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The neckerchief has become an integral part of the modern set of straight dance clothes among the Ponca, Osage, Pawnee, Comanche, Kiowa and other southern plains tribes.
They are usually made of silk, stain or taffeta and most often seen in solid colors.
The color of the neckerchief normally matches the color of the silk shoulder scarves.
In addition, many dancers try to have the trim ribbons of their ribbonshirt and the wide ribbons strips hanging from their silver armbands, match the color of the neckerchief and shoulder scarves to give a more “organized” appearance to the overall outfit. This has been the origin of the sometimes used term, “straight suit.”
The neckerchief is typically folded in a triangle, the point hanging in the center of the dancer’s back, while the ends are tied in a knot or held together in front with a slide, usually made from stamped trade-silver or German silver. Most often the points of the neckerchief extend to the length of a modern necktie, or at some point between the bottom of the ribcage to just above the waist.
Great care is taken by many southern straight dancers to take special attention to the color of their neckerchief and shoulder scarves, so as to be in contrast to the color, or colors, which appear in their ribbonshirt and other major component artwork of the outfit. Many straight dancers today strive for a “coordinated” look.
Some examples Neckerchiefs and slides from the past:
Pawnee men, Pawnee, OK - no date
Roaming Chief - Pawnee - 1916
Quanah Parker – Comanche – 1892
Post Oak Jim (on right), and his brother – Comanche – 1895
Comanche couple – 1895
Comanche man – 1898
Tah-Cha-Chi (aka Timbo, aka Hairless) - Comanche - no date
Pebo - Comanche - no date
Ti-su-yo - Comanche - 1910
Tenikwa – Comanche – 1919
Comanche men - no date
Little Chief - Comanche - no date
Son of Lone Wolf - Kiowa - 1890?
Two Hatchet - Kiowa - 1898
Kiowa man - 1898
Running Bird - Kiowa - 1913
Dust Maker (aka Pete Mitchell) - Ponca - 1898
Little Soldier - Ponca - 1906
Fire Shaker - Ponca - 1914
Osage man - no date
George Michelle - Osage - 1905
George Michelle - Osage - 1910
John Wood - Osage - 1910
Makes Them Cry – Osage – 1913
Pep-tsa-moie - Osage - 1914
Callahan, Alice A.
1990. The Osage Ceremonial Dance, I’n-Lon-Schka. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, OK.
Cooley, Jim.
1985. Inlonska Centenial Commemoration: One Hundred Years of Dancing at the Pawhuska District. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, June Issue, Vol. 10, No. 10, LaPalma, CA.
Duncan, Jim.
1997. Hethushka Zani: An Ethnohistory of the War Dance Complex. MA thesis. Department of Anthropology, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK.
Ellis, Clyde.
2003. A Dancing People: Powwow Culture on the Southern Plains. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, KS.
Feder, Norman.
1957-a. Costume of the Oklahoma Straight Dancer. The American Indian Hobbyist Newsletter, Vol. 4, No. 1.
1957-b. Costume of the Oklahoma Straight Dancer. The American Indian Hobbyist Newsletter, Vol. 4, No. 2.
1980. Some Notes on the Osage War Dance. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, November Issue, LaPalma, CA.
Heth, Charlotte, ed.
1992. Native American Dance: Ceremonies and Social Traditions. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Howard, Dr. James H.
1955. The Pan-Indian Culture in Oklahoma. The Scientific Monthly, Vol. 81, No. 5.
1965. The Ponca Tribe. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 195, Smithsonian Institution, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
1976. Ceremonial Dress of the Delaware Man. Special Issue, The Bulletin of the Archeological Society of New Jersey, No. 33, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ.
1983. Pan-Indianism in Native American Music and Dance. Ethnomusicology, Vol. 28, No. 1.
Howard, Dr. James H. and Gertrude P. Kurath.
1959. Ponca Dances, Ceremonies and Music. Ethnomusicology, Vol. 7.
Johnson, Tim. Ed.
1998. Spirit Capture: Photographs from the National Museum of the American Indian. Smithsonian Books, Washington, D.C.
Kavanagh, Thomas W.
1992. Southern Plains Dance Tradition and Dynamics: Native American Dance Ceremonies and Social Traditions. National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution with Starwood, Washington D.C.
LaFave, Edward J.
1998. Straight Dance Clothing: How to Dress a Straight Dancer. Whispering Wind: American Indian Past & Present Magazine, Vol. 29, No. 4, Folsom, LA.
Smith, Jerry.
1982. Straight Dance Clothes: Getting Them On. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, April Issue, LaPalma, CA.
Stewart, Tyronne H.
