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112-461: Big Bear , also known as Mistahi-maskwa ( Cree : ᒥᐢᑕᐦᐃᒪᐢᑿ ; c.  1825 – 17 January 1888), was a powerful and popular Cree chief who played many pivotal roles in Canadian history. He was appointed to chief of his band at the age of 40 upon the death of his father, Black Powder, under his father's harmonious and inclusive rule which directly impacted his own leadership. Big Bear

224-582: A buffalo in the United States and Canada, it is only distantly related to the true buffalo . The North American species is composed of two subspecies, the Plains bison , B. b. bison , and the wood bison , B. b. athabascae , which is the namesake of Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada. A third subspecies, the eastern bison ( B. b. pennsylvanicus ) is no longer considered

336-428: A consonant , can be written four ways, each direction representing its corresponding vowel . Some dialects of Cree have up to seven vowels, so additional diacritics are placed after the syllabic to represent the corresponding vowels. Finals represent stand-alone consonants. The Cree language also has two semivowels . The semivowels may follow other consonants or be on their own in a word. The following tables show

448-494: A brown bear or a pack of wolves. The rutting, or mating, season lasts from June through September, with peak activity in July and August. At this time, the older bulls rejoin the herd, and fights often take place between bulls. The herd exhibits much restlessness during breeding season. The animals are belligerent, unpredictable, and most dangerous. American bison live in river valleys and on prairies and plains. Typical habitat

560-482: A chief. Big Bear was 40 years old and was the obvious choice. He would be the next chief. Big Bear was described as "an independent spirit" who did not like taking direction from outsiders." He was chosen and followed by the Plains Cree because of his traditional manner and wisdom. Traditional activities, such as hunting and warfare, kept Big Bear and his band occupied until the 1870s brought police, treaties, and

672-646: A code of ethics that prohibits its members from deliberately crossbreeding bison with any other species. In the United States, many ranchers are now using DNA testing to cull the residual cattle genetics from their bison herds. The proportion of cattle DNA that has been measured in introgressed individuals and bison herds today is typically quite low, ranging from 0.56 to 1.8%. There are also remnant purebred American bison herds on public lands in North America. Two subspecies of bison exist in North America:

784-465: A complex polysynthetic morphosyntax. A common grammatical feature in Cree dialects, in terms of sentence structure, is non-regulated word order. Word order is not governed by a specific set of rules or structure; instead, "subjects and objects are expressed by means of inflection on the verb". Subject, Verb, and Object (SVO) in a sentence can vary in order, for example, SVO, VOS, OVS, and SOV. Obviation

896-640: A fertile hybrid of bison and domestic cattle. A market even exists for kosher bison meat; these bison are slaughtered at one of the few kosher mammal slaughterhouses in the U.S. and Canada, and the meat is then distributed worldwide. In America, the commercial industry for bison has been slow to develop despite individuals, such as Ted Turner , who have long marketed bison meat. In the 1990s, Turner found limited success with restaurants for high-quality cuts of meat, which include bison steaks and tenderloin. Lower-quality cuts suitable for hamburger and hot dogs have been described as "almost nonexistent". This created

1008-805: A full-stop glyph ( ⟨᙮⟩ ) or a double em-width space has been used between words to signal the transition from one sentence to the next. For Plains Cree and Swampy Cree , Standard Roman Orthography (SRO) uses fourteen letters of the ISO basic Latin alphabet to denote the dialect's ten consonants ( ⟨p⟩ , ⟨t⟩ , ⟨c⟩ , ⟨k⟩ , ⟨s⟩ , ⟨m⟩ , ⟨n⟩ , ⟨w⟩ , ⟨y⟩ and ⟨h⟩ ) and seven vowels ( ⟨a⟩ , ⟨i⟩ , ⟨o⟩ , ⟨ā⟩ , ⟨ī⟩ , ⟨ō⟩ and ⟨ē⟩ ). Upper case letters are not used. For more details on

1120-584: A great deal of time with his father, including a journey by the two of them to Bull's Forehead Hill, where they spent a great deal of time reflecting and offering to their gods and spirits. Upon reflection, Big Bear was visited by many spirits, but the bear took great prominence in his mind. As a result of his vision of the Bear Spirit, which is the most powerful spirit regarded by the Crees, he received his power bundle, song, and his name. The power bundle, which

1232-712: A man who was taken prisoner at Fort Pitt, was the only man to appear for the Prosecution. Much of the evidence was in favour of Big Bear's innocence. The evidence was clear that Big Bear had not taken part in killings at Frog Lake or the looting and taking of prisoners at Fort Pitt. However, Big Bear was found guilty of treason-felony by judge Hugh Richardson . He was sentenced to three years at Stony Mountain Penitentiary in Manitoba and converted to Christianity during imprisonment. While imprisoned, Big Bear became ill and

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1344-643: A marketing problem for commercial farming because the majority of usable meat, about 400 pounds for each bison, is suitable for these products. In 2003, the United States Department of Agriculture purchased $ 10 million worth of frozen overstock to save the industry, which would later recover through better use of consumer marketing. Restaurants have played a role in popularizing bison meat, like Ted's Montana Grill , which added bison to their menus. Ruby Tuesday first offered bison on their menus in 2005. In Canada, commercial bison farming began in

1456-478: A minimal role in the overall uprising, Big Bear's son Little Bear joined with Chief Wandering Spirit to go to Frog Lake and kill some of the white residents. Big Bear surrendered to the Mounted Police on 2 July 1885 at Fort Carlton. Big Bear had tried to solve the problems between his people and the Canadian government peacefully. Many people felt Big Bear would be found 'not guilty' as he had tried to stop

