The Blackfoot Confederacy, Niitsitapi, or Siksikaitsitapi, is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Blackfeet people: the Siksika ("Blackfoot"), the Kainai or Blood, and two sections of the Peigan or Piikani – the Northern Piikani (Aapátohsipikáni) and the Southern Piikani. Broader definitions include groups such as the Tsúùtínà (Sarcee) and A'aninin who spoke quite different languages but allied with or joined the Blackfoot Confederacy.
Flag of the Blackfoot Confederacy
Six chiefs of the Blackfoot Confederacy in 1859
Chief Aatsista-Mahkan, c.1905.
The Siksika Nation is a First Nation in southern Alberta, Canada. The name Siksiká comes from the Blackfoot words sik (black) and iká (foot), with a connector s between the two words. The plural form of Siksiká is Siksikáwa. The Siksikáwa are the northernmost of the Niitsítapi, all of whom speak dialects of Blackfoot, an Algonquian language.
Two members of the Siksika Nation from southern Alberta and a local non-Aboriginal supporter in Ottawa on January 11, 2013, for the Idle No More protest movement
Sahpo Muxika, also known as Crowfoot, Head Chief of the Siksika, c. 1885
Curly Bear, a Siksika chief, 1903
Aatsista-Mahkan, circa 1900, by Edward S. Curtis