Description
The Plains Apache are also known as the Kiowa Apache, Na?isha, or Na i sha Tindé, meaning "thieves" as the old meaning. However, in more recent times the negative meaning (thief) is beginning to be replaced by just Na i sha. To their close allies, the much larger Kiowa tribe, who speak a completely unrelated language, they were known as Semat meaning "stealers." At major tribal events, the Kiowa Apache formed part of the Kiowa tribal "hoop" (ring of tipis). This may explain why the Kiowa named the Kiowa Apache Taugui meaning "sitting outside." In the early 18th century, the Plains Apache lived around the upper Missouri River and were closely connected to the Kiowa people. They were ethnically different and spoke a different language. Plains Apache entered this alliance with the Kiowa for mutual protection against hostile tribes.
Language
Plains Apache (Na'isha), also known as Kiowa Apache, is the most divergent of the Apachean languages. It is a member of the eastern Apachean subgroup of the Apachean branch of the Athabaskan language family.
Culture
The social unit of the Lipan and Mescalero Apaches was the extended family. Several extended families generally stayed together and were led by their most prominent member, who acted as chief advisor and director of group affairs. The Apaches were nomadic and lived almost completely off the buffalo adorned in buffalo skins living in tents made of tanned hides, loaded onto dogs when they moved with the herds. They were among the first, after the Pueblos, to learn to ride horses. In addition, the Apaches had never adapted completely to a Plains culture. They continued to establish rancherías, where they built huts and tended fields of maize, beans, pumpkins, and watermelons. This attempt to improve their source of food was a major cause of their defeat by the Comanches.