the Shoshonesas a groupdo not haveany story about ing (Baugh 1994:273-274). ancestralmigrations, the Wind River Shoshones "are No clearevidence exists that shows Hogback peo- saidto havehad a traditionthat they originallycame ple moving into the CaddoanPlains, but they prob- from the south."It is impossible to determinewith ably contributedto the Apishapaphase in the Plains anydegree of certaintyhow this vaguetradition may southof Pike'sPeak, which overlaps the endof Hog- relate to Colorado'sFront Range. It could relate to backand shares similar ceramic technology. The use a very shallow time frame-perhaps involving the of dry-laidrock masonry as an architecturalelement seventeenth-or eighteenth-centuryformation of the occursin both Hogbackand Apishapa sites (Kalasz Comanchesas a separategroup from the Shoshones. et al. 1995:337), as well as in Sopris sites dating Oraltraditions relate that this separationoccurred in betweenA.D. 1150 and 1225 (Baugh 1994:273). Colorado (Wallace and Hoebel 1952:9). The The Apishapa presence in the archaeological Shoshonetradition of southernroots could, however, recordis recognizedfrom aboutA.D. 1100 to 1350, referto a more ancienttime framerelated to Moun- and the cultureis viewed as havingoriginated from tain traditionpopulations in the southernRockies the previous Plains Woodlandresidents of south- who could have moved northwardinto Wyoming. easternColorado (Gunnerson 1989:125-127; Lintz More definiteand detailedoral traditionalinforma- 1986:26-27). TheApishapapeople focused on hunt- tion is needed to clarifythis possibility. ing as their primary subsistence activity (Baugh It would be improperto embracea standardof 1994:278), but indicationsof corn cultivationon a analysisfor theArikara oral tradition that would look limited scale have been found (Zier and Kalasz for anexact correspondence between story elements 1990). The most recentsynthesis of the archaeolog- and the archaeologicalrecord. In other words, the ical recordin southeasternColorado subsumes the story cannotbe rejectedbecause it neglects to pro- Hogbackphase and PlainsWoodland tradition into vide any explicit discussionon settlementpatterns, a Developmentalperiod geographicallydistributed split cobble technology,microtools, projectile point from northeasternColorado to northeasternNew styles, architecture,and rock art in the RockyMoun- Mexico (Zier and Kalasz 1999). Developmental tains. The principleof memorabilityexplains why period populationsof this region gave rise to the tribal historianswho might have been tempted to Apishapaphase and Sopris phase during the suc- includedetailed consideration of thesetopics in their ceeding Diversificationperiod. Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 281

It is reasonable to presume that some Hog- Plains were dominatedby groups that contributed back/Developmentalgroups, at least, participatedin directlyto theformation of Caddoan-speakingtribes. Apishapa.Hogback ceramic technology and archi- In Colorado,the Apishapa phase is viewed by some tectureare echoed in Apishapasites, and the termi- archaeologistsas thewesternmost expression of Cad- nation of Hogback by aboutA.D. 1200 coincides doanculture. James Gunnerson (1989:122-124), for with the culturalchanges that gave rise to Apishapa example, noted close culturalsimilarities between at aboutA.D. 1100. Hogback families and groups Apishapaand neighboringAntelope Creek,Custer, who favoreda huntinglifestyle could have chosen WashitaRiver, and UpperRepublican populations, to move amongthe Apishapa,while those who saw and he concludesthat "one could thinkof the Clas- benefitin farmingwould havehad the choice of tak- sic Apishapaphase as thoughit were a less seden- ing upresidence among the Soprispeople. As already tary,less horticulturalversion of UpperRepublican." noted, others could have ultimately led to groups In assessing Gunnerson,as well as earlierresearch thatbecame the Ute, Shoshone,Comanche, or some by ChristopherLintz, Timothy Baugh (1994:278) otherpeople. Both Hogbackand Apishapa are gen- infersthat the Apishapa phase may be closely related erally viewed as long-termColorado residents who to the CaddoanUpper Republican phase of the Cen- were influencedby groupsfarther out in the Plains. tralPlains tradition, ancestral to the Pawnees,while ChristopherLintz (1986:3) includes theApishapa the Antelope Creek people and their neighborsin phase andneighboring Antelope Creek phase under Oklahomaserved as sourcesfor theWichitas, via the a single taxonomicumbrella, and Timothy Baugh Wheelerphase (Drassand Baugh 1997). Steve Cas- (1994:274) addsthe BuriedCity complex as a third sells (1997:222) agrees that it is reasonableto pre- group.The Antelope Creek phase was locatedto the sume thatresidents of the SouthernPlains, Central east of Apishapa,distributed throughout the Texas Plains, and southeasternColorado "shared a com- Panhandle,while the BuriedCity complex lay even mon backgroundand language,or were involvedin furthereast, cuttingacross the Texasand Oklahoma social interaction." Panhandlesinto