Number Speaking the Language

There are about 3000 Winnebagos speaking the language, most are in Wisconsin, farming near LaCrosse, Stevens Point and Portage city.

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Extracts from the Relation des Jésuites concerning the History and Ethnography of the Winnebago People

Year 1640, pg. 35; col. 1 Dont la seconde mer douce sont les Maroumine; plus auant encore sur les mesmes roues habitent les Ouinipigou, peuples sedentaires qui sont en grand nombre. Quelques Francois les appellent la Nation des Puans, à cause que le mot Algonquon ouinebeg sigifie eau puants; or ils nomment ainsi l'eau de la mer saleé, si bien que ces peuples se nomment Ouinipigou, parce qu'ils viennent des bords d'une mer dont nous n'avons point de cognaissance; et par consequent ils ne faut pas les appeller la nation des Puans, mais la nation de la mer.	On which the second fresh water sea are the Menomi w, much before, again on the same routes, live the Winipigou, sedentary peoples, who are great in number. Some Frenchmen call them the "Nation of the Stinkards," on account of the Algonquin winebeg, signifying odiferous water, or they name in this way the water of the saline sea; quite well as these peoples call themselves Winipigou, because they live on the coasts of a sea of which we have no knowledge, and in consequence they do not call them the nation of Stinkards, but the nation of the sea.
pg. 35, col. 2 . . . les Ontarahronon, les Aoueatsiouaenhronon; les Attochingohronon; les Attiouendarankhronon.	. . . the Ontarahronon, the Aoueatsiouaenhronon; the Attochingohronon; the Attiouendarankhronon.
1636, pg. 92 La Nation du Castor . . . a peur des A8eatsi8aenrrhonon, c'est à dire gens puants, qui ont rompu le traicté de paix, et ont tué deux des leurs, dont ils ont fait festin.	The Nation of the Beaver . . . has fear of the Aweatsiwaenrrhonon, that is to say, the Stinkard tribe, who have broken the treaty of peace, and have killed two of them, on which they have feasted.
1639, pg. 55 La Nation des Puants, qui est un passage des plus considerables pour les païs Occidentaux, vn peu plus Septentrionaux.	The Nation of the Puants, who are a crossing of the most considerable sort for the nations of the west, a little more for the northern ones.
cf. 1649, 27 where the Aou -- are represented as being an Algonquin nation.
1656, pg. 39 La Nation de Mer, que quelques vns ont appelédes Puants, à cause qu'ils ont autrefois habité sur les r?o?ues de la mer qu'ils appellent Ouinipeg, c'est à dire eau puante.	The Nation of the Sea, which some have called the Puants, on account that they have in former times lived upon the way to the body of water that they call Winipeg, which is to say, the odiferous waters.
[Huron áwän' water; a it (pronoun), tsíwayän sour and bitter, rúnân people, men]
1648, pg. 62. Un autre troisième lac, que nous appellon le Lac des Puants, qui se décharge sussi dans notre mer douce; . . . rest h?abité d'autres peuples d'une langue inconnuë, c'est à dire qui n'est ny Algonquine ny Huronne. Ces peuple sont appellez les Puants, non pas à raison d'aucune mauvaise odeur qui leurs soit particuliers, mais à cause qu'ils l?e disent estre venus des costes d'une mer fort élongneé, vers le Septentrione, dont l'eau estant saleé, ils se nomment les peuples de l'eau puante. cf. 1654, pg. 9. Les Ondatouatandy et Ouinipegong qui fort partie de la Nation des Puants.	Another third lake, which we call the Lake of the Puants [Winnebago], which discharges itself into our fresh water sea; . . . a living vestige of other peoples of an unknown language, which is to say that it is neither Algonquin nor Huron. These people are called the Puants, not for any reason of bad odor which their let us say particulars [have], but on account of the fact that they say it to be in proximity to the coasts of a very long body of water, about the north, where the water being saline, they name themselves the peoples of the odiferous water. The Ondatouatandy and Winipegong who [are] strong opponents of the Nation of the Puants.
1660, pg. 9 Le lac des Ouinipegouek (un grande baye de celuy des hurons) . . . called so . . . pourcequ'il est enuironné de terres ensouffreés, d'où sortent quelques sources qui portent dans ce lac la malignité que leurs eaux ont contracteés aux lieux de leur naissence. (See Introduction)	The lake of the Winipegouek (a great bay of that of the Hurons) . . . called so . . . because it is encompassed by sulphurous earth, from which originate several sources which carry in this lake the malignity which their waters have contracted from the place of their origins.
1670, pg. 97 Nous arrivá mes le? à l'entreé du Lac des Puans, que nous avons appelé le Lac Saint Francois; il est long d'envin?en 12 h?e?ues et large de 4 . . .	We arrived before the entrance to the Lake of the Puans, which we have called Lake St. Francis, it is long in length 12 (--), and of 4 wide . . .
1671, p. 41. 42 La Mission de St François Xavier embasse huit Nations differentes, on mesme davantage: les Puans, au fond de la Baye; . . . qui y ont toujours demeusé comme en leur propre païs; d'un peuple très florrissant qu'ils étaient ils sont presque réduit à rien, ayant été exterminé par les Ilinois leurs ennemis. Les Pouteouatamies, les Ousak; et ceux de la Fourche y dimeurent aussi. Les Folles Avoines, Outagami et les Nantoué sont proches? les Maskoutench et les Oumami.	The Mission of St. Francis Xavier reaches out to eight different nations, the Puans, at the farther end of the bay; ... who have always resided there as in their proper country; of a people very prosperous which they having been, they are nearly reduced to nothing, having been exterminated by the Illinois, their enemies. The Potawatomies, the Ousak [Sauk?]; and those of the Fork reside there also. The Folles Avoines [Menominee], Outagami  fox] and the Nantoué are nearby the Mascouten and the Oumami [Miami?].
1672, pg. 37. 38 Description de la mission de St. Navier.	The description of the mission of St. Navier.

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St. Peet in his Am. Antiquities, 1895, p. 26 sqq.

In 1634 at Nicolet's first visit the Winnebago dwelt at Red Banks near Green Bay. Allouez says that in 1640 they had almost been destroyed by the Illinoi, but he found the Ojibways discussing whether they should take up arms against them or not. [They] were on good terms with the Mascoutens, Menominees, Ottawas Chippewas, and Pottawat-s.

Green Bay was held by Menom. & Sauks & the ajacent Lake Winneb. by the Winnebagos & it was a great centre of populaton. Allouez & Dablon paddled up to Lake Winnebago & the mouth of the Upper Fox, which they ascended to visit the town of the Mascoutens. Carver in 1766 found a village of them at Red Banks, and had come there from Wisconsin River.

(Morse 1820:) W. had 5 villages on the lake and 14 on Rock River. The Menomines had villages at Butte des Morts, at Winneconne and Poygan. Winnebagoes gave? a tribute to them = produce for staying on their territory. Oshkosh, a Men. village under Pushan, whose hunting grounds were at (---)oms. Black Wolf, another Men. village.

Winneb. = 1831 pr(---) Black Hawk & had then to cede all lands south of Fox River & Winn. removed to Eastern Iowa. They never gave up their original domain & still make their home in US forest betw. Wisc. & Fox Rivers.

The Wianwat s(.... unreadable ....) with the habitat of the [e]ff[i]gy (....).

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Notice on the Winnebago Tribe

by John G. Shea, in Wisconsin State Historical Collections, vol. III, p. 137-138
(1836). Extract.

This name "fetid" was given them by the Algonkins; Ouinibegouc; Ouinipegouec (Rel. Je's. 1650-'60); Ouenibegoutz (Rel. 1669-'70). The French translated it by "Puants", giving it as a name to the tribe and to Green Bay (Sagard). The early missionaries (Relat. of 1639-40, '47-48 (pg 64), 53-54 (pg. 43), '55-58, '59-60, Bressani & Marquette) state that they were so called by the Alg. as coming from the Ocean, or salt water ("fetid water" in Indian). Nicolet: "Gens de mer," lying in "Eaux de mer". The Hurons called them Aweatsi-waenr-rhonons (Rel. 1636) the Sioux: Otonkah (Schoolcr.), but they call themselves, Otcanras (Charlevoix), Hochungara or Ochungarand: "Trout Nation" Schoolcr. III, 277. IV, 227. or Horoji "fish-eaters". The Algonkin tradition makes them, as seen, emigrants from the Pacific shore & the Illinois especially seem to have opposed their approach to the Lakes. This war lasted till about 1639 (Allouez, in Relat. 1669-70) when the W. succumbed. Charlevoix V, 431 states that they were driven from the shores of Green Bay to Fox river by a party of 600 setting out on the lake to attack the Illinois, perished in a storm. The victors took compassion (Allouez) & creat'g the survivor chief of the nation, gave up to him all the captive Winnebagoes. If this strange event ever took place, it did so before 1639, for Nic. visited them in that year & found them prosperous. They were the original inhabitants of Wisc., often troublesome & hostile; allies of Pontiac in 1763, defeated by Wayne in 1794, adhered to England in 1812 (O'Callaghen, Co. Doc. III, 283). 2531 souls in 1848. Cf. Shea's Discov. of the Mississ. p. XXI and note 10. 11.

[Gatschet, MS pp. 70-71]

Legend of the Winnebagoes

Comm. by R. W. Haskins of Buffalo, N. Y., one of the proper arditors [sic] of the Buffalo Journal in Sept. 1829. From oral reports of Pliny Warriner, then coming from the Winn. country. In Wis. Histor. Soc'y Collections, vol. I. 86-93. [This is reprinted in full under The First Fox and Sauk War

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Hotcâk Origins

Winnebagos are said to have emigrated form Red Bank, north or northeast of Green Bay, east side of Lake Michigan, they call it Moka cútc-edja from móka bank, cútc red. There is a tradition that some of the Winnebagos are lost, and that they are somewhere south.

Sioux call them Hótanka, which is probably the Hótcank, as they call themselves. The Ojibwe  call them Winnipeg. At one time they were the fiercest warriors in the country.

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Historic Note

In 1831 the Winnebagoes occupied the country in the Wisconsin River; whole number about 1500, under White Loon as head-chief. He with some of his braves had fought both Wayne & Harrison & had ever been loyal to British interests dur'g the war of 1812.

Blanchard, Ruf., Hist'y NW p. 373.

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Gatschet's Prospective Informants

Indians to obtain information from:

John Harrison, middle aged, heavy set.

Mrs. John Johnson, lives towards the Bluffs, speaks English & can tell a good deal.

Alek. Pare, her father, a policeman, speaks English.

James Alexander, government interpreter, difficult to get hold of him.

Carles Profit, described as a "smart boy".

David StCyr, born 1864, almost white.

Alek StCyr, born ?

There were in 1889 forty Winnebago pupils in Carlisle (Hampton included?), Pa. --

Rev. William T. Findly, Winnebago Reservation,
Winnebago P.O., Nebraska.

Howard Logan, 18 years, at Carlisle in May '90

Levy StCyr, 21 ys., at Carlisle, May '90

Cecile La----ess, graduate at Millersville, 52 miles from Carlisle, in May, '90

[Material in pp. 65 sqq. is] from John Michel StCyr, interpreter of Wisconsin Winnebagos, P.O. Wittenberg, Wis.
Shawn Co.: Febr. 22, 1890, in Washington,
Pennsylvania Avenue 207.

[inserted later:] was here again in April 1891 -- Beveridge House.

His Indian name is hágaga: "third son of a family". He states that David StCyr's Indian name is Waxópini Skága: "White Frenchman", waxópini being spirit and French, adj.; skaga white.

waxópinixsi is Frenchman.

Houng=a=Chaw=Kee=Kee=Kah, "one who comes from the chiefs", signed the treaty made with the Winnegbagoes in 1825. Said to be 120 years old. Oldest man in the tribe and excellent to relate stories, legendary and mythological. Lives in Wittenberg, Wis. hunk=hatcákirika, "he returned & saw the chief." (pl. húnkara