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The true Plains tribes were nomadic buffalo hunters who grew no crops, so they only had access to maize (Indian corn) if they could trade with the farming tribes on the margins of the Plains. The Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara and Pawnee grew many varieties of maize and often grew far more than they needed, so they were happy to trade the excess for buffalo hides, dried meat and other goods.

So yes - the Plains tribes did eat a small amount of maize, but most of their diet (well over 90%) was meat from hunted animals. Many strongly conservative Plains tribes like the Cheyenne and Lakota