Brulé


The Brulé are one of the seven branches or bands of the Teton Lakota American Indian people. They are known as Sičháŋǧu Oyáte, or "Burnt Thighs Nation", and so, were called Brulé by the French. The name may have derived from an incident where they were fleeing through a grass fire on the plains.

Distribution

Many Sicangu people live on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in southwestern South Dakota and are enrolled in the federally recognized Rosebud Sioux Tribe, known as Sicangu Oyate. A smaller population lives on the Lower Brule Indian Reservation, on the west bank of the Missouri River in central South Dakota. Others live on Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The different federally recognized tribes are politically independent of each other.

Name

The term "Sičhą́ǧu" appears on pages 3 to 14 of Beginning Lakhota.

"Ká Lakȟóta kį líla hą́ske. 'That Indian is very tall.'"

"Hą, hé Sičhą́ǧú. 'Yes, that's a Rosebud Sioux.'"

It appears to be a compound word of the Thítȟųwą Lakȟóta dialect meaning "burned thigh".

Historic Brulé Tiyošpaye or bands

Together with the Oglala Lakota, who are mostly based at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. They are often called Southern Lakota. They were divided in three great regional tribal divisions:
According to the Brulé Medicine Bull, the people were decentralized and identified with the following tiyošpaye or extended family groups who collected in various local tiwahe :
The Brulé give pulverized roots Asclepias viridiflora to children with diarrhea. Nursing mothers take an infusion of the whole plant to increase their milk. They brew the leaves of Ceanothus herbaceus into a tea.

Notable Sicangu (Brulé)