1568-413: A specialized stomach prior to digestion. Bison were once thought to almost exclusively consume grasses and sedges, but are now known to consume a wide-variety of plants including woody plants and herbaceous eudicots. Over the course of the year, bison shift which plants they select in their diet based on which plants have the highest protein or energy concentrations at a given time and will reliably consume

1680-591: A valid taxon , being a junior synonym of B. b. bison . References to "woods bison" or "wood bison" from the Eastern United States refer to this subspecies, not B. b. athabascae , which was not found in the region. The European bison , B. bonasus , or wisent, or zubr, or colloquially European buffalo, is found in Europe and the Caucasus , reintroduced after being extinct in

1792-593: A work. The vowel ē /eː/ , used in southern Plains Cree, is always long and the grapheme ⟨e⟩ is never used. In northern Plains Cree the sound has merged with ī , and thus ⟨ē⟩ is not used at all. The use of unmarked ⟨o⟩ and marked ⟨ō⟩ for the phonemes /u/ and /oː/ emphasizes the relationship that can exist between these two vowels. There are situations where o can be lengthened to ō , as for example in ᓂᑲᒧ! nikamo! 'sing (now)!' and ᓂᑲᒨᐦᑲᐣ! nikamōhkan! 'sing (later)!'. In alphabetic writing,

1904-518: Is a common behavior of bison. A bison wallow is a shallow depression in the soil, either wet or dry. Bison roll in these depressions, covering themselves with mud or dust. Possible explanations suggested for wallowing behavior include grooming behavior associated with moulting, male-male interaction (typically rutting behavior), social behavior for group cohesion, play behavior, relief from skin irritation due to biting insects, reduction of ectoparasite load ( ticks and lice ), and thermoregulation. In

2016-404: Is also a key aspect of the Cree language(s). In a sense, the obviative can be defined as any third-person ranked lower on a hierarchy of discourse salience than some other (proximate) discourse-participant. "Obviative animate nouns, [in the Plains Cree dialect for instance], are marked by [a suffix] ending –a , and are used to refer to third persons who are more peripheral in the discourse than

2128-473: Is also considered correct as a result of standard usage in American English, and is listed in many dictionaries as an acceptable name for American buffalo or bison. "Buffalo" has a much longer history than "bison", which was first recorded in 1774. Bison was a significant resource for indigenous peoples of North America for food and raw materials until near extinction in the late 19th century. For

2240-665: Is found on the plains around the Henry Mountains , Utah , as well as in mountain valleys of the Henry Mountains to an altitude of 3,000 metres (10,000 ft). European bison most commonly live in lightly wooded to fully wooded areas as well as areas with increased shrubs and bushes. European bison can sometimes be found living on grasslands and plains as well. Throughout most of their historical range, landowners have sought restrictions on free-ranging bison. Herds on private land are required to be fenced in. In

2352-532: Is known about Big Bear's mother. When Big Bear was old enough to walk on his own he spent his time wandering the camp socializing with many people, from the women to council members. In the spring of 1837, smallpox struck Big Bear's community and caused the quick departure of the Cree from the plains. Big Bear was infected with the virus but unlike many in the community, after two months of suffering, he overcame it, although it did leave his face partially disfigured. After his recovery from smallpox, Big Bear began to spend

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2464-499: Is low. Reproduction is dependent on a cow's mass and age. Heavier cows produce heavier calves (weighed in the fall at weaning), and weights of calves are lower for older cows (after age 8). Owing to their size, bison have few predators. Five exceptions are humans , grey wolves , cougars , grizzly bears , and coyotes . Wolves generally take down a bison while in a pack, but cases of a single wolf killing bison have been reported. Grizzly bears also consume bison, often by driving off

2576-561: Is most notable for his involvement in Treaty 6 and the 1885 North-West Rebellion ; he was one of the few chief leaders who objected to the signing of the treaty with the Canadian government . He felt that signing the treaty would ultimately have devastating effects on his nation as well as other Indigenous nations . This included losing the free nomadic lifestyle that his nation and others were accustomed to. Big Bear also took part in one of

2688-504: Is not phonologically transparent, which means gender must be learned along with the noun. As is common in polysynthetic languages, a Cree word can be very long, and express something that takes a series of words in English. For example: kiskinohamātowikamikw know. CAUS . APPL . RECP .place kiskinohamātowikamikw know.CAUS.APPL.RECP.place 'school' ( lit. 'knowing-it-together-by-example place') This means that changing

2800-512: Is open or semiopen grasslands, as well as sagebrush, semiarid lands, and scrublands. Some lightly wooded areas are also known historically to have supported bison. They also graze in hilly or mountainous areas where the slopes are not steep. Although not particularly known as high-altitude animals, bison in the Yellowstone Park bison herd are frequently found at elevations above 2,400 metres (8,000 ft). The Henry Mountains bison herd

2912-539: Is used in Eastern dialects where s and š are distinct phonemes. In other dialects, s is used even when pronounced like [ʃ] . ⟨l⟩ and ⟨r⟩ are used natively in Moose and Attikamek Cree, but in other dialects only for loanwords. The stops, p , t , k , and the affricate, c , can be pronounced either voiced or unvoiced, but the symbols used for writing these sounds all correspond to

3024-563: Is used. John John cî Q kî-mîciso-w PST -eat- 3SG Bison A bison ( pl. : bison ) is a large bovine in the genus Bison (Greek: "wild ox" (bison) ) within the tribe Bovini . Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison , B. bison , found only in North America , is the more numerous. Although colloquially referred to as