southwesternKansas. Beyond the Complex interactions among diverse people Buried City complex lay the homelands of other throughoutthis region ultimately gave rise to the relatedpeoples acrossOklahoma into southernMis- laterWichitas, Pawnees, andArikaras. Oral traditions souri,Arkansas, and Louisiana(Perttula 1992:6-9; from these three Caddoangroups reflect these cir- Vehik 1994). cumstances and document ancient connections to WaldoWedel traced the Wichita in the Oklahoma the Southern Plains. One Skidi Pawnee tradition archaeologicalrecord back to "Washita-focusmate- reportedby RushRoberts associated the Kitkahahki rials from...aboutA.D. 1070-1612"-a time frame Pawnee with the general region of the Antelope that makes the Washitapeople, in part,contempo- Creekand Buried City sites at a perioddating "before rariesof Apishapa,Antelope Creek, and Buried City the Westwardmigration of the Indian comprising (Wedel 1983:232-233). He also noted similarities the Sioux an [sic] linguisticfamily," when the Kitka- betweenWashita and earlier Plains Woodland mate- hahkidwelt in severalcommunities on both sides of rial culture,implying that Washitais derivedfrom the Red River "in what is now Oklahoma& Texas" Plains Woodland people in the Southern Plains (Robertsca. 1950s: #20). This mentionof a Siouan (Wedel 1983:226-227). Laterrefinement of South- "Westwardmigration" probably refers to the move- ern Plains archaeologicaltaxonomy has continued mentsof suchgroups as the Oto,Missouria, Omaha, to retainthe basic idea thatPlains Woodland groups Ponca,Kaw, and other related tribes into the eastern gave rise to populationsthat ultimately came to form peripheryof thePlains. This oral tradition also places the Wichita (Vehik 1994; Cordell and Smith the ancestorsof the Chaui to the east on the Ohio 1996:250;Drass 1999). The proposal that the Wichita River,with the ancestors of thePitahawirata Pawnees and relatedgroups represent long-term residents of in "easternOklahoma, Southern Missouri, and West- the SouthernPlains has broad acceptance among ernArkansas." archaeologists. In 1890, George Bird Grinnellrecorded an oral traditionfrom an Arikaranamed Fighting Bear that CaddoanRoots in the Plains Southern referredto a location in Oklahoma"down by the After A.D. 1000 the SouthernPlains and Central Cross Timbersabout 2 days south of the Big Tim- 282 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 ber"as the place where the Arikarasseparated from LutherNorth became acquaintedwith Pawnee the Pawnees (Grinnell ca. 1890:Journals# 315). oral traditions during the 1860s and 1870s. He Another Arikara tradition asserted that northern informedGeorge Bird Grinnellthat the SouthBand Kansaswas a destinationfor the firstArikarasettlers Pawnees and the Wichitas"were one and the same in the CentralPlains: "Mother-Corn led them away tribe, they separatedmany years ago, the Pawnees on through the country to what is known as the coming north to hunt for Buffalo" (Grinnell ca. RepublicanRiver, in Kansas,where there is only one 1890:File #19, North to Grinnell6/26/1884 corre- mountain";and at this location, the Arikarasettled spondence).While living in the south,apparently, the and "had their ceremonies" (Dorsey and Murie Pawnees huntedbuffalo and raised corn, but "had 1904a:16). TheArikaras are reported as earlyas 1866 very little of both."North's knowledge of Pawnee as havingan associationwith Pawneesin Oklahoma. traditionsmay have been minimal,and he conflated A documentprepared by the U. S. Indianagent for a varietyof events together,associating, for exam- the Pawneesin 1866 also mentionsthe Red River: ple, thisfirst entry of Pawneeancestors into the region The Pawneesalso claimthat the "Uricarees"of with the acquisitionof horses. the NorthernMissouri River are another branch Grinnell also reportedanother tradition stating of the originalPawnee Nation. They speakthe that the Pawnees moved northwardfrom Missouri samelanguage and have the samemanners, cus- orArkansas into the CentralPlains, hunting buffalo, toms,habits, and legends as to theirorigin and and the Wichitas "accompaniedthem part way on claim themselvesas a partof the old Pawnee Nation, which at one time was masterof the theirjourney,but turned aside when they had reached plainsfrom the Red Riveron the Northto the southernKansas, and went south again"(Grinnell Gulfon the South(Wheeler 1866). 