Editing Nez Perce (section)

== Historic regional bands, bands, local groups, and villages ==
* '''Almotipu Band'''
:Territories along [[Snake River]] in [[Hells Canyon]] up to about 80 miles south of today's [[Lewiston, Idaho]] (''Simiinekem'' – "confluence of two rivers" or "river fork", as the Clearwater flows into the Snake River here), in [[Wallowa Mountains]] and in the [[Seven Devils Mountains]] in Oregon and Idaho. Their fishing and hunting grounds were also used by the ''Pelloatpallah Band'' (comprising the "Palus (or Palus proper) Band" and "Wawawai Band" of the [[Palus people|Upper Palus Regional Band]]), who formed bilingual Palus-Nez-Percé bands due to many mixed marriages.
:several village based bands are counted among them: 
:*the ''Nuksiwepu Band''
:*the ''Palótpu Band'' (their village Palót was on the north bank of the Snake River – about 2 to 3 miles above Sáhatp)
:*the ''Pinewewixpu (Pinăwăwipu) Band'' (their village Pinăwăwi was located at Penawawa Creek)
:*the ''Sahatpu (Sáhatpu) Band'' (their village Sáhatp was located on the north bank of the Snake River, above Wawáwih)
:*the ''Siminekempu (Shimínĕkĕmpu) Band'' (their village Shimínĕkĕm – "confluence", was located in the area of present-day Lewiston)
:*the ''Tokalatoinu (Tukálatuinu) Band'' (along the [[Tucannon River]] (''Took-kahl-la-toin''), a tributary of the Snake River)
:*the ''Wawawipu Band'' (their village Wawáwih was located at Wawawai Creek, a tributary of the Snake River)
* '''Alpowna (Alpowai) Band''' or '''Alpowe'ma (Alpoweyma/Alpowamino) Band''' ("People along [[Alpowa Creek|Alpaha (Alpowa) Creek]]" or "People of ’Al’pawawaii, i.e. [[Clarkston, Washington|Clarkston]]")
:Territories along the South and Middle Fork of the Clearwater River downstream to the city of Lewiston (and south of it) in eastern Washington and the Idaho Panhandle. They also spent much time east of the Bitterroot Mountains and camped along the Yellowstone River, their main meeting place and one of the most important fishing grounds was the area of [[Kooskia, Idaho]] (''Leewikees''). Their fishing and hunting grounds were also used by the "Wawawai Band" of the Upper Palus Regional Band, who lived directly to the west and formed a bilingual Palus-Nez-Percé Band due to many intermarriages. They were the ''third largest Nez Percé regional group'' and their tribal area was one of the four centres for the large regional groups of the Nez Percé.
:several village based bands are counted among them: 
:*the ''Alpowna (Alpowai) Band'' or ''Alpowe'ma (Alpoweyma/Alpowamino) Band'' (largest and most important band, along the Alpaha (Alpowa) Creek, a small tributary of the Clearwater), west of Clarkston, Washington ('Al'pawawaii = People of a "place of a plant called Ahl-pa-ha")
:*the ''Tsokolaikiinma Band'' (between Lewiston and Alpowa Creek)
:*the ''Hasotino (Hăsotōinu) Band'' (their settlement Hasutin / Hăsotōin was an important fishing ground at Asotin Creek (Héesutine – "eel river") on the Snake River in Nez Perce County, Idaho, directly opposite the present town of [[Asotin, Washington]])
:**the ''Heswéiwewipu/Hăsweiwăwihpu local group'' (their village Hăsweiwăwih was also located opposite Asotin, along a small creek whose upper reaches were called Heswé/Hăsiwĕ) 
:**the ''Anatōinnu local group'' (their village Ánatōin was located at the confluence of Mill Creek and the Snake River)
:*the ''Sapachesap Band''
:*the ''Witkispu Band'' (about 3 miles below Alpowa Creek, along the eastern bank of the Snake River)
:*the ''Sálwepu Band'' (at the Middle Fork of the Clearwater River, about 5 miles above present-day Kooskia, Idaho, Chief Looking Glass Group) 
* '''Assuti Band''' ("People along Assuti Creek" in Idaho, joined Chief Joseph in the war of 1877.)
