Mosopelea
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(August 2018) |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| No longer a distinct tribe, merged into theTunica-Biloxi[1][2] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| United States(formerlyOhio,Louisiana) | |
| Languages | |
| Ofo,English,French | |
| Religion | |
| Native tribal religion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Biloxi,Tunica[1] |
TheMosopelea,orOfo(alsoOfogoula),were aSiouan-speakingNative Americanpeople who historically lived near the upperOhio River.In reaction toIroquois Confederacyinvasions to take control of hunting grounds in the late 17th century, they moved south to the lowerMississippi River.They finally settled in central Louisiana, where they assimilated with theTunicaand the Siouan-speakingBiloxi.They spoke theOfo language,generally classified as aSiouan language.[1]
History
[edit]17th century
[edit]According to the 1684 French map ofJean-Baptiste-Louis Franquelin,the Mosopelea had eight villages just north of the Ohio River, between theMuskingumandSciotorivers, within the present-day state of Ohio, corresponding with the heart ofOhio Hopewellcountry.[3](TheMiami-IllinoisnameMosopeleacipi( "river of the Mosopelea" ) referred to what is now called the Ohio River. Shortened in theShawnee language,the name evolved to "Pelisipi" or "Pellissippi" and was also later applied to what is now called theClinch RiverinVirginiaandTennessee.)[4]
Franquelin noted the villages on the map as "destroyed".La Sallerecorded that the Mosopelea were among the tribes conquered by theSenecaand other nations of theIroquois Confederacyin the early 1670s, during the laterBeaver Wars.[5]In 1673,Marquette,Joliet,and other early French explorers found that the Mosopelea likely abandoned Ohio and moved south along theMississippi River.[1]They briefly lived with theQuapawbefore joining theTunica,who were allied with the French colonists.[1]
In 1699, the Ofo/Mosopelea were referred by French Jesuits as theHouspé,and were encountered living among the Tunica.[6][7]
18th century
[edit]Around 1700, French travelers reported Ofo villages in Mississippi on theYazoo River.Refusing to join the Natchez in their war against the French in the 1710s and 1720s, the Ofo moved further south. They and other remnant peoples became assimilated into the Biloxi and Tunica. Their language became extinct.
Descendants
[edit]TheU.S. Department of the Interiordetermined that: "The contemporaryTunica-Biloxi Indian Tribeis the successor of the historicalTunica,Ofo, andAvoyel tribes,and part of theBiloxi tribe.These have a documented existence back to 1698. The component tribes were allied in the 18th century and became amalgamated into one in the 19th century through common interests and outside pressures from non-Indian cultures. "[2]
The Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe has a reservation inAvoyelles Parish, Louisiana.
Notes
[edit]- ^abcdeJohn Reed Swanton,The Indian Tribes of North America,p. 232.
- ^ab"General Conclusions"(PDF).Recommendation and summary evidence for proposed finding for Federal acknowledgment of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana pursuant to 25 CFR 54.U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs. December 4, 1980.Retrieved23 May2024.
- ^Hanna, p. 125.
- ^"The Winding River Home: Pellissippi State researches the meaning of 'Pellissippi'".Pellissippi State News.Pellissippi State Community College.June 7, 2017.Archivedfrom the original on July 26, 2018.RetrievedJuly 26,2018.
- ^Hanna, p. 97.
- ^Waselkov, Gregory A.; Wood, Peter H.; Hatley, M. Thomas (2006-01-01).Powhatan's Mantle: Indians in the Colonial Southeast.U of Nebraska Press. p. 499.ISBN0803298617.
- ^"Mid-America: an historical review".archive.org.p. 228.Retrieved2015-07-16.
References
[edit]- Hanna, Charles.The Wilderness Trail,Vol 2, pp. 94–105.
- Swanton, John Reed (1952).The Indian Tribes of North America.Genealogical Publishing Com. p. 74.ISBN9780806317304.
External links
[edit]- Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe,official website