1961:225-226[1889]). According to anotherPawnee tradition,the Pawnees and Wichitasseparated dur- Grinnell also set forth a variety of convoluted ing an eastwardmovement of Pawnee ancestorsto movementsfor theArikara across the CentralPlains theMississippi River (Peters ca. 1960s;also see Grin- and SouthernPlains, and he portrayedthese events nell 1961:224-225 [1889]).Rush Roberts (ca. 1950s: as sequential,but they are actuallyconflated from #20) indicates associations of the Kitkahahkiand diversehistorical settings. A sojournthat is probably Pitahawiratawith Texas, Oklahoma,southern Mis- a memory of the residency of the Skidi near the souri, and westernArkansas, suggesting that popu- WichitaMountains during the 1770s, for example,is lations scatteredthroughout this region gave rise to surgicallyjoined to laterevents of the 1830s, when a variousSouth Band Pawneegroups. largeArikara group dwelt in Pawneecountry for three Dunbar(1880:251) also mentioneda Wichitatra- years (Grinnell 1961:231-232 [1889]). Confusion dition locating the ancestralhome of the Wichita- also derives from the probabilitythat not only did Pawneepeople uponthe Red Riverbelow the mouth Pawnee and Arikaraancestors emerge from South- of theWashita. The Wichitas were "dissatisfiedwith ernPlains Caddoans in ancienttimes, but Pawnee and the migration,or its results,"and "they attempted to Arikaragroups also resided in Oklahomaduring a returnto their old home."This informationcould laterperiod, with both historicalsettings becoming representa conflationof differentevents involving mingledin subsequentCaddoan oral traditions. the terminationof the Great Bend aspect, and the SouthBand Pawnee connections to Oklahomaare laterpresence of the Skidi on the Red River during indicatedin traditionsgathered during 1870s by John the 1770s. B. Dunbar(1880:251): 'The traditionsof threeof the These traditionsmay concerna varietyof events bands, the Xau-i, Kit-ke-hak-iand Pit-a-hau-e-rat, andperiods-but some probablydescribe the found- coincide in statingthat the Pawneesmigrated to the ing of Quivira(Great Bend aspect)in Kansas.Susan PlatteRiver region from the south,and securedpos- Vehik (1994:261) suggests that the AntelopeCreek session of it by conquest."This migrationoccurred phaseterminated by "joiningthe Washita River phase at a time "soremote that they have failed to retainany and/ormoving northeastward to join membersof the of its details,except in a very confusedform." The GreatBend aspect." Pawnee and Wichita oral traditions Pawneeswere accompaniedin thisnorthward move- supportthis model, and if we presume close ties mentby theWichitas, who ultimately"left them long betweenApishapa and Antelope Creek, then Vehik's ago andwandered away to the south...." suggestionalso provides one route for a groupor groups Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 283

ancestralto theArikara to enterthe Central Plains. The Duringthe seventeenthcentury, the Wichitasand principleof memorabilitycautions us againsta too lit- otherassociated Caddoan groups moved back south- eraltreatment of Caddoanoral traditions, but both the wardfrom Quivirainto Oklahoma,as one tradition archaeologicalrecord and oraltraditions point to the recalled:"Many hundreds of years ago, when our Oklahomaregion for insights into ancient Plains Cad- peoplecame from the northon theirway to thispoint doanhistory, suggesting that complicated movements where we are living..."(Dorsey 1904:310). Mildred of groupsand other interactions occurred among res- Wedel (1982:124) suggested that conflict with the identsof theCentral and Southern Plains. Peering back Skidi Pawnee,Missouria, and Osage duringthe late intothe period ofA.D. 1000-1400,we shouldnot look 1600s contributedto the decision of the Wichitasto too hardfor "Pawnees,""Arikaras," or "Wichitas"; leave Quivira:"It was the Skiriwho in the 1670s had instead,we should seek to understandthe elaborate firstcaptured La Salle's Panaslave...." In a Wichita dynamicsof regionalpopulation interactions to grasp tradition,Elizabeth A. H. John(1983) also published the formationof latertribes. a traditionrecorded during the earlynineteenth cen- The ancestorsof themodem Wichita were located turydescribing how theWichita left theirhome in the in south-centralKansas when the Coronadoexpedi- CentralPlains due to warfarewith the Osages. By tion encounteredthem in 1541, living in a number 1719,the Wichita had returned to theirancient home- of grasslodgetowns scatteredalong the streamsof landin northeasternOklahoma on theArkansas River. theregion and cultivating corn (M. Wedel 1979:183; SouthwesternAncestors W. Wedel 1979:274). One Wichitatradition (Mead 1904:173) associatedthe ArkansasRiver in Kansas Accountsof ancientPawnee history generally refer to withancestors who settledthere, "cultivating gardens a time when ancestorsof the tribedwelt in the south- and hunting for subsistence,using implements of west.These stories may be explainedas relatingto the stone or bone...." Coronadowrote to the King of PlainsWoodland and laterApishapa groups, and pos- Spain that the people of "Quivira"resided in "not sibly the Soprisphase. A Skiditradition reported that more than twenty-five towns, with straw houses" the ancestorsof the Pawneesresided somewhere in (Hammondand Rey 1977:188), and based on the the southwestlocated "away beyond the Rio Grande" existenceof numeroustown sites in theregion, Waldo (Grinnell1961:225 [1889]); aChaui version described Wedelwrote thathe believed "Coronadocould eas- this land as "faroff in the southwest...beyondtwo ily have...countedup to 25 villages southof Smoky rangesof mountains"(Grinnell 1961:224 [1889]). An Hill River within 100 miles of the presenttown of 1866report of thistradition made by the agentfor