Their society was divided into different classes or castes. There were the chiefs, one to preside over war ceremonies and another over peace ceremonies, the upper class (“their own people” or “friends”), and 5 classes of slaves.
The Choctaw women had their babies alone and it was not until later times they accepted the practice of mid-wives. When the mother was about to give birth the father retreated to another house and would not eat until after sunset. He also abstained from pork and salt until the baby was born.
When the baby was born the mother washed him and placed him in a cradle with a bag of sand tied over his forehead to flatten it. This is why the Choctaw were called “flat heads” by neighboring tribes.
Mothers were not allowed to discipline their sons. This was the duty of the maternal uncle who acted as the boy’s teacher. All the boys were schooled morning and afternoon in tribal legends, hunting with bows and arrows, and other manly tasks.
In 1540 the Spanish explorer, DeSoto, began trading with them. The Choctaw were intrigued by Spanish goods, especially metal. They also established trade with the French and by the 1700’s had adopted many French ideas, life styles, cultural attitudes and incorporated French words into their language. Unlike their Indian neighbors, the men continued to wear their hair in full length styles.
The Choctaws served as guides for the European expeditions across Louisiana which resulted in many Choctaw words being used as name locations throughout our state.
As colonization increased pressures to choose alliances with either the French to keep the English and their powerful allies, the Chickasaw and Creek Nations, from closing trade routes to the north and Canada.
From 1754-1763 the Choctaws were in almost constant warfare. In 1763 the French and Indian wars ended with France ceding all her lands east of the Mississippi River to the English. This resulted in half the Choctaw towns being allied to the French and the other half with the English. War pressures eroded inter-tribal tranquility in the Choctaw Nation, leading to civil war.
When the French retreated to New Orleans they in effect deserted their Choctaw allies. On January 3, 1786, the Treaty of Hopewell was negotiated with the United States Government recognizing the Choctaw Nation as a nation and defining the eastern boundary of the Choctaw Lands.
Hostilities with their former Indian allies during the wars, coupled with increasing pressures from settlers desiring their lands, led the tribe to migrate west of the Mississippi River in search of farm land and tranquility.