3136-409: Is very difficult to make definite statements about how different groups emerged and moved around, because there are no written works in the languages to compare, and descriptions by Europeans are not systematic; as well, Algonquian people have a tradition of bilingualism and even of outright adopting a new language from neighbours. A traditional view among 20th-century anthropologists and historians of

3248-521: The Antelope Island bison herd are regularly inoculated against brucellosis, parasites, Clostridium infection, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, and bovine vibriosis. The major illnesses in European bison are foot-and-mouth disease and balanoposthitis . Inbreeding of a small population plays a role in a number of genetic defects and lowers immunity to disease; that poses greater risk to

3360-720: The Henry Mountains bison herd to be free of brucellosis , a bacterial disease that was imported with non-native domestic cattle to North America. In 2021, the American Society of Mammalogists considered Bison to be a subgenus, and placed both bison species back into Bos . Relationships of bovines based on nuclear DNA, after Sinding, et al. 2021. Bubalina (true buffalo) Bos primigenius + Bos taurus (aurochs and cattle) Bos mutus (wild yak) Bison bison (American bison) Bison bonasus (European bison/wisent) Bos javanicus (banteng) Bos gaurus (gaur) Bos sauveli (kouprey) Wallowing

3472-774: The Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene in Asia. The earliest members of the bison lineage, known from the Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene of the Indian Subcontinent ( Bison sivalensis ) and China ( Bison palaeosinensis ), approximately 3.4-2.6 million years ago (Ma) are placed in the subgenus Bison ( Eobison ) . The oldest remains of Eobison in Europe are those Bison georgicus found in Dmanisi , Georgia, dated to around 1.76 Ma. More derived members of

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3584-743: The Montana First Nation reserve in Alberta and the Rocky Boy Reservation in Montana. There is little documentation to support the names of most of his sons. Before becoming a great leader, Big Bear became a great warrior, taking warriors under his father's command on missions that he described as "haunting the Blackfoot". Upon the death of his father Black Powder in the winter of 1864, his Band with over 100 members needed

3696-644: The fur trade posits that the Western Woods Cree and the Plains Cree (and therefore their dialects) did not diverge from other Cree peoples before 1670, when the Cree expanded out of their homeland near James Bay because of access to European firearms. By contrast, James Smith of the Museum of the American Indian stated, in 1987, that the weight of archeological and linguistic evidence puts

3808-504: The indigenous peoples of the Plains , it was their principal food source. Native Americans highly valued their relationship with the bison and saw them as sacred, treating them respectfully to ensure their abundance and longevity. In his biography, Lakota teacher and elder John Fire Lame Deer describes the relationship as such: The buffalo gave us everything we needed. Without it we were nothing. Our tipis were made of his skin. His hide

3920-415: The mitochondrial DNA of European bison is more closely related to that of domestic cattle and aurochs (while the mitochondrial DNA of American bison is closely related to that of yaks). This discrepancy is either suggested to be the result of incomplete lineage sorting or ancient introgression . Bison are widely believed to have evolved from a lineage belonging to the extinct genus Leptobos during

4032-472: The original Algonquian homeland , an undetermined area thought to be near the Great Lakes. The speakers of the proto-Cree language are thought to have moved north, and diverged rather quickly into two different groups on each side of James Bay . The eastern group then began to diverge into separate dialects, whereas the western grouping probably broke into distinct dialects much later. After this point it

4144-807: The plains bison and the wood bison . Herds of importance are found in Yellowstone National Park , Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota , Blue Mounds State Park in Minnesota , Elk Island National Park in Alberta , and Grasslands National Park in Saskatchewan . In 2015, a purebred herd of 350 individuals was identified on public lands in the Henry Mountains of southern Utah via genetic testing of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA. This study, published in 2015, also showed

4256-469: The proximate third person". For example: Sam Sam wâpam- ew see- 3SG Susan- a Susan- 3OBV Sam wâpam- ew Susan- a Sam see-3SG Susan-3OBV "Sam sees Susan." The suffix -a marks Susan as the obviative, or 'fourth' person, the person furthest away from the discourse. The Cree language has grammatical gender in a system that classifies nouns as animate or inanimate. The distribution of nouns between animate or inanimate

4368-492: The syllabaries of Eastern and Western Cree dialects, respectively: Speakers of various Cree dialects have begun creating dictionaries to serve their communities. Some projects, such as the Cree Language Resource Project, are developing an online bilingual Cree dictionary for the Cree language. Cree syllabics has not commonly or traditionally used the period ( ⟨.⟩ ). Instead, either

4480-488: The y dialect, refer to their language as nēhi y awēwin , whereas Woods Cree speakers say nīhi th awīwin , and Swampy Cree speakers say nēhi n awēwin . Another important phonological variation among the Cree dialects involves the palatalisation of Proto-Algonquian *k : East of the Ontario–Quebec border (except for Atikamekw), Proto-Algonquian *k has changed into /tʃ/ or /ts/ before front vowels. See

4592-594: The 19th and 20th centuries, but have since rebounded. The wisent in part owes its survival to the Chernobyl disaster, as the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone has become a kind of wildlife preserve for wisent and other rare megafauna such as the Przewalski's horse , though poaching has become a threat in recent years. The American Plains bison is no longer listed as endangered , but this does not mean

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4704-484: The 19th century, although the causes of decline and the numbers killed are disputed and debated. Railroads were advertising "hunting by rail", where trains encountered large herds alongside or crossing the tracks. Men aboard fired from the train's roof or windows, leaving countless animals to rot where they died. This overhunting was in part motivated by the U.S. government's desire to limit the range and power of indigenous plains Indians whose diets and cultures depended on

