lakota

IPA/ləˈkəʊtə/
KK[ləkˈotə]IPA/ləˈkəʊtə/

lakota — noun

  • lakotasingular
  • lakotasplural

1. an Indigenous nation of the northern Great Plains region, with homelands across

1.noun
Definition

an Indigenous nation of the northern Great Plains region, with homelands across what are today the upper-midwest U.S. states and the prairie provinces of Canada; one of the seven main groups making up the Sioux.

Example

The Lakota have lived on the northern Great Plains for many generations.

use with definite article 'the' for the whole nation

Hana wrote her thesis about how the Lakota organize their traditional councils.

collective subject taking plural verb

Common collocations
  • the Lakota nation
  • the Lakota people
  • among the Lakota
Synonyms
  • Teton Sioux

    older anthropological name for the same nation; less used today

  • Sioux

    broader label that also includes the Dakota and Nakota divisions

Grammar Patterns

the Lakota

Usage Note

Almost always preceded by 'the' when referring to the nation as a whole. Distinguish from sense 2 (a single member) and sense 3 (the language).

Common Mistakes

A Lakota lives on the Great Plains.
The Lakota live on the Great Plains.
use 'the Lakota' with a plural verb when you mean the nation as a group.

2. one person who belongs to the Lakota nation by birth or community ties.

2.noun
Definition

one person who belongs to the Lakota nation by birth or community ties.

Example

Noa met a Lakota from the Pine Ridge Reservation at the museum opening.

indefinite article 'a Lakota' for a single member

The poet Layli Long Soldier is a Lakota whose work explores treaty history.

predicate noun: 'is a Lakota'

Common collocations
  • a Lakota elder
  • a young Lakota
  • Lakotas from [place]
Synonyms
  • Lakota person

    more explicit; common in respectful modern usage

  • Sioux

    broader; refers to anyone from the Sioux confederation, not just the Lakota division

Grammar Patterns

a Lakota

Lakotas

Usage Note

Countable: takes 'a / one Lakota' for an individual and 'Lakotas' (or 'Lakota people') in the plural. Distinguish from sense 1, where the bare 'the Lakota' names the whole nation.

Common Mistakes

She is the Lakota.
She is a Lakota.
use the indefinite article when introducing one person as a member of the nation.

3. the Siouan language spoken by the Lakota nation, today used mainly in parts of N

3.noun
Definition

the Siouan language spoken by the Lakota nation, today used mainly in parts of North and South Dakota.

Example

Élise is learning Lakota through an online course taught by a tribal college.

object of 'learn' — no article with a language name

Christopher and his sister grew up speaking both English and Lakota at home.

object of 'speak'

Common collocations
  • speak Lakota
  • learn Lakota
  • in Lakota
  • Lakota lessons
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

speak Lakota

in Lakota

Usage Note

Uncountable as a language name — no article ('speak Lakota', not 'speak the Lakota'). 'The Lakota language' is the longer form when extra clarity is needed.

Common Mistakes

She speaks the Lakota.
She speaks Lakota.
drop the article before a language name, the same way you say 'speak Spanish', not 'speak the Spanish'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

The names Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota refer to the three main dialect-and-people divisions of the Sioux nation, named after how each group pronounces their shared word for 'friend' or 'ally'. Sioux is the broad umbrella term covering all three, and it is the older label still common in U.S. government and historical writing. Lakota is the western division, traditionally living on the northern Great Plains in what is now western South Dakota; Dakota refers to the eastern groups in Minnesota and the eastern Dakotas; and Nakota names the central division in Montana and the Canadian prairies. In modern respectful usage, writers prefer the specific division name when they know it — 'the Lakota nation' or 'a Dakota elder' — and reserve 'Sioux' for situations where all three groups are meant together.

Lakota ↗Sioux ↗Dakota ↗Nakota ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • Lakota nation
  • Lakota people
  • Lakota language
  • Lakota elder
  • Lakota tradition

Phrases

  • speak Lakota
  • learn Lakota
  • the Lakota homeland

Prepositions

  • among the Lakota
  • for the Lakota
  • in Lakota

Etymology

LakotaEnglish

From the Lakota people's own name for themselves, 'Lakȟóta', meaning 'friend' or 'ally'. The same root, with different regional pronunciations, gives the related names 'Dakota' and 'Nakota' for the other two main divisions of the Sioux nation. English borrowed the word during the 19th century as contact between U.S. settlers and the Plains peoples increased.