 Enrolled tribal member Martha Gradolf, a weaver | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 4,192[1] | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 United States ( Nebraska & Iowa) | |
| Languages | |
| English,Ho-Chunk[2] | |
| Religion | |
| traditional tribal religion,Native American Church[3] | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| otherHo-Chunk people,Otoe,Iowa, andMissouria people[3] |
TheWinnebago Tribe of Nebraska (Ho-Chunk:Nįįšoc Hoocąk)[4] is one of twofederally recognized tribes ofHo-Chunk, along with theHo-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin. Tribe members often identify asHoocągra, meaning "People of the Parent Speech" in their own language. It is aSiouan language.
By the treaty of 1846 with the United States, the Ho-Chunk Nation was assigned to a vast wilderness area in centralMinnesota Territory, the Long Prairie Reservation.[5]
More than twenty years later, the Ho-Chunk were forced to move from that area to theWinnebago Reservation, established by treaty on 8 March 1865.[6] It is further west, inThurston andDixon counties,Nebraska, andWoodbury County, Iowa.[7]
The reservation is 176.55 square miles (112,990 acres; 457.3 km2),[8] of which 27,637 acres (43.183 sq mi; 111.84 km2) is tribal trust land.[1] In 1990, some 1,151 tribal members lived on thereservation.[7]
The Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska (Ho-Chunk Nation) is headquartered inWinnebago, Nebraska.[9] The tribe is governed by a democratically elected general council.
The current administration is as follows:
The Winnebago Tribe runs multiple programs to provide services to the tribe and local community, including multiple educational programs aimed at assisting low-income tribe members, a tribal housing program, and the Winnebago Veteran's Association.[11] Additionally, the Winnebago Tribe runs the Winnebago Fire Crew, which serves the Winnebago and other local tribes.[12]
The Winnebago Tribe speaks English andHo-Chunk (Hocąk), one of theWestern Siouan languages; it is part of theSiouan-Catawban language family.[2]
Ho-Chunk, Inc. is the tribe's corporation; it provides construction services, professional services, and business and consumer products.[13] The Winnebago Tribe also owns and operates the WinnaVegas Casino Resort, hotel, and Flowers Island Restaurant and Buffet, all located inSloan, Iowa.[14]
Ho-Chunk, Inc. has been recognized several times for exercising good governance and creatively solving issues faced in the tribe. TheHarvard Project on American Indian Economic Development, administered at theHarvard Kennedy School, has recognized the tribe's corporation with an Honoring Nations award in 2000, 2002, 2006, and 2015.[15]
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The tribe worked with the Nebraska Crime Commission to create a comprehensive plan for responding to juvenile safety and crime prevention issues. The most recent revision of the "Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska Comprehensive Juvenile Services Plan" lists three primary areas of need:
In 2012, the Winnebago Juvenile Justice Planning Team (WJJPT) was formed to assist with youth outreach and public safety. The WJJPT has planned and carried out a variety of public safety initiatives such as school outreach programs and planning a Crisis Intervention Center.
| Historic and present tribes | |
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| Present languages | |
| Present reservations | |
| Present tribal colleges and universities | |
| Historic figures | |
| Historic events | |
| Historic reservations | |
| Historic communities | |
| Historic sacred places | |
| Other historic places | |
| Precontact peoples | |
| Precontact communities |
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| Other precontact places |
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| Other topics | |