Traditional Apache scout
Encyclopedia
The phrase traditional Apache scout refers to members of the Apache
tribe who engaged in scouting
, either for game
or during time of war
. Only Lipan, Chiricahua
and Mescalero
s had scout societies. The scouts' original purpose was to protect the clanspeople from enemies, and to locate game and new campsites. It is important to distinguish between these scouts, and the Apache Scouts
hired by the United States Army
during the Indian Wars
.
Training included advanced techniques of camouflage
and invisibility as well as of observation and stalking. These skills led to their nicknames as "shadow people" and "ghosts". The scouts became masters of wilderness survival, excelling beyond the skills of the lay clansmen. This was necessary, for they often had to leave the clan for extended periods of time with little more than knives.
Moreover, the upcoming scouts were taught a highly complex system of tracking, utilizing miniature topographic
features within each footprint. These features could tell the trackers anything from the speed at which the animals were moving, to the directions the animals, or humans, were looking at the times they left the track. Some tracking experts, such as Tom Brown, Jr., assert that scout-trained trackers could know whether the makers were hungry, pregnant, or had to urinate, and to what degree.
The word clan was not used back in 1150 AD, nor 500 BC with the Apaches, they were all tribe members starting at the age of eight to ten years old. They had to be aware, able to track, hunt, become physically fit, and undergo rigorous training with the adult "tracker Apache". The camouflage wasn't used while training, only actual hunting, and battle. The nicknames were based on when they were born, and what their birth name was, also how well they came through training, then they were given a name.
Apache
Apache is the collective term for several culturally related groups of Native Americans in the United States originally from the Southwest United States. These indigenous peoples of North America speak a Southern Athabaskan language, which is related linguistically to the languages of Athabaskan...
tribe who engaged in scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
, either for game
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
or during time of war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
. Only Lipan, Chiricahua
Chiricahua
Chiricahua are a group of Apache Native Americans who live in the Southwest United States. At the time of European encounter, they were living in 15 million acres of territory in southwestern New Mexico and southeastern Arizona in the United States, and in northern Sonora and Chihuahua in Mexico...
and Mescalero
Mescalero
Mescalero is an Apache tribe of Southern Athabaskan Native Americans. The tribe is federally recognized as the Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Apache Reservation in southcentral New Mexico...
s had scout societies. The scouts' original purpose was to protect the clanspeople from enemies, and to locate game and new campsites. It is important to distinguish between these scouts, and the Apache Scouts
Apache scouts
The Apache Scouts were part of the United States Army Indian Scouts, most of their service was during the Apache Wars up to 1886 though the last scout retired in 1947. The Apache scouts were the eyes and ears of the United States military and sometimes the cultural translators for the various...
hired by the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
during the Indian Wars
Indian Wars
American Indian Wars is the name used in the United States to describe a series of conflicts between American settlers or the federal government and the native peoples of North America before and after the American Revolutionary War. The wars resulted from the arrival of European colonizers who...
.
Training
The scouts trained their own clansmen in an intense process that lasted over ten years. Young children within the clan would be closely observed by current scouts and elders. Those who showed promise in skills—such as awareness, tracking and hunting, physical fitness, and selflessness—would be selected to undergo the training process.Training included advanced techniques of camouflage
Camouflage
Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...
and invisibility as well as of observation and stalking. These skills led to their nicknames as "shadow people" and "ghosts". The scouts became masters of wilderness survival, excelling beyond the skills of the lay clansmen. This was necessary, for they often had to leave the clan for extended periods of time with little more than knives.
Moreover, the upcoming scouts were taught a highly complex system of tracking, utilizing miniature topographic
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
features within each footprint. These features could tell the trackers anything from the speed at which the animals were moving, to the directions the animals, or humans, were looking at the times they left the track. Some tracking experts, such as Tom Brown, Jr., assert that scout-trained trackers could know whether the makers were hungry, pregnant, or had to urinate, and to what degree.
The word clan was not used back in 1150 AD, nor 500 BC with the Apaches, they were all tribe members starting at the age of eight to ten years old. They had to be aware, able to track, hunt, become physically fit, and undergo rigorous training with the adult "tracker Apache". The camouflage wasn't used while training, only actual hunting, and battle. The nicknames were based on when they were born, and what their birth name was, also how well they came through training, then they were given a name.