* '''Atskaaiwawipu Band''' or '''Asahkaiowaipu Band''' ("People at the confluence, People from the river mouth, i.e. [[Ahsahka, Idaho|Ahsahka]]")
:Territories from their winter village Ahsahka/Asaqa ("river mouth" or "confluence") up to the Salmon Ridge along the [[North Fork Clearwater River]] up to its mouth into the Clearwater River, hunted sometimes near Peck, Idaho (''Pipyuuninma'') in the territory of the ''Painima Band''. An important fishing ground was Bruce Eddy in Clearwater County, Idaho, which was traditionally owned by the ''Atskaaiwawipu (Asahkaiowaipu)'', but was shared by neighboring bands upon invitation: the ''Tewepu Band'', the ''Ilasotino (Hasotino) Band'', the ''Nipihama (Nipĕhĕmă) Band'', the ''Alpowna (Alpowai) Band'' and the ''Matalaimo'' ("People further upstream", a collective term for bands that had their center around Kamiah).
* '''Hatweme (Hatwēme) Band''' or '''Hatwai (Héetwey) Band''' ("People along Hatweh Creek", a tributary of the Clearwater River, about four to five miles east of Lewiston)
* '''Hinsepu Band''' (lived along the [[Grande Ronde River]] in Oregon.)
* '''Kămiăhpu Band''' or '''Kimmooenim Band''' ("People of Kămiăhp", "People of the Many Rope Litters Place, i.e. [[Kamiah, Idaho|Kamiah]]")
:Their main village Kămiăhp was located on the south side of the Clearwater River and the confluence of Lawyer Creek near today's [[Kamiah, Idaho]] ("many rope litters") in the Kamiah Valley. They used with other bands the important fishing grounds near Bruce Eddy in Clearwater County, Idaho, which was in the territory of the ''Atskaaiwawipu (Asahkaiowaipu) Band''. Other Nez Perce bands often grouped them under the collective name '''Uyame''' or '''Uyămă'''; the closely related and neighboring ''Atskaaiwawipu (Asahkaiowaipu) Band'' referred to all bands around Kamiah as '''Matalaimo''' ("People further upstream"). Their tribal area was one of the four centers for the major regional groups of the Nez Percé.
:several village based bands are counted among them: 
:*the ''Kămiăhpu (Kimmooenim) Band'' (was the biggest and most important band of the Kamiah Valley area)
:*the ''Tewepu Band'' ("People of Téewe, i.e. [[Orofino, Idaho]]" at the confluence of Orofino Creek and Clearwater River)
:*the ''Tuke'liklikespu (Tukē'lĭklĭkespu) Band'' (near Big Eddy on the north bank of the Clearwater River, some miles upstream from Orofino)
:*the ''Pipu'inimu Band'' (at Big Canyon Creek in Camas Prairie, which flows into the Clearwater River north of today's Peck; they were therefore direct neighbours of the southern Painima Band), 
:*the ''Painima Band'' (near present-day [[Peck, Idaho]] (''Pipyuuninma'') in Nez Perce County, on the Clearwater River in Idaho)
* '''Kannah Band''' or '''Kam'nakka Band''' ("People of Kannah (along Clearwater River)" in Idaho) 
* '''Lamtáma (Lamátta) Band''' or '''Lamatama Band''' ("People of a region with little snow, i.e. Lamtáma (Lamátta) region")
:Territories were between the ''Alpowai Band'' in the north and downstream in the northwest the ''Pikunan (Pikunin) Band'' and extended in the Idaho Panhandle north along the [[Salmon River (Idaho)|Upper Salmon River]] (''Naco'x kuus'' – "Salmon River") and one of its tributaries, the White Bird Creek, and to the Snake River in the southwest, and also included the White Bird Canyon (deeper than the Grand Canyon) in the southwest of the [[Clearwater Mountains]] and southeast of the [[Camas prairie]]. Their tribal area and band name is derived from ''Lamtáma (Lamátta)'' ("area with little snow") and refers to its excellent climatic conditions, which were particularly suitable for horse breeding. They were the ''second largest Nez Percé regional group''; also called ''Salmon River Band''.