4816-652: The American and European bison. The American species has 15 ribs, while the European bison has 14. The American bison has four lumbar vertebrae, while the European has five. (The difference in this case is that what would be the first lumbar vertebra has ribs attached to it in American bison and is thus counted as the 15th thoracic vertebra, compared to 14 thoracic vertebrae in wisent.) Adult American bison are less slim in build and have shorter legs. American bison tend to graze more, and browse less than their European relatives. Their anatomies reflect this behavioural difference;

4928-588: The American bison's head hangs lower than the European's. The body of the American bison is typically hairier, though its tail has less hair than that of the European bison. The horns of the European bison point through the plane of their faces, making them more adept at fighting through the interlocking of horns in the same manner as domestic cattle, unlike the American bison, which favours butting. American bison are more easily tamed than their European cousins, and breed with domestic cattle more readily. The bovine tribe (Bovini) split about 5 to 10 million years ago into

5040-655: The Asian water buffalo and the African buffalo . Samuel de Champlain applied the French term buffle to the bison in 1616 (published 1619), after seeing skins and a drawing shown to him by members of the Nipissing First Nation , who said they travelled 40 days (from east of Lake Huron) to trade with another nation who hunted the animals. Though "bison" might be considered more scientifically correct, "buffalo"

5152-545: The Canadian government brought upon his people. He was chosen and followed by the Cree because of his wisdom; this can be seen in the fact that he resisted whites with ideas, not guns or any sort of violence. It has been argued that Big Bear should be commemorated as part of the ongoing reconciliation process towards Indigenous people in Canada, as he deserves public recognition for all that he sacrificed and stood up for during his time as Chief. The issue of chiefs, such as Big Bear, Poundmaker and One Arrow, remaining convicted for

5264-416: The Canadian government in the 1870s to work out a treaty. Big Bear was never open to the idea of reserve life, as he feared his loss of freedom and identity as a hunter. But he knew that best way for him and his band to avoid starvation was to sign a treaty with the Canadian government. By 1876, all major Plains Cree chiefs had signed Treaty 6 except for Big Bear. Big Bear stalled signing as he believed that

5376-458: The Canadian government to conserve the bison but the measures were not enacted in time to stop the drastic depletion of the bison food supply. In the early 1880s, tuberculosis became the main killer of the Indigenous people on the reserve as European settlers brought over the disease and spread it through coughing and the sharing of pipes during tobacco-smoking ceremonies. The disappearance of

5488-570: The Canadian government would violate the treaty. Big Bear said "we want none of the Queen's presents: When we set a fox trap we scatter pieces of meat all around but when the fox gets into the trap we knock him on the head. We want no baits. Let your chiefs come like men and talk to us." Big Bear believed that the Canadian government was telling him and his fellow chiefs what they wanted to hear. This led Big Bear to resist signing and to pursue better terms for Treaty 6. Big Bear made several attempts to warn

5600-577: The Cree as far west as the Peace River Region of Alberta before European contact. The Cree dialect continuum can be divided by many criteria. Dialects spoken in northern Ontario and the southern James Bay, Lanaudière, and Mauricie regions of Quebec differentiate /ʃ/ (sh as in sh e ) and /s/ , while those to the west have merged the two phonemes as /s/ and in the east the phonemes are merged as either /ʃ/ or /h/ . In several dialects, including northern Plains Cree and Woods Cree,

5712-732: The DV) of thiamine. The earliest plausible accounts of captive bison are those of the zoo at Tenochtitlan , the Aztec capital, which held an animal the Spaniards called "the Mexican bull". In 1552, Francisco Lopez de Gomara described Plains Indians herding and leading bison like cattle in his controversial book, Historia general de las Indias . Gomara, having never visited the Americas himself, likely misinterpreted early ethnographic accounts as

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5824-846: The European bison (wisent) are the largest surviving terrestrial animals in North America and Europe. They are typical artiodactyl (cloven hooved) ungulates, and are similar in appearance to other bovines such as cattle and true buffalo. They are broad and muscular with shaggy coats of long hair. Adults grow up to 2 metres (6 feet 7 inches) in height and 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) in length for American bison and up to 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in) in height and 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in) in length for European bison. American bison can weigh from around 400 to 1,270 kilograms (880 to 2,800 pounds) and European bison can weigh from 800 to 1,000 kg (1,800 to 2,200 lb). European bison tend to be taller than American bison. Bison are nomadic grazers and travel in herds . The bulls leave

5936-460: The Massacre at Frog Lake and tried to protect those that were taken prisoner. Henry Ross Halpin testified at his trial saying that he was just as much of a prisoner as he, himself had been. At the time of the trial, Big Bear was 60 years old. The trial was confusing for Big Bear as the trial was in English, and had to be translated into Cree. Hugh Dempsey has stated in his book, that Stanley Simpson,

6048-566: The North-West Mounted Police were to preserve the west as Canadian and how they were not to interfere with but to protect aboriginal interests. At the end of the visit, McKay and the HBC distributed gifts to the 65 tents of Big Bear's people; however, some were reluctant, they viewed the gifts and the North-West Mounted Police as a means of appeasement and incentive to start the treaty process with Canada. Big Bear began talks with

