kin
To invoke kinship in many Native communities was to invoke familial obligations of respect, duty, alliance, and provision. Calumet ceremonies and adoption cemented these bonds, as did a range of shared activities: smoking, dancing, feasting, gifting, visiting, hunting, and trade. Many of these practices are noted in Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied’s journal entries.
Adoption could be real or fictive. The Fort Clark leader James Kipp, for instance, adopted the Numak'aki youth Síh-Sé (Be-Red Feather), who split his time between Fort Clark and the village of Mít uta hako'sh (First Village). Síh-Sé may have been an orphan or Kipp’s own métis (mixed heritage) child, or his adoption may have followed calumet, kinship, or clan obligations through Kipp’s Numak'aki wife. Regardless of the relationship specifics, Síh-Sé was integrated into both fort and village life, moved easily between both, and was provided for through his kin in both locations.