:*the ''Esnime (Iyăsnimă) Band'' (along Slate Creek ('Iyeesnime) and Upper Salmon River, therefore often simply called ''Slate Creek Band'' or ''Upper Salmon River Indians'')
:*the ''Nipihama (Nipĕhĕmă) Band'' (from Lower Salmon River to White Bird Creek)
:*the ''Tamanmu Band'' (their settlement Tamanma was located at the mouth of the Salmon River in Idaho)
* '''Lapwai Band''' or '''Lapwēme Band''' ("People of the Butterfly Place, i.e. [[Lapwai, Idaho|Lapwai]]")
:Territories along Sweetwater Creek and Lapwai Creek up to its confluence with the Clearwater River near today's [[Spalding, Idaho]]. One of their traditional settlements (as well as an important meeting place for neighbouring bands) was on the site of today's [[Lapwai, Idaho]] (''Thlap-Thlap'', also: ''Léepwey'' – "Place of the Butterflies"), the tribal and administrative centre of the Nez Percé Tribe of Idaho. Their tribal area was one of the four centers for the major regional groups of the Nez Percé.
* '''Mákapu Band''' ("People from Máka/Maaqa along Cottonwood Creek (formerly: Maka Creek"), a tributary of the Clearwater River, Idaho.)
* '''Pikunan (Pikunin) Band''' or '''Pikhininmu Band''' ("Snake River People")
:Territories encompassed the vast mountain wilderness between the Snake River in the south and the Lower Salmon River in the north until it met the Snake River, were direct neighbours of the ''Wallowa (Willewah) Band'' on the opposite bank of the Snake River in the west and the ''Lamtáma (Lamátta) Band'' living further southeast of them. They could be classified as buffalo hunters, but they were also true mountain dwellers, also called the ''Snake River tribe''.
* '''Saiksaikinpu Band''' (on the upper portion of the Southern Fork Clearwater; their immediate neighbors downstream was the ''Tukpame Band'')
* '''Saxsano Band''' (about 4 miles above Asotin, Washington, on the east side of Snake River.)   
* '''Taksehepu Band''' ("People of ''Tukeespe/Tu-kehs-pa APS'', i.e. [[Ghost town]] Agatha")
* '''Tukpame Band''' (on the lower portion of the Southern Fork Clearwater; their immediate neighbors upstream was the ''Saiksaikinpu Band''.)
*'''Wallowa (Willewah) Band''' or '''Walwáma (Walwáama) Band''' ("People along the Wallowa River" or "People along the Grand Ronde River")<ref>[http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fsbdev3_055619.pdf Wallowa Valley, Oregon, to Kooskia, Idaho – Discover the Nez Perce Trail] (PDF)</ref><ref>Thomas E. Churchill: [https://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/xmlui/bitstream/handle/1957/10912/Churchill_Thomas_E_1984.pdf?sequence=1 Inner Bark Utilization: A Nez Perce Example.] (PDF) Oregon State University, Commencement June 1984</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wallowanezperce.org/|title=Home – Nez Perce Wallowa Homeland|website=www.wallowanezperce.org}}</ref>
:Territories in northeastern Oregon and northwestern Idaho with tribal centre in the river valleys of the [[Imnaha River]], the [[Minam River]] and the [[Wallowa River]] (''Wal'awa'' – "the winding river"). Their territory extended into the [[Blue Mountains (Pacific Northwest)|Blue Mountains]] (already claimed by the Cayuse) in the west, to the [[Wallowa Mountains]] in the southwest, to both sides of the [[Grande Ronde River]] (''Waliwa'' or ''Willewah'') and its confluence with the Snake River in the north, and almost to the Snake River in the east. Their area was widely known as an excellent grazing ground for the large herds of horses and was therefore often used by the neighbouring and related ''Weyiiletpuu (Wailetpu) Band'' ("Ryegrass People, i.e. the [[Cayuse people]]). They were often grouped under the collective name '''Kămúinnu''' or '''Qéemuynu''' ("People of the [[Indian Hemp]]"). They were the ''largest Nez Percé group'' and their tribal area was one of the four centers for the major regional groups of the Nez Percé. Today most are part of the [[Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation]].
