Hiráaca or Hidatsa ( Hiráaca nooga ire’e) is a Siouan language spoken by the Hiraaca people of the Northern Plains. It is one of three languages belonging to the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Mandan Hidatsa and Arikara (MHA) Nation. Although operating as a single political entity, Hiráaca has its own distinct language, culture & customs. Intertribal unions and cultural borrowing between the three tribes is also acknowledged. Our homelands encompass the Northern Plains and other parts of the United States, but in recent times our tribe has settled along the Knife and Missouri Rivers in what is now North Dakota.

Historically, there were three separate bands who settled along the Knife River who eventually became known as the Hiráaca. According to the National Park Service Website, “The first people to live in the areas around the Knife River arrived possibly as early as 12,000 years ago.” The villages at Me’ci Aashi’sh (Knife River) were more “recent’ settlements although, “At the time of European contact, these communities were the culmination of 700 years of settlement in the area. The Hiráaca settled Awatixa Xi'e Village around 1525, Hiráaca Village around 1600, and Awatixa Village (Sakakawea Site) in 1796.” It is acknowledged that there is still influence from the languages of the three original Hiráaca bands. Due to the small number of speakers today, there are not recognizable dialects, but rather idiolects, where words or usage of language may vary from speaker to speaker.

Effects of settler colonization have affected the livelihoods of the MHA people, including disease after settler contact, epidemics, boarding schools, religious assimilation, creation of the reservation, allotment, relocation and the flooding of the Garrison Dam. Part of this livelihood was being able to pass down culture and language to the next generation.

First language Hiráaca speakers typically acquired Hiráaca as their first language then learned English when they started school. Many speakers were discriminated against for using their language, whether at boarding school or even in their own home communities by white school teachers and administrators. Many did not teach Hiráaca to their children to prevent the same discrimination. The generation who are now elders are among the only ones to have solid proficiency in the language. By a community estimate, Hiráaca is considered to have around 30 first language fluent speakers, with very few children who are learning the language, although there is a rising number of second language learners.

This course is only one resource to help learners, and to supplement their learning. There are other methods needed to reach spoken proficiency. We are hoping both Hiráaca language teachers and learners alike will be able to use this course as a resource for their classroom and programs. The goal for this course is to provide a good, foundational understanding of Hiráaca in which learners can apply their usage of Hiráaca in real life.

This Hiráaca language course was organized by Lisa Casarez and with the help of Amber Gwin, Delvin Driver Jr., Lyle Gwin Jr., Jayli Fimbres, Bheri Hallam, and Deann Birdsbill. This course is dedicated to our ancestors, the ones who have come before, our elders who help guide and support this work, the language workers working to reclaim and revive our language, to the community, this language is yours and it should always be here for you. To the generation of Hiráaca to come, we hope you find identity, connection and pride in what we are able to pass down to you. Nii eeca madanuxbaaga’o.

Sources
1.) https://www.nps.gov/articles/knife-river-early-village-life-on-the-plains-teaching-with-historic-places.htm
2.) https://www.ndstudies.gov/gr4/american-indians-north-dakota/part-4-reservations-north-dakota/section-2-fort-berthold-reservation