6160-778: The Plains Cree [j] that is [ð] in Rocky Cree as ⟨ý⟩ . Similarly, in dictionaries focused on Western Swampy Cree, Woods Cree may readily substitute ⟨ē⟩ with ⟨ī⟩ , while materials accommodating Woods Cree will indicate the Western Swampy Cree [n] that is [ð] in Woods Cree as ⟨ń⟩ . Atikamekw uses ⟨c⟩ [ ʃ ], ⟨tc⟩ [ t͡ʃ ], and ⟨i⟩ [ j ] (which also serves as ⟨i⟩ [ i ]). Eastern James Bay Cree prefers to indicate long vowels (other than [eː] ) by doubling

6272-427: The bison was devastating to the Indigenous population because hunting allowed them to be self-sufficient and free from the dominion government; once the bison disappeared their need for assistance was imperative. The Canadian government was the only option of survival but this meant signing the numbered treaties which would change their culture indefinitely. During this time, Big Bear tried to withhold his signature from

6384-416: The bison's population to nearly 150,000, and it is officially no longer considered an endangered species . However, from a genetic standpoint, most of these animals are actually hybrids with domestic cattle and only two populations in Yellowstone National Park in the United States and Elk Island National Park in Canada remain as genetically pure bison. These genetically pure animals account for only ~5% of

6496-427: The buffalo herds. The overhunting of the bison reduced their population to hundreds. The American bison's nadir came in 1889, with an estimated population of only 1,091 animals (both wild and captive). Repopulation attempts via enforced protection of government herds and extensive ranching began in 1910 and have continued (with excellent success) to the present day, with some caveats. Extensive farming has increased

6608-402: The buffalos ( Bubalus and Syncerus ) and a group leading to bison and taurine cattle. Genetic evidence from nuclear DNA indicates that the closest living relatives of bison are yaks , with bison being nested within the genus Bos , rendering Bos without including bison paraphyletic . While nuclear DNA indicates that both extant bison species are each other's closest living relatives,

6720-609: The conviction of Louis Riel. Big Bear's involvement in the North-West Rebellion was seen in his advocacy for a better deal with the Canadian government in terms of Treaty 6. By the late 1870s, the Plains Indigenous nations were facing starvation due to the disappearing bison herds. In 1880, Big Bear and Crowfoot founded a confederacy in order to solve their people's grievances. In 1885, the Canadian government cut off rations to force Big Bear to settle, as he

6832-501: The crime of treason-felony has been brought up in order to exonerate them. It has been said that these convictions were false, as “the government of the day was looking for an excuse to silence First Nations leaders who were pressing for the treaties to be honoured.” Cree language Endonyms are: Cree is believed to have begun as a dialect of the Proto-Algonquian language spoken between 2,500 and 3,000 years ago in

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6944-498: The currently extant American bison population, reflecting the loss of most of the species' genetic diversity. As of July 2015, an estimated 4,900 bison lived in Yellowstone National Park , the largest U.S. bison population on public land. During 1983–1985 visitors experienced 33 bison-related injuries (range = 10–13/year), so the park implemented education campaigns. After years of success, five injuries associated with bison encounters occurred in 2015, because visitors did not maintain

7056-508: The dialects which use syllabics as their orthography (including Atikamekw but excluding Kawawachikamach Naskapi), the term Montagnais then applies to those dialects using the Latin script (excluding Atikamekw and including Kawawachikamach Naskapi). The term Naskapi typically refers to Kawawachikamach (y-dialect) and Natuashish (n-dialect). The Cree dialects can be broadly classified into nine groups. Roughly from west to east: This table shows

7168-445: The end of the buffalo. At the height of his influence in the winter of 1878 to 1879, the buffalo that the plains peoples hunted for food did not come north. The Western Plains Indigenous People underwent a cultural, environmental and structural change starting in the mid-1870s and continuing into the late 1800s. Canada was attempting to cultivate the land that the Indigenous population occupied for European settlers. The treaties were

7280-680: The females were fertile. The crossbred animals did not demonstrate any form of hybrid vigor , so the practice was abandoned. Wisent-American bison hybrids were briefly experimented with in Germany (and found to be fully fertile) and a herd of such animals is maintained in Russia. A herd of cattle-wisent crossbreeds ( zubron ) is maintained in Poland. First-generation crosses do not occur naturally, requiring caesarean delivery. First-generation males are infertile. The U.S. National Bison Association has adopted

7392-646: The following day, Wandering Spirit had killed federal agent Thomas Trueman Quinn, who denied his people food rations. Although Big Bear tried to stop the violence, the warriors went on to kill nine more men. This became known as the Frog Lake Massacre . Once news spread of this incident, the Canadian government decided to hold Big Bear responsible as an active participant in the rebellion, even though at this point he had no control over his band. Big Bear had resisted signing Treaty 6 for four years. With food supplies running low and his people facing starvation, he

7504-466: The generations to come. Big Bear also questioned the Eurocentric worldview and new order being brought forth with these treaties. Others tried to discredit Big Bear in his attempt to change Treaty 6. John McDougall tried on several occasions to discount him. He claimed Big Bear was an outsider, that he was not of the area and did not deserve the esteem he carried among the people of this area. This

7616-527: The genus are placed in the subgenus Bison ( Bison ), which first appeared towards the end of the Early Pleistocene, around 1.2 Ma, with early members of the subgenus including the widespread Bison schoetensacki . The steppe bison ( Bison priscus ) first appeared during the mid- Middle Pleistocene in eastern Eurasia, and subsequently became widely distributed across Eurasia. During the late Middle Pleistocene, around 195,000-135,000 years ago,

7728-527: The herds of females at two or three years of age, and join a herd of males, which usually are smaller than female herds. Mature bulls rarely travel alone. Towards the end of the summer, for the reproductive season, the sexes necessarily commingle. American bison are known for living in the Great Plains , but formerly had a much larger range, including much of the eastern United States and parts of Mexico. Both species were hunted close to extinction during

