Editing Pacaha

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[[File:Nodena Mounds Aerial HRoe 2016.jpg|thumb|right|300px|An illustration of the Nodena site in northeastern [[Arkansas]]. Artist H. Roe]] 
'''Pacaha''' was a [[Native American (US)|Native American]] polity encountered in 1541 by the [[Hernando de Soto (explorer)|Hernando de Soto]] expedition. This group inhabited fortified villages in what is today the northeastern portion of the [[U.S. state]] of [[Arkansas]].

The tribe takes its name from the chieftain Pacaha (born in the early 16th century), who ruled the tribe from its primary village on the [[Mississippi River]], which was thought to be located in present-day [[Crittenden County, Arkansas]] near [[Turrell, Arkansas|Turrell]].  The site, part of the [[Nodena phase]], is known to archaeologists as "The Bradley Site".<ref>{{cite book |  last = Morse | first = Dan F. |  title = Nodena-An account of 90 years of archaeological investigation in southeast Mississippi County, Arkansas| publisher = Arkansas Archaeological Survey Research Series| year = 1973 | isbn = 1-56349-057-9}}</ref> Information about Chief Pacaha and his people comes from journals made during the expedition of Hernando De Soto in 1541.  The de Soto expedition stayed at Pacaha's village for approximately 40 days.

==De Soto expedition==

The initial encounter between the Pacaha and the de Soto expedition was violent.  Chief Pacaha's tribe had been at war for some time with a neighboring chieftain named [[Casqui]].  The Casqui tribe is thought to have lived at a site near [[Parkin, Arkansas]], which is the location of the present-day [[Parkin Archeological State Park]].
[[Image:DeSoto Map Leg 3 HRoe 2008.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A map showing the [[Hernando de Soto|de Soto]] expedition route through [[Mississippi]], and [[Arkansas]], up to the point de Soto dies. Based on the [[Charles M. Hudson (author)|Charles M. Hudson]] map of 1997.]]
De Soto had encountered the [[Casqui]] tribe first.  When he pressed on to visit the Pacaha village, many of the Casqui people followed him.  Many of the Pacaha, seeing the approach of their enemy, attempted to flee to an island in the river and drowned.  The Casqui who accompanied de Soto sacked the village, desecrated holy sites, and looted valuables.

The Pacaha controlled more territory and had a larger population than the Casqui.  Chief Pacaha was younger than the Casqui chief, however, and seemingly had more to lose from the continued aggressive Casqui attacks.  De Soto contacted Chief Pacaha and convinced him that he had nothing to do with the attack and that the expedition's intentions were peaceful.  De Soto assured the Pacaha that the expedition would help the Pacaha attack the Casqui to punish them for their subterfuge.

The Casqui received advance warning of the planned attack.  They returned the looted items and apologized in order to stave off retribution.  De Soto arranged a dinner for the two leaders and  a peace treaty between the tribes.  Chief Pacaha presented de Soto with one of his wives, one of his sisters, and another woman from his tribe.  This action was in gratitude for the arrangement of peace and also to outdo his rival, who had only presented a daughter to de Soto.

The Hernando de Soto expedition records are the only historical records of Chief Pacaha and his tribe. Their later history is uncertain.

The name Pacaha was spelled Capaha in one account. Some scholars believe this word is related to the historic [[Quapaw]] tribe encountered in Arkansas by European expeditions in the 17th and 18th centuries.  The primary village of the eastern Arkansas Quapaw was named ''Kappa'' or ''Kappah''.  Human and cultural remains found at the suspected Pacaha site are repatriated to the Quapaw and [[Tunica-Biloxi]] tribes, which are active.

==See also==
* [[Tunica people]]
* [[List of sites and peoples visited by the Hernando de Soto Expedition]]
* [[Mississippian culture]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

* [[Charles M. Hudson (author)|Hudson, Charles M.]], ''Knights of Spain, Warriors of the Sun: Hernando De Soto and the South's Ancient Chiefdoms'',   University of Georgia Press, 1997. {{ISBN|0-8203-1888-4}}
* Galloway, Patricia, Editor. ''The Hernando de Soto Expedition''. University of Nebraska Press. 1997. {{ISBN|0-8032-2157-6}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20040921074326/http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/archinfo/parkin.pdf University of Arkansas Report on de Soto travels in Arkansas]
*[http://www.nps.gov/arpo/found/chap3.htm National Park Service on de Soto's expedition]
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/19990422090628/http://floridahistory.com/scholars.html Website on alternate theory]}}

{{Mississippian and related cultures}}
{{Pre-Columbian North America}}

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[[Category:Nodena Phase]]
[[Category:Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands]]
[[Category:Native American history of Arkansas]]
[[Category:Native American tribes in Arkansas]]
[[Category:Pre-statehood history of Arkansas]]
[[Category:Populated places in Crittenden County, Arkansas]]
[[Category:Former populated places in Arkansas]]