Arkansas
Community meetings, gatherings, classes and celebrations, and the tribes and organizations behind them, all in one place so you can find your people.
How we count: population is the 2020 U.S. Census count of people who are American Indian or Alaska Native alone or in combination with another race, rounded down to the nearest thousand, and rank is among the 50 states on that same count. Federally recognized tribes are those headquartered in the state. State-recognized tribes follow the state's official list, and show 0 where the state has no formal recognition process. A tribe can hold both federal and state recognition, so the two counts can overlap. No tribe is headquartered in Arkansas today. The 21 nations with historic homelands here are listed below.
Listings last reviewed October 28, 2026.
Other statesWhat's happening in Arkansas
Events appear once the host announces the date and come down after the last day. Ceremonies are never listed.
- Nov4Talk
Interpreting the Trail of Tears Along the Arkansas River
Main Library, 100 Rock St., Little Rock · also on Zoom · noon–1 p.m. · free · lunch while it lasts · Host's page - Nov18Online program
7th Annual Native American Days (Nov 18–19)
Online · Shiloh Museum of Ozark History and the Arkansas Archeological Survey · free · register for the session links · Host's page
Watch for this season (1)
Usually held around this time of year. Dates have not been announced yet, so check with the host before you go.
- OctTBACelebration
Indigenous People of the Americas Day observance & Trail of Tears marker walk
Fayetteville · co-hosted by the University of Arkansas and the City of Fayetteville · Host's page
Where we look: tribal and host websites, Indian Country Today and the PowWows.com Arkansas calendar.
Tribes & organizations
Each tribe and organization gets a free page with its own calendar. Tribes can claim their page to manage it.
Federally recognized tribes headquartered in Arkansas
None. No federally recognized tribe is headquartered in Arkansas.
State-recognized tribes
None. Arkansas has no state-recognized tribes.
Nations with historic connections to Arkansas
This is the state's official consultation list of 21 tribes with ties to Arkansas. Those ties differ: the Quapaw, Caddo and Osage (and the Tunica) have ancestral homelands here; the Western Cherokee lived here in the early 1800s before moving west; and the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee (Creek) and Seminole crossed Arkansas on removal routes. Headquarters shown are where each nation is based today. Being listed here does not mean a nation is headquartered or officially recognized in Arkansas.
View the list of 21 nations
- Absentee Shawnee Tribe · Headquartered in Shawnee, OK · Official tribal website
- Alabama-Quassarte Tribal Town · Headquartered in Wetumka, OK
- Caddo Nation · Headquartered in Binger, OK · Official tribal website
- Cherokee Nation · Headquartered in Tahlequah, OK · Official tribal website
- Chickasaw Nation · Headquartered in Ada, OK · Official tribal website
- Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma · Headquartered in Durant, OK · Official tribal website
- Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana · Headquartered in Elton, LA · Official tribal website
- Delaware Nation · Headquartered in Anadarko, OK · Official tribal website
- Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma · Headquartered in Wyandotte, OK · Official tribal website
- Jena Band of Choctaw Indians · Headquartered in Jena, LA · Official tribal website
- Kialegee Tribal Town · Headquartered in Wetumka, OK · Official tribal website
- Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians · Headquartered in Choctaw, MS · Official tribal website
- Muscogee (Creek) Nation · Headquartered in Okmulgee, OK · Official tribal website
- Osage Nation · Headquartered in Pawhuska, OK · Official tribal website
- Quapaw Nation · Headquartered in Quapaw, OK · Official tribal website
- Seminole Nation of Oklahoma · Headquartered in Wewoka, OK · Official tribal website
- Shawnee Tribe · Headquartered in Miami, OK · Official tribal website
- Thlopthlocco Tribal Town · Headquartered in Okemah, OK · Official tribal website
- Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana · Headquartered in Marksville, LA · Official tribal website
- United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians · Headquartered in Tahlequah, OK · Official tribal website
- Wichita and Affiliated Tribes · Headquartered in Anadarko, OK · Official tribal website
Source: Arkansas Historic Preservation Program: Federally Recognized Tribes
Community resources
Community centers, health and family services, elder and youth programs, and job training for Native people.
American Indian Center of Arkansas
Education & culture
Indian Education programs, tribal colleges and university programs, museums, language programs and research resources.
University programs
University of Arkansas Native American Student Services
University of Arkansas Native American Student Association
Museums & research
Sequoyah National Research Center
Mound parks & historic sites
Plum Bayou Mounds Archeological State Park (formerly Toltec Mounds)
Historic sites and places of remembrance: Trail of Tears
Fort Smith National Historic Site
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Advertise hereTracing Native ancestry in Arkansas
"Ay, mija, family stories are a place to begin, not proof by themselves. Start with birth, marriage, death and census records, and follow one generation at a time. Arkansas has deep ties to several Native nations, but don't choose a tribe from a surname or family story. Let the records identify a specific ancestor and community first."