the GreatBend" (Wedel 1942:12-13). Pawnees,mentions New Mexico as a regionassoci- Whilevisiting Quivira, Coronado met a largedel- atedwith Pawneeancestors: egation of Indiansfrom a "province"in the north The old men of the tribe inform me that the knownas "Harahey";Martha Blaine (1982:113-115) Pawnees formerly lived in the Southern portion suggestedthat these were either Pawnees orArikaras, of what is now a part of the United States. That and reportedseveral Pawnee traditionsdescribing is in a portion of New Mexico. They have no encounterswith the Spanish.Based on her surveyof distinct idea of their numbers at that time, only that the Pawnees were like the Buffalo, Elk, & Pawneeoral traditions, she suggeststhat grasslodges Deer on the Plains, almost innumerable. They were widely used in the CaddoanCentral Plains, claim that at that time they owned and con- particularlyduring the sixteenth and early seven- trolled all the land between the Rio Grand and teenthcenturies, and must relateto the Quiviraand Platte Rivers (Wheeler 1866). Haraheymentioned in the annals of the Coronado The Pawneesassociate their ancient ancestors in expeditionand later Onate expedition (Blaine 1979). the southwestwith houses thatincorporated the use This coincideswith a Wichitatradition published by of stone in some fashion. George Bird Grinnell ElizabethA. H. John (1983), which describes the (1961:225 [1889]) wrote that the ancientancestors homelandof the Wichitaas "onthe riverPlatt" an of the Pawneesdwelt in "stonehouses," but he pro- indication that Caddoanpopulations with similar videdno descriptionof the structures.A laterversion lifewaysextended throughout the CentralPlains and of this traditionwas set downin morecomplete form gave rise to the later South Band Pawnees,Wichi- by a Pawneenamed Bert Peters sometime before the tas, and the Skidi Pawnees. mid-1970s.This accountstates that the ancestorsof 284 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000

thePawnees originated from an unknownlocation in The Arikaratradition of the Blue Mountainresi- the Southwest,where they "livedin houses of mud dency and Pawnee stories of a homeland located and stone"(Peters ca. 1960s). Archaeologistshave vaguelyin the Southwestconsistently refer to some speculatedthat these oral traditionsrelate to archi- periodbefore horses were common in CaddoanAmer- tectureof theAntelopeCreek phase (Lintz 1979:162, ica, and the postcolumbianarchaeological record 178), to the Apishapaphase (Gunnerson1989:128), offerslittle help in explainingthe stories.For this rea- and possibly to the Great Bend phase (W. Wedel son, many Caddoanoral traditionsmust be handed 1979:277).The Sopris phase also offers itself as a down from earlierperiods, including from Apishapa plausiblesetting for these stories. groups, possibly Sopris, and the precedingPlains A ChauiPawnee tradition on the historyof tribal Woodlandtradition in Colorado/NewMexico. Some sacredbundles attributed the time of theirorigin to Apishapa and Sopris groups could have moved whenthe ancestorsof the Pawneeslived in the south- directlyinto the CentralPlains, while othersentered west:"All the sacred bundles are from the far-off coun- the SouthernPlains and took a differentroute to ulti- try in the southwest,from which we came long ago. mately contributeto the later Pawnees, Arikaras, They were handeddown to the people before they Wichitas,and possibly other groups. Quivira in Kansas startedon their journey" (Grinnell 1961:352-353 may have included descendants of the Apishapa, [1889];also see Fletcherand Murie 1996:156 [1904]). Sopris,Antelope Creek, Buried City, and other groups A Europeanvisitor in 1823received "a gift of veryvalu- in Oklahomaand Arkansas. Central Plains tradition able wampum"from a Skidi priest that seemed to groupslike the SmokyHill phaseand Upper Repub- reflect the southernancestry of the Pawnee: "Put licanphase also may havecontributed to Quivira(W. togetherof the seedsof a varietyof palmand the seeds Wedel1979:274-275), but they flowed more directly of a leguminousplant (Glycine?) from tropical regions, to the neighboring"provinces" of Haraheyand Gua it was purported by the priest that it had been in northernKansas and Nebraska. Waldo Wedel bequeathedfrom father to son. This was evidentlyof (1979:277) suggested that Upper Republicanmay southernorigin and was valuableto me as proofof the have moved southto help formAntelope Creek, and migrationof these people" (Wilhelm 1973:394). It thenmoving northward to establishQuivira, and Cad- seemsimplausible that a Skidipriest would give away doanoral traditions support the existenceof complex a tribalheirloom of greatantiquity-and thus, of great interactionsamong these and other groups.Neigh- culturalmeaning-to a casualEuropean visitor. This boringpopulations distributed throughout the South- objectwas probably of morerecent vintage, dating back ern Plains and CentralPlains servedas ancestorsof to theeighteenth-century residence of the Skidion the the Caddo,Wichita, Kitsai, Pawnee, and Arikara. Red River,but it could have