1968. Dressing a Straight Dancer. The Singing Wire Newsletter, February Issue.
They are usually made of silk, stain or taffeta and most often seen in solid colors.
The color of the neckerchief normally matches the color of the silk shoulder scarves.
In addition, many dancers try to have the trim ribbons of their ribbonshirt and the wide ribbons strips hanging from their silver armbands, match the color of the neckerchief and shoulder scarves to give a more “organized” appearance to the overall outfit. This has been the origin of the sometimes used term, “straight suit.”
The neckerchief is typically folded in a triangle, the point hanging in the center of the dancer’s back, while the ends are tied in a knot or held together in front with a slide, usually made from stamped trade-silver or German silver. Most often the points of the neckerchief extend to the length of a modern necktie, or at some point between the bottom of the ribcage to just above the waist.
Great care is taken by many southern straight dancers to take special attention to the color of their neckerchief and shoulder scarves, so as to be in contrast to the color, or colors, which appear in their ribbonshirt and other major component artwork of the outfit. Many straight dancers today strive for a “coordinated” look.
Some examples Neckerchiefs and slides from the past:
Pawnee men, Pawnee, OK - no date
Roaming Chief - Pawnee - 1916
Quanah Parker – Comanche – 1892
Post Oak Jim (on right), and his brother – Comanche – 1895
Comanche couple – 1895
Comanche man – 1898
Tah-Cha-Chi (aka Timbo, aka Hairless) - Comanche - no date
Pebo - Comanche - no date
Ti-su-yo - Comanche - 1910
Tenikwa – Comanche – 1919
Comanche men - no date
Little Chief - Comanche - no date
Son of Lone Wolf - Kiowa - 1890?
Two Hatchet - Kiowa - 1898
Kiowa man - 1898
Running Bird - Kiowa - 1913
Dust Maker (aka Pete Mitchell) - Ponca - 1898
Little Soldier - Ponca - 1906
Fire Shaker - Ponca - 1914
Osage man - no date
George Michelle - Osage - 1905
George Michelle - Osage - 1910
John Wood - Osage - 1910
Makes Them Cry – Osage – 1913
Pep-tsa-moie - Osage - 1914
Callahan, Alice A.
1990. The Osage Ceremonial Dance, I’n-Lon-Schka. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, OK.
Cooley, Jim.
1985. Inlonska Centenial Commemoration: One Hundred Years of Dancing at the Pawhuska District. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, June Issue, Vol. 10, No. 10, LaPalma, CA.
Duncan, Jim.
1997. Hethushka Zani: An Ethnohistory of the War Dance Complex. MA thesis. Department of Anthropology, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK.
Ellis, Clyde.
2003. A Dancing People: Powwow Culture on the Southern Plains. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, KS.
Feder, Norman.
1957-a. Costume of the Oklahoma Straight Dancer. The American Indian Hobbyist Newsletter, Vol. 4, No. 1.
1957-b. Costume of the Oklahoma Straight Dancer. The American Indian Hobbyist Newsletter, Vol. 4, No. 2.
1980. Some Notes on the Osage War Dance. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, November Issue, LaPalma, CA.
Heth, Charlotte, ed.
1992. Native American Dance: Ceremonies and Social Traditions. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Howard, Dr. James H.
1955. The Pan-Indian Culture in Oklahoma. The Scientific Monthly, Vol. 81, No. 5.
1965. The Ponca Tribe. Bureau of American Ethnology, Bulletin 195, Smithsonian Institution, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C.
1976. Ceremonial Dress of the Delaware Man. Special Issue, The Bulletin of the Archeological Society of New Jersey, No. 33, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ.
1983. Pan-Indianism in Native American Music and Dance. Ethnomusicology, Vol. 28, No. 1.
Howard, Dr. James H. and Gertrude P. Kurath.
1959. Ponca Dances, Ceremonies and Music. Ethnomusicology, Vol. 7.
Johnson, Tim. Ed.
1998. Spirit Capture: Photographs from the National Museum of the American Indian. Smithsonian Books, Washington, D.C.
Kavanagh, Thomas W.
1992. Southern Plains Dance Tradition and Dynamics: Native American Dance Ceremonies and Social Traditions. National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution with Starwood, Washington D.C.
LaFave, Edward J.
1998. Straight Dance Clothing: How to Dress a Straight Dancer. Whispering Wind: American Indian Past & Present Magazine, Vol. 29, No. 4, Folsom, LA.
Smith, Jerry.
1982. Straight Dance Clothes: Getting Them On. Moccasin Tracks Magazine, April Issue, LaPalma, CA.
Stewart, Tyronne H.
1968. Dressing a Straight Dancer. The Singing Wire Newsletter, February Issue.
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