Tula people
TheTulawere aNative Americangroup that lived in what is now westernArkansas.[1]The Tula are known to history only from the chronicles of Spanish conquistadorHernando de Soto's exploits in the interior of North America.
History
[edit]
The Tula were possibly aCaddoanpeople, but this is not certain. Based on the descriptions of the various chroniclers, "Tula Province", or their homeland, may have been at the headwaters of theOuachita,Caddo,Little Missouri,Saline,andCossatot Riversin Arkansas.[1][2]They are also thought to have lived in the northernOuachita Mountainsin the Petit Jean and Fourche valleys.[3]
De Soto entered Tula territory on September 30, 1541 near present-dayFort Smith, Arkansasand violently clashed with the tribe multiple times during the beginning of October 1541.[4]His secretary, Rodrigo Ranjel described the Tula as, "the best fighting people that the Christians met with." A statue was erected in the late 20th century to commemorate the Tula, but de Soto scholars suspect that the location of the statue does not correspond with the Tula's actual homeland. The Tula are thought to be the first Caddo band to encounter Europeans.[5]
The 16th century Spanish chroniclers wrote that the Tula practicedcranial deformationand tattooed their faces. They fought with large spears.[3]
An archaeological site,Bluffton Mound Site(3YE15), 35-40 southwest of theArkansas Riveris associated with the Tula. The site is aCaddoan Mississippian culturemoundcenter.[6]
It was suggested by Swanton that the Tula assimilated into other Kadohadacho tribes,[7]meaning their descendants would be enrolled in theCaddo Nation of Oklahomatoday.
Synonymy
[edit]The word "Tula" is not a Caddo word.[8]The tribe and province are also known as Tulia.[9]
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^abSturtevant, 617
- ^Swanton, 29
- ^abPerttula, 23
- ^Charles Hudson (1998).Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun: Hernando de Soto and the South's Ancient Chiefdoms.University of Georgia Press. pp. 320–326.ISBN978-0-8203-2062-5.Retrieved24 August2013.
- ^Carter, 21
- ^Carter, 363
- ^Swanton, 7
- ^Swanton, 8
- ^Swanton, 30
References
[edit]- Carter, Cecile Elkins.Caddo Indians: Where We Come From.Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2001.ISBN0-8061-3318-X
- Perttula, Timothy K.The Caddo Nation: Archaeological and Ethnohistoric Perspectives.Austin: University of Texas Press, 1997.ISBN978-0-292-76574-0.
- Sturtevant, William C., general editor and Raymond D. Fogelson, volume editor.Handbook of North American Indians: Southeast.Volume 14. Washington DC: Smithsonian Institution, 2004.ISBN0-16-072300-0.
- Swanton, John Reed.Source material on the history and ethnology of the Caddo Indians.Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1996.ISBN978-0-8061-2856-6.
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| South Appalachian Mississippian |
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| Pensacola culture | |||||||||||
| Plaquemine Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Caddoan Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Upper Mississippian cultures |
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