neverthelessserved as a In additionto ancientroots to the west, southwest, reminderof oraltraditions about Caddoan movements and southof the CentralPlains, long-term residents andancestral ties extendingback many centuries. of the Nebraska-Kansasregion also servedas ances- Caddoanoral traditionsand the archaeological tors of the Pawnees.Evidence not discussedin this recordreflect a complexpast. In theColorado region, paper supportsthe view that Siouan and Caddoan Caddoanroots reach back to a generalizedPlains tribessuch as the Mandansand Skidi Pawnees-and Woodland population ranging from northeastern probablythe SouthBand Pawnees, Arikaras, Hidat- New Mexico up the FrontRange of the Rockiesinto sas, and Crows-have links to the PlainsWoodland northeasternColorado. This population served as the residentsof the CentralPlains. Also not considered primarysource of the Apishapaphase and Sopris here are ties to groupson the MississippiRiver, and phase. The Upper Republicanphase in the Central movements of populationsinto South Dakota and Plainsdisplays cultural resemblance to theApishapa then back into the CentralPlains. phaseprobably because both have roots in the Plains Fromancient times into the present, a complicated Woodlandresidents of Coloradoand New Mexico, social historyaccounts for the culturalcharacter of and some interchange of population may have the North AmericanGreat Plains world. As many occurred.Archaeologists broadly accept the view scholarshave observed,it is unrealisticto look for thatPlains Woodland groups of the Coloradoregion discretesocial units moving unchanged through time gave rise to Apishapa,but the fate of Apishapa-as from one locationto the next, or from one archaeo- well as the Soprisphase-is less clear. logical taxonomic unit to another.More elaborate Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 285 dynamicsare at work, and this is reflectedin thecom- mutualinterdependence offer more useful paradigms plexity of both oral recordsand the archaeological for these "waysof knowing." record.Careful study of Caddoanoral traditions has The Questfor Connections great potentialfor yielding many insights into the samepast that accounts for the archaeologicalrecord In formulatingfindings of culturalaffiliation under of the ancientColorado plains, New Mexico, Rocky NAGPRA,the tracingof relationshipsamong popu- Mountains,Central Plains, and other places in time. lationsinto the ancientpast is a matterof complex Upon these vast regions,configurations of Caddoan scholarship.Oral records and the archaeological record America move throughtime, and we can trace the interactin intricateways to both revealand obscure journeyas it unfoldsinto the present. connectionsbetween ancient and modem communi- ties.For this reason, NAGPRA cultural affiliations are A Spoken Future most convincingwhen sustainedby carefulanalysis Archaeologistsfrequently say thatthe sitesthey exca- thatbest explainsall relevantbodies of evidence.To vate andartifacts that they recovercan "speak"to us ignore any applicablerealm of evidencewould not across the centuries,and physical anthropologists serveeither the law or academicscholarship. often thinkof collectionsof humanskeletal remains As with all scholarship,NAGPRA cultural affil- as "libraries."In oral traditions,we can hearechoes iations thatemerge from the integrationof oral tra- of the actualvoices of the people who made those ditions and archaeologywill be subjectto various artifactsand who were the original owners of the formsof peerreview and constructive criticism. The skeletons.As researchersexplore the contributionto refinementof models of humanhistory is a perpet- historyof oraltraditions in Africa,Australia, and the ualcondition of academicstudy, and analytical delib- Americas, it has become increasingly difficult to erationstypically move at a highly situationalpace, ignorearguments that historical information has been but the law calls for timely action and timely deci- preservedthrough verbal means for greatlengths of sions. The NAGPRArequirement for setting forth time. findings of culturalaffiliation really aims at expe- As a concept,"prehistory" interferes with recog- diting the involvementof Indian tribes and lineal nition of the validity of the study of oral traditions descendantsas decisionmakers. becauseit presumesan absence of applicablerecords. The law has alreadygenerated much new research Its ubiquitouspresence as a term in academic and anddialogue among scholars, and it has considerably populardiscourse also reflects the degree to which enhancedthe presence of NativeAmerican communi- twentieth-centuryAmerican archaeology has dis- ties in this new discourse,but dialogueneeds to be placedNative American oral traditions as the source viewedas anongoing process, and findings of cultural of valid knowledge about ancient human circum- affiliationneed to respondto newinformation and new stances. It may be technicallycorrect to apply the insights.NAGPRA cultural affiliations should thus be termto periodsin time for which no writingsexist, viewed