7840-457: The high point of development for their band. It started to become more and more apparent that these conditions would not remain forever. Disease had begun to ravage his people and the declining numbers of buffalo threatened their food source and economy. This was quite worrisome for Big Bear as both a father and a chief, and he knew something had to be done. On 14 August 1874, The Hudson's Bay Company visited Big Bear and his fellow Cree people. This

7952-412: The higher quality forage that regrows after the burn. Wisent tend to browse on shrubs and low-hanging trees more often than do the American bison, which prefer grass to shrubbery and trees. Female bison ("cows") typically reproduce after three years of age and can continue beyond 19 years of age. Cows produce calves annually as long as their nutrition is sufficient, but not after years when weight gain

8064-478: The horns borne by both males and females, but their massive heads can be used as battering rams, effectively using the momentum produced by what is a typical weight of 900 to 1,200 kilograms (2,000 to 2,700 lb) moving at 50 km/h (30 mph). The hind legs can also be used to kill or maim with devastating effect. In the words of early naturalists, they were dangerous, savage animals that feared no other animal and in prime condition could best any foe except for

8176-407: The language phonetically. Cree is always written from left to right horizontally. The easternmost dialects are written using the Latin script exclusively. The dialects of Plains Cree, Woods Cree, and western Swampy Cree use Western Cree syllabics and the dialects of eastern Swampy Cree, East Cree, Moose Cree, and Naskapi use Eastern Cree syllabics . In Cree syllabics, each symbol, which represents

8288-547: The largest Indian battle to be fought on the Canadian Plains, the Blackfoot band only lost 40 warriors while the Cree lost between 200 and 300. This was the last battle to be fought between the First Nations. The decades following this battle brought an increased White settlement, as well as police and government presence and the disappearance of the buffalo. As the 1870s began, Big Bear and his tribe had reached

8400-589: The last major battles between the Cree and the Blackfoot nations. He was one of the leaders to lead his people in the last, largest battle on the Canadian Plains. Big Bear ( Mistahi-maskwa , ᒥᐢᑕᐦᐃᒪᐢᑿ in syllabics ) was born in 1824 in Jackfish Lake, near the future site of Battleford. His father, Muckitoo (otherwise known as Black Powder), was a minor chief of a tribe of 80 Plains Cree-Saulteaux people who were deemed to be "true nomadic hunters". Little

8512-575: The late Middle Pleistocene, where it existed in sympatry with the steppe bison. Its relationship with other extinct bison species is unclear, though it appears to be only distantly related to the steppe and American bisons, with possibly some interbreeding between the two lineages during the Middle Pleistocene. The steppe bison survived into the early-mid Holocene in Alaska-Yukon and eastern Siberia, before becoming extinct. During

8624-457: The long vowels /eː/ and /iː/ have merged into a single vowel, /iː/ . In the Quebec communities of Chisasibi , Whapmagoostui , and Kawawachikamach , the long vowel /eː/ has merged with /aː/ . However, the most transparent phonological variation between different Cree dialects are the reflexes of Proto-Algonquian *l in the modern dialects, as shown below: The Plains Cree, speakers of

8736-474: The method of choice by the government to gain rights to the ground; all Indigenous groups were given the opportunity, according to the government, to sign and receive the benefits of the treaty terms. However, the Indigenous People who did not want to sign were ultimately forced to sign because of environmental and cultural changes between 1870 and 1885. The most significant contributing factor to this

8848-513: The mid-1980s, concerning an unknown number of animals then. The first census of the bison occurred in 1996, which recorded 45,235 bison on 745 farms, and grew to 195,728 bison on 1,898 farms for the 2006 census. Several pet food companies use bison as a red meat alternative in dog foods. The companies producing these formulas include Natural Balance Pet Foods , Freshpet , the Blue Buffalo Company, Solid Gold, Canidae, and Taste of

8960-477: The more familiar pastoralist relationship of the Old World . Today, bison are increasingly raised for meat , hides , wool , and dairy products. The majority of bison in the world are raised for human consumption or fur clothing. Bison meat is generally considered to taste very similar to beef, but is lower in fat and cholesterol , yet higher in protein than beef, which has led to the development of beefalo ,

9072-414: The others against signing Treaty 6. At one point Big Bear rode by horseback to each lodge in the area urging people not to sign the treaty and not to give up the land, because it was so rich in natural resources. Big Bear also resisted publicly at both Fort Carleton and Pitt, where the treaty was being signed. Big Bear understood the importance of making the best of this treaty as it would have implications on

9184-490: The pack and consuming the wolves' kill. Grizzly bears and coyotes also prey on bison calves. Historically and prehistorically, lions , cave lions , tigers , dire wolves , Smilodon , Homotherium , cave hyenas , and Neanderthals posed threats to bison. For American bison, a main illness is malignant catarrhal fever , though brucellosis is a serious concern in the Yellowstone Park bison herd. Bison in

9296-494: The phonetic values of these letters or variant orthographies, see the § Phonology section above. The /ð/ sound of Woods Cree is written ⟨th⟩ , or ⟨ð⟩ in more recent material. Plains and Swampy material written to be cross-dialectical often modify ⟨y⟩ to ⟨ý⟩ and ⟨n⟩ to ⟨ñ⟩ when those are pronounced /ð/ in Swampy. ⟨š⟩

9408-528: The pipe leaning against it, was our sacred altar. The name of the greatest of all Sioux was Tatanka Iyotake—Sitting Bull . When you killed off the buffalo you also killed the Indian—the real, natural, "wild" Indian. European colonials were almost exclusively accountable for the near-extinction of the American bison in the 1800s. At the beginning of the century, tens of millions of bison roamed North America. Colonists slaughtered an estimated 50 million bison during

