language Reunion

[Andre Cramblit]

http://www.nativetimes.com/index.asp? 
action=displayarticle&article_id=8107

The 900-year reunion
Separated by distance, united by language


Sam Lewin 8/22/2006

A coalition that existed a century ago will be replicated in a mid- 
sized Oklahoma town next month.

The Shoshonean Language Reunion takes place Sept. 25-27 at the  
Comanche Nation’s tribal complex in Lawton.

The reunion stems from the Snake Tribe, a partnership located in what  
is now the state of Montana and made up of “Shoshone, Paiutes, Utes  
and Comanches,” according to Comanche historian Reaves Nahwooks of  
Indiahoma, OK.

Nahwooks tells the Native American Times that he became interested in  
the Snakes while living at the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in Idaho  
during the 1960s and seeing how close his Comanche language is to the  
dialect spoken by the Shoshone of the region. Years of research led  
Nahwooks to continually contemplate one tantalizing mystery: Why did  
the Snakes split?

Various theories abound and many are passed off as fact. One idea is  
that the groups separated because of a “fight over meat or a fight  
between kids where one was killed while they were playing, so the  
families left,” Nahwooks said. But he discounts that theory, saying  
that the tribes involved “don’t forget, and they hold grudges. There  
would be some very prevalent stories [about the feud] still around.”

Another thought, which Nahwooks give more credence, is that the  
Comanches left in order to follow the buffalo, moving south into  
Mexico then north to Texas and Oklahoma.

The idea for a reunion had been bandied about for many years but it  
wasn’t until that late 1990s that the ball really got rolling,  
motivated primarily by the fact that there remained a group of tribes  
living 3000 miles apart yet speaking the same language. The Comanches  
today number about 10,000, with roughly half living in Oklahoma. Some  
historians believe the tribe may have once numbered 20,000. With a  
dwindling membership, the desire to learn more about the past  
apparently became even more pressing.

Another factor in creating an annual reunion is use of peyote, which  
created a “more intense reason to promote communication,” according  
to a write-up in the Comanche Nation News attributed to the Reunion  
Committee Staff. Up until the reunions began, “most information has  
been put together by non-Indian anthropologists, teachers, explorers,  
linguists, writers and others. Though this is a valuable service, it  
does not include in-depth information about tribal customs and  
traditions,” the article states.

The reunion places a strong emphasis on the cultural, Nahwooks said,  
featuring “storytelling, singing and talking about the cultures.  
Every tribe there does that.”

“Highlighted in every reunion was the hospitality that each tribe  
extended to visitors,” the Comanche Nation News article relates. “The  
histories began to come together and the tribes seemed to become  
comfortable with each other.”

The first and second reunions were held in Fort Hall, with the  
Comanches hosting the third. Subsequent reunions have taken place in  
Wyoming and Nevada. With the seventh incarnation returning to  
Oklahoma, reunion organizers are seeking to pull out all the stops.  
The Comanche newspaper account is accompanied by an announcement that  
the reunion committee is putting out bids for caterers.

“We are one people in language and tradition, but learn more customs  
in food and practices which makes us more knowledgeable and proud to  
be together,” the reunion staff says.


You can contact Sam Lewin at sam at okit.com
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