as flexibleconstructions designed to identify butits usageas a taxonomicdevice emphasizeswrit- properparties of interestfor consultationand repatri- ten words,while presumingthat spoken words have ationpurposes rather than as inflexiblerepresentations comparativelylittle value. of the past.This situation,in the shortterm, can lead A bibliocentricresearch agenda imposes needless to muchinconsistency in institutionalfindings of cul- limits uponlegitimate scholarship about the ancient turalaffiliation, but tribes can help by assemblingthor- past. My proposedshift in terminologyfrom "pre- ough documentationthat sets forthreliable evidence history"to "ancienthistory" would place oraltradi- for museumsand federal agencies that may otherwise tions generated by firsthand observers on an be left to blazetheir own idiosyncratictrails. analyticalpar with written records generated by first- Researchaimed at integratingoral traditions and handobservers, and both categories of recordswould archaeologyis becoming common in the wake of receive acknowledgmentas legitimate documents NAGPRA.Since the spiritof NAGPRAexpects aca- for scholarlystudy. Written words and spoken words demic institutionsand Indian tribes to engagein dia- need not compete for authorityin academia, nor logue about the culturalidentities of persons who should the archaeologicalrecord be viewed as the lived and died long ago, it would be ideal for tribes antithesisof oral records.Peaceful coexistence and and museums to work togetherto investigatehow 286 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 oraltraditions and archaeological evidence might be of equaldays andnights. This journey was followed reconciled. Ultimately, however, oral traditions by a time of increasingpopulation, and the firstman deserveserious attention from scholars because aca- and first woman helped the people to develop life- demic constructionsof ancient humanhistory can ways andtechnology. The secondera of Wichitatra- benefitsubstantially from the studyof verbalrecords ditionalhistory opened with populationdispersions createdand handeddown from firsthandobservers. andproliferating lifestyles, andhuman communities Forresearchers interested in oraltraditions, anthro- acquired social identity, but these people were pologistshave recorded and published a vastbody of destroyedin a flood. The survivorsentered the third materialsthat can be productivelyexamined. In addi- era of history to repopulatethe earth. During this tion, useful guidelinesexist for archaeologistsinter- period ("presenttime"), the people acquiredgrass- estedin workingwith tribal experts on oraltraditions lodges made with cedar frames, and they at last (Anyonet al. 1997). Not everyarchaeologist will be receivedcorn to cultivate. inclinedto trackdown, study,and apply information Wichita,Arikara, and Pawnee origin stories all from oral sources,but those who choose to pursue include the idea that some form of great journey such inquiry deserve supportand encouragement, servesas a key eventin the unfoldingstory of human particularlybecause this research has interesting existence,and all of thesejourneys occur in the geo- implicationsfor scholarshipon ancientAmerica. graphiccontext of a place of darkness.Arikara and Caddostories refer to an undergroundworld; a Skidi Reorganizing into Ancient Prehistory History story associates the journey with starsin the night Revision of archaeologicallybased taxonomicsys- sky; a Wichitaaccount locates the first people in a tems will be a naturalconsequence of the study of regionof darknessand the journey results in the cre- oral memoirs.To date, scholarsof Caddoanoral lit- ation of day and night.This collection of ideas can eratureshave focusedprimarily on sortingmaterials suggestsome definitiveaspects of the earliestperiod into various literarygenres, with significantatten- of the human past recalled in Caddoanoral tradi- tion to formulatinggroupings according to histori- tions-aspects thatcan be connectedto the archae- cal criteria(Dorsey 1904; Dorsey andMurie 1904b, ological model of Beringiaand the peopling of the 1906; Parks 1991). These efforts also have yielded New World.These storiesalso concerna morerecent importantinsights into Caddoantraditional views of period in Caddoanhistory. References to Mother the organizationof humanhistory, but this has had Corn,together with a focus on relationshipsbetween no measurable effect upon the development of the sexes, mustreflect cultural settings dating around archaeologicaltaxa for CaddoanAmerica. AD 1000, when corn cultivationbecame prominent George Dorsey (1904:20-22) divided the tradi- in Caddoan America, accompanied by social tionalhistory of theWichita andAffiliated Tribes into upheavalsrelated to the economic empowermentof four eras and organizedhis collection of traditions women. Caddoanorigin stories representa collec- accordingto these divisions. The first era includes tion of discrete memoirs preservingknowledge of "the origin of the world,"human creation, and the humanevents in deep time conflatedwith