9520-552: The population bottleneck caused by the great slaughter of American bison during the 19th century, the number of bison remaining alive in North America declined to as low as 541. During that period, a handful of ranchers gathered remnants of the existing herds to save the species from extinction. These ranchers bred some of the bison with cattle in an effort to produce "cattleo" (today called " beefalo "). Accidental crossings were also known to occur. Generally, male domestic bulls were crossed with bison cows, producing offspring of which only

9632-683: The population. The name 'bison' was first used for the European species ; ancient Greek authors Pausanias and Oppian in 2nd-century AD wrote about them in Greek as βίσων bisōn . Roman authors Pliny the Elder and Gaius Julius Solinus used the word bĭson in Latin as well. It was made into a genus name by Charles Hamilton Smith in 1827. Although called "buffalo" in American English, they are only distantly related to two "true buffalo",

9744-511: The possible consonant phonemes in the Cree language or one of its varieties. In dictionaries focused on Eastern Swampy Cree, Western Swampy Cree may readily substitute ⟨sh⟩ with ⟨s⟩ , while Lowland Moose Cree may readily substitute ⟨ñ⟩ with their ⟨l⟩ . In dictionaries focused on Southern Plains Cree, Northern Plains Cree may readily substitute ⟨ē⟩ with ⟨ī⟩ , while materials accommodating Rocky Cree will indicate

9856-419: The process of wallowing, bison may become infected by the fatal disease anthrax , which may occur naturally in the soil. Bison temperament is often unpredictable. They usually appear peaceful, unconcerned, or even lazy, but they may attack without warning or apparent reason. They can move at speeds up to 56 km/h (35 mph) and cover long distances at a lumbering gallop. Their most obvious weapons are

9968-472: The required distance of 75 ft (23 m) from bison while hiking or taking pictures. Bison is an excellent source of complete protein and a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of multiple vitamins, including riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B 6 , and vitamin B 12 , and is also a rich source of minerals, including iron, phosphorus, and zinc. Additionally, bison is a good source (10% or more of

10080-457: The same species of plants across years. Protein concentrations of the plants they eat tend to be highest in the spring and decline thereafter, reaching their lowest in the winter. In Yellowstone National Park, bison browsed willows and cottonwoods, not only in the winter when few other plants are available, but also in the summer. Bison are thought to migrate to optimize their diet, and will concentrate their feeding on recently burned areas due to

10192-580: The species is secure. Genetically pure B. b. bison currently number only about 20,000, separated into fragmented herds—all of which require active conservation measures. The wood bison is on the endangered species list in Canada and is listed as threatened in the United States, though numerous attempts have been made by beefalo ranchers to have it entirely removed from the Endangered Species List . Although superficially similar, physical and behavioural differences exist between

10304-560: The state of Montana , free-ranging bison on public land are legally shot, due to transmission of disease to cattle and damage to public property. In 2013, Montana legislative measures concerning the bison were proposed and passed, but opposed by Native American tribes as they impinged on sovereign tribal rights. Three such bills were vetoed by Steve Bullock , the governor of Montana. The bison's circumstances remain an issue of contention between Native American tribes and private landowners. Bison are ruminants , able to ferment cellulose in

10416-704: The steppe bison migrated across the Bering land bridge into North America, becoming ancestral to North American bison species, including the large Bison latifrons , and the smaller Bison antiquus , which became extinct at the end of the Late Pleistocene. Modern American bison are thought to have evolved from B. antiquus during the Late Pleistocene-Holocene transition via the intermediate form Bison occidentalis . The European bison, Bison bonasus, first appeared in Europe during

10528-493: The table above for examples in the * kīla column. Very often the Cree dialect continuum is divided into two languages: Cree and Montagnais. Cree includes all dialects which have not undergone the *k > /tʃ/ sound change (BC–QC) while Montagnais encompasses the territory where this sound change has occurred (QC–NL). These labels are very useful from a linguistic perspective but are confusing as East Cree then qualifies as Montagnais. For practical purposes, Cree usually covers

10640-532: The treaty after all his warnings. The North-West Rebellion was a five-month revolt in 1885 against the Canadian government that was mainly fought by the Métis and their First Nations allies due to rising fear, insecurity, and white settlers of the rapidly changing West. The result of this battle was seen in the enforcement of Canadian law, the subjugation of the Plains Indigenous Peoples, and

10752-475: The treaty so that his people might get better terms but by the mid-1880s malnutrition was severe and the meagre rations given by the dominion government did not supply enough food. Big Bear was ultimately forced to sign the treaty on 8 December 1882 to save his people from starvation and disease because the dominion government would not help unless they signed. These factors contributed to the many deaths of Indigenous leaders leaving tribes without their history, which

10864-444: The unvoiced pronunciation, e.g. ⟨p⟩ not ⟨b⟩ , ⟨t⟩ not ⟨d⟩ , etc. The phoneme /t͡s/ is represented by ⟨c⟩ , as it is in various other languages . Long vowels are denoted with either a macron , as in ⟨ā⟩ , or a circumflex , as in ⟨â⟩ . Use of either the macron or circumflex is acceptable, but usage should be consistent within

10976-418: The use of punctuation has been inconsistent. For instance, in the Plains Cree dialect, the interrogative enclitic cî can be included in the sentence to mark a yes–no question such that this is sometimes considered to be sufficient without including a question mark (?). However, in many modern publications and text collections ( cf. The Counselling Speeches of Jim Kâ-Nîpitêhtêw (1998) ) full punctuation

