[3] For several hundred years, the Arikara lived as a semi-nomadic people on the Great Plains in present-day United States of America.

The travois were used to carry meat harvested during the seasonal hunts; a single dog could pull a quarter of a bison.

[4] In the late 18th century, the tribe suffered a high rate of fatalities from smallpox epidemics, which so reduced their population as to disrupt their social structure.

[5] Due to their reduced numbers, the Arikara started to live closer to the Mandan and Hidatsa tribes in the same area for mutual protection.

During the Black Hills War, in 1876 some Arikara served as scouts for Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer in the Little Bighorn Campaign.

The language is taught at Fort Berthold Community College, White Shield School, and at the Arikara Cultural Center.