events of establishmentof social and spiritualrelationships. more recent centuries, and Caddoan historians Duringthe second era, "thepeople scatterout over deserverecognition for havingpreserved a wealthof the earth"and entera "periodof change and unrest detailsabout the ancientpast. and of transformation,"ending in a flood. The third Otherscholars of New Worldoral literatures have era openedwith the lives of the survivorsof the del- givenattention to thetaxonomic implications of treat- uge, andbrings human history up to the present.The ing oral traditionsas sources of historicalknowl- fourthera concernsa futuretime (as foretoldduring edge. Summarizingarchaeological evidence for the the first era), "which the Wichita suppose to be presenceof SouthwesternZea maysin theNortheast, rapidlyapproaching...." BarbaraMann and JerryFields (1997:119) observe In this view of history,the envisionedpast goes thatcorn begins to appearafter A.D. 800 andis well- backto whenthe first people dwelt in regionsof dark- establishedby A.D. 1100. Iroquois oral traditions ness. The womanwas given the knowledgethat corn attributethe origin of corn to a female deity known would sustainfuture generations, and the first man as Otsitsaand her daughter.Mann and Fields men- was given the idea to journeyinto the east to a place tion that, according to a Cayuga oral tradition Echo-Hawk] INTEGRATING ORAL TRADITIONS AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD 287

reportedby Peter Jemison,Otsitsa was a Wyandot The academicemphasis on studyingcultural change womanfrom the vicinity of PrincessPoint, Canada- in the archaeologicalrecord has thus contributed,to an oral traditionthat matches archaeologicalevi- some degree,to a sense of disbeliefwhen confronted dence thatthis regionserved as the directsource for with claims for the continuityof historicalinforma- Zea mays in New York.The termOtsitsa in various tion in verbaltexts over manycenturies. Though the Iroquoiandialects means corn, particularlyin the developmentof archaeologicallybased taxonomic underlying morphological structureof the word systemshave helped to clarifya mysteriouspast, they (Mannand Fields 1997:119, 155 footnote 64). have discouragedacceptance of useful oral docu- Drawing upon oral traditionsand the archaeo- ments.This papersuggests an alternateapproach to logical record,Mann and Fields arguethat sometime culturehistory designed to promotea friendlyenvi- priorto A.D. 1100, corn cultivatorsinitiated a new ronmentfor the incorporationof oraltraditions. This female-centeredsocial order that led to regionalcon- proposalis not intendedto displace existing taxo- flict withpartisans of theexisting hunting-based life- nomic systems,it is meantto complementthem and ways dominatedby males. Those favoringthe old enhancethe possibilities for integrating bounded taxa. orderultimately resorted to cannibalterrorism as a methodof intimidatingthe maize farmersand sup- Resentmentsand Responsibilities pressing the assertionof social power by women. An importantfactor in shaping relations between This socialdiscord ultimately resulted in the creation Indian country and the academic community of the IroquoisConfederation "on the pleasantafter- emanatesfrom the mannerin which Euroamerican noon of August 31, 1142" (Mann and Fields sciencehas been employed to discreditIndian world- 1997:105).In termsof appropriatehistorical taxon- views. Origin storiesprovide a rich context for the omy, Mann and Fields point to three epochs as a anchoringof social identity,and Native American means of organizingIroquois history: 1) the initia- religious leadersresent the message that their oral tion of cornagriculture and associated ideology dur- traditionsmust be substantiatedby science before ing the periodA.D. 800 to 1100; 2) the initiationof they can serve as legitimatesources of personaland the "PaxIroquoia" through the establishmentof the cultural identity. Indian worldviews-unlike the HaudenosauneeLeague duringthe twelfthcentury; archaeological gray literature worldscape-can and 3) the creationof the Code of HandsomeLake thrive in the absence of verificationfrom physics, during the late eighteenth century.In addition to geology, and othersciences. these threeepochs, a fourthis implied-one which Scholarsmust stand their ground, however, when ends with the beginningof corn agricultureamong they are urgedto accept origin storiesas literalhis- the ancestorsof the Iroquois. tory. The intellectuallegacy of academic scholar- The adoptionof corn cultivationand the subse- ship requiresthat every presumptionof historicity quentdevelopment of associatedideological frame- be subjectedto criticalexamination no matterhow works are widespreadin North America. For the much it may anchorany specific culturalpattern. A Caddoan Plains, as with Iroquoian America, a worldviewcan differfrom a worldhistory, but since "MotherCorn era" can be suggestedas an integra- we generallyact upon our worldviewswith the pre- tive taxon that expresses a set of processes that sumptionof inherenthistoricity, we must construct became prominentin human lifeways after about complex world histories that can sustain complex A.D. 1000. This taxonrequires more detailedstudy worldviews.In comparingthe stories we tell about beforeit can serveas a definitiveorganizational tool, ourselves,we strugglewith the reconciliation of com- but considerationof such ideas as MotherCorn and petingideologies, and we seek creativeways to selec- darkunderworlds will help shape the characterof tively structureour worldviews to accommodate scholarshipon ancientAmerican history. conflictinginterpretations of humanhistory. Extant chronological taxa for ancient Native What is the responsibilityof scholarswho con- Americahave been devisedby archaeologistswith- ductresearch on topicsthat may alienateIndians, but out the benefit of insights from oral traditions,and who feel committedto workingin partnershipwith consequently,created models of the past must often Indiantribes and Indian people? Among the various transcenda terminologicalfog thatserves to obscure social sciences, standardsof ethics may be available ratherthan clarify a sense of connectedchronology. to help guide professionalconduct, but such codes 288 AMERICAN ANTIQUITY [Vol. 65, No. 2, 2000 can create an unfriendlyenvironment for dialogue extendingfar back into the past. Twenty-firstcen- with Indians.During the early 1980s, for example, tury studentsof ancientAmerica face exciting new most archaeologists feared that Indian activism challenges in seeking to mastera spectrumof ana- would result in academic censorship, and profes- lytical tools, but effective use of these tools will sional ethics were raisedto justify a studiousdisre- enable us to create more detailed and precise con- gard of tribal concerns. By the end of the 1990s, structions of ancient human circumstances-cir- however,the interfacing of the academiccommunity cumstancesthat have hitherto been lost in deep time. with Indian country had borne very productive results,displaying real advancementof scholarship Acknowledgments.A numberof institutions and entities have provided professional settings under which the ideas in this on ancientAmerican history as a naturaloutgrowth paper have been explored and advanced, including the Native of mutually beneficial interactions. Exaggerated American Rights Fund, the Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma, the fearsof censorship,in hindsight,seemed to serve as University of Colorado at Boulder, the City and County of an unnecessaryhindrance to the growthof positive Denver, the National Park Service, the Colorado Historical relationshipsand a discouragementto scholarship. Society, and the Denver Art Museum. Many colleagues over the years have either debated with me in useful ways on the Severalguidelines can serve the advancementof concepts set forth here, or have commented upon various ancientAmerican history as a field of study.First, incarnations of this paper: Bridget Ambler, Roger Anyon, evidencerelated to controversialtopics of study,such Doug Bamforth, Sarah Barber,Timothy Baugh, Kevin Black, as historicity in origin stories, must be fairly cri- Don Blakeslee, Bob Blasing, Nancy Blomberg, Rob Bozell, tiquedon its own terms,not dismissedbecause the Karin Burd, CatherineCameron, Thomas Carr,Chris Coder, Susan Collins, Philip J. Deloria, Chester Ellis, Tom Evans, results may be unsettlingto scholarsor viewed as Daniel Falt, T. J. Ferguson, Lynne Goldstein, Cara Gulley, oppressiveby Indians.Scholars have a responsibil- Daniel Haney, Steve Holen, LorettaJackson, Stephen Kalasz, ity to go where the evidence goes, and we should Michael Larkin, Steve Lekson, Patty Limerick, John resist any impulse to tell only inoffensive,esteem- Ludwickson, Carolyn McArthur, Francis Morris, Mark building stories to either colleagues or constituen- Muniz, Moyo Okediji, James Riding In, Dan Simplicio, Rosemary Sucec, JonathanTill, Christy TurnerII, Katherine cies. Second,religious and governmental authorities Turner,Joel Tyberg, Christine Ward,William Whatley, Brian can contributeto the full spectrumof beneficialcrit- Yunker, and Larry J. Zimmerman. Thanks to Carmen icism of scholarship,but research conclusions should Ramirez for the Spanish translation.All obvious and obscure flow wholly from the fair considerationof all rele- errorsand other shortcomings in this paper should be blamed vant evidence, and useful criticismmust be distin- on Larry Zimmerman, without whose encouragement and wisdom I would have never dared to tell this particularstory. guishedfrom ideologically based evaluations that do not focus upon matters of evidence. Finally, our References Cited knowledgeof ancientAmerica benefits greatly from Adair,M. J. partnershipbetween archaeological research and oral 1988 PrehistoricAgriculture in the CentralPlains. Publica- traditions,so meaningfuldiscourse between schol- tions in Anthropology, Vol. 16. University of Kansas, Lawrence. ars and Indians is fundamentalto the process of Anyon, R, T. J. Ferguson,L. Jackson,L. 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