11088-466: The vowel, while the western Cree use either a macron or circumflex diacritic; as [eː] is always long, often it is written as just ⟨e⟩ without doubling or using a diacritic. While Western Cree dialects make use of ⟨o⟩ and either ⟨ō⟩ or ⟨ô⟩ , Eastern Cree dialects instead make use of ⟨u⟩ and either ⟨uu⟩ , ⟨ū⟩ , or ⟨û⟩ . Cree features

11200-408: The wild . While bison species have been traditionally classified in their own genus , modern genetics indicates that they are nested within the genus Bos , which includes, among others, cattle, yaks and gaur , being most closely related to yaks. Bison are sometimes bred with domestic cattle and produce offspring called beefalo , in North America, or żubroń , in Poland. The American bison and

11312-420: The word order in Cree can place emphasis on different pieces of the sentence. Wolfart and Carroll give the following example by transposing the two Cree words: Cree dialects, except for those spoken in eastern Quebec and Labrador , are traditionally written using Cree syllabics , a variant of Canadian Aboriginal syllabics , but can be written with the Latin script as well. Both writing systems represent

11424-564: Was eventually released in February 1887 after serving approximately half of his prison term. He resided on the Little Pine reserve until his failing health conditions resulted in his death on January 17, 1888, at 62 years of age. Long after his death, Big Bear's legacy continues to be prominent to this day. To many, he is remembered as a powerful Cree Chief who advocated for Indigenous rights and fought against socio-economic injustices that

11536-463: Was forced to sign the Treaty. After signing the Treaty, Big Bear and his people could not decide where their reserve would be. Though they did not want to live on a reserve, in order to receive food rations from the government a location needed to be decided on. The first winter after signing the treaty, Big Bear and his people did not receive any rations as they had not decided what reserve to live on. It

11648-621: Was in the year 1884 that Big Bear would meet Hudson's Bay Company clerk Henry Ross Halpin in Frog Lake, and the pair soon became friends. In 1885 Big Bear had chosen a reserve to live on. After Big Bear was unable to choose a reserve quickly, he began losing influence over his people. Cree Chief Wandering Spirit rose in authority among the Cree people. When the Métis initiated the North-West Rebellion of 1885 under Louis Riel and Gabriel Dumont , Big Bear and his supporters played

11760-579: Was never opened unless to be worn in war or dance, contained a fur necklace in the shape of a bear paw. It is said that when the weight of the necklace rested against his soul, it enabled him to be in a perfect power position where nothing could hurt him. This necklace was the source of his nickname Maskwa , meaning bear, and Mistahi , meaning much, or big. It is reported that throughout Big Bear's life, he had several wives, producing at least four male children who would carry on his name, including his son Âyimisîs (Little Bad Man/Little Bear) , who helped found

11872-408: Was not true, as he was a Cree but also his father was Saulteaux (the other aboriginal group present in the signing of Treaty 6). He was not an outsider but rather leader of a group of people who had elements of both cultures. Big Bear resisted signing but signed Treaty 6 in 1882. He did so because he believed he had no other choice. Big Bear believed he was betrayed by the other chiefs as they signed

11984-539: Was our bed, our blanket, our winter coat. It was our drum, throbbing through the night, alive, holy. Out of his skin we made our water bags. His flesh strengthened us, became flesh of our flesh. Not the smallest part of it was wasted. His stomach, a red-hot stone dropped into it, became our soup kettle. His horns were our spoons, the bones our knives, our women's awls and needles. Out of his sinews we made our bowstrings and thread. His ribs were fashioned into sleds for our children, his hoofs became rattles. His mighty skull, with

12096-554: Was seen as peculiar to Big Bear and his people as the Hudson's Bay Company would have had to travel seven days from the nearest trading post to visit their camp. The Hudson's Bay Company arrived with four wagons full of supplies. Factor William McKay (an old friend of Big Bear) came along for the trip, and he warned Big Bear of the establishment of the North-West Mounted Police in the area. McKay told Big Bear that

12208-460: Was still resistant in moving his people onto a reserve. Led by Big Bear's son Little Bad Man and Chief Wandering Spirit , their group camped along Frog Lake believed that they could take matters into their own hands after receiving news that the Métis defeated the North-West Mounted Police at Duck Lake on 26 March 1885. On 1 April 1885, several Métis and non-Métis settlers were taken as prisoners;

12320-560: Was taught by the elderly, and without men to lead their tribes changing their life from that point on. To be a Scrub Plains Cree Indigenous man it was an expectation to be an accomplished hunter and warrior, Big Bear was no exception to the rule. Big Bear was known to be a strong warrior and was often, as an adult, called upon to defend the community. A Cree man, to raise his position in the community, participated in raids and or attacks of enemy tribes which meant stealing of horses, land and food from their enemies. Big Bear's main responsibility

12432-412: Was the disappearance of the bison which created a region-wide famine ; in addition to this, there was the emergence and widespread epidemic of tuberculosis which had a devastating effect on the Indigenous population. The disappearance of the bison has been explained to some extent by the overhunting by white settlers to supply the fur trade which ultimately led to the famine. There were some attempts by

12544-540: Was to be a hunter and provide for his family but he was involved in attacks against the enemies of the Cree. The Battle of the Belly River was one of the largest battles that the Cree were involved in. Occurring in October 1870, Big Bear and his band were involved in an attack between the Plains Cree and their enemies, the Blackfoot tribe, at Belly River, which is near present-day Lethbridge, Alberta . Known to be

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