:several village based bands are counted among them:
:*the ''Wallowa (Willewah) Band'' (the largest band with several local groups, in the Wallowa River Valley and [[Zumwalt Prairie]])
:*the ''Imnáma (Imnámma) Band'' (lived with several local groups isolated in the Imnaha River Valley)
:*the ''Weliwe (Wewi'me) Band'' (their settlement Williwewix was located at the mouth of the Grande Ronde River)
:*the ''Inantoinu Band'' (in [[Joseph Canyon]] – known as ''saqánma'' ("long, wild canyon") or ''an-an-a-soc-um'' ("long, rough canyon") – and along Lower Joseph Creek to its mouth into the Grande Ronde River)
:*the ''Toiknimapu Band'' (above Joseph Creek and along the north bank of the Grande Ronde River)
:*the ''Isäwisnemepu (Isawisnemepu) Band'' (near the present Zindel, at the Grande Ronde River in Oregon)
:*the ''Sakánma Band'' (several local groups along the Snake River between the mouth of the Salmon River in the south and the Grande Ronde River in the north, the name of their main village Sakán and the band name Sakánma refers to an area where the cliffs rise close to the water – this could be Joseph Canyon (Saqánma))
* '''Yakama Band''' or '''Yăkámă Band''' ("People of the Yăká River, i.e.[[Potlatch River]] (above its mouth into the Clearwater River)", not to confused with the [[Yakama]] peoples)<ref>''The North American Indian. Volume 8 – The Nez Perces. Wallawalla. Umatilla. Cayuse. The Chinookan tries''. Classic Books Company. {{ISBN|978-0-7426-9808-6}}, page 158 – 160 (Source for regional bands, bands and villages)</ref>
:Territories along the Potlatch River (which was called Yăká above its mouth into the Clearwater River) in Idaho.
:several village based bands are counted among them:
:*the ''Yakto'inu (Yaktōinu) Band'' (their village Yaktōin was located at the mouth of the Potlatch River into the Clearwater River)
:*the ''Yatóinu Band'' (lived along Pine Creek, a small right tributary of the Potlatch River)
:*the ''Iwatoinu (Iwatōinu) Band'' (their village Iwatōin was located on the north bank of the Potlatch River near today's Kendrick in Latah County) 
:*the ''Tunèhepu (Tunĕhĕpu) Band'' (their village Tunĕhĕ was located at the mouth of Middle Potlatch Creek into the Potlatch River, near [[Juliaetta, Idaho]] (''Yeqe''))

Because of large amount of inter-marriage between Nez Perce bands and neighboring tribes or bands to forge alliances and peace (often living in mixed bilingual villages together), the following bands were also counted to the Nez Perce (which today are viewed as being linguistically and culturally closely related, but separate ethnic groups):
; Walla Walla Band
: These were the [[Walla Walla people]] which lived along the Walla Walla River and along the confluence of the Snake and Columbia River rivers, today they are enrolled in the [[Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation]].
; Pelloatpallah Band {{nobold|or}} Palous Band
: These were the ''Palus (or Palus proper) Band'' and ''Wawawai Band'' of the Upper Palus Band, which constituted together with the Middle Palus Band und Lower Palus Band – one of the three main groups of the [[Palus people]], which lived along the Columbia, Snake and Palouse Rivers to the northwest of the Nez Perce. Today the majority is enrolled in the [[Yakama|Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation]] and some are part of the [[Colville Reservation|Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation]].
; Weyiiletpuu (Wailetpu) Band {{nobold|or}} Yeletpo Band
: These were the [[Cayuse people]] which lived to the west of the Nez Perce at the headwaters of the Walla Walla, Umatilla and Grande Ronde River and from the Blue Mountains westwards up to the Deschutes River, they oft shared village sites with the Nez Perce and Palus and were feared by neighboring tribes, as early as 1805, most Cayuse had given up their mother tongue and had switched to ''Weyíiletpuu'', a variety of the Lower Nez Perce/Lower Nimiipuutímt dialect of the [[Nez Perce language]]. They called themselves by their Nez-Percé name as ''Weyiiletpuu'' ("Ryegrass People"); today most Cayuse are enrolled into the [[Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation]], some as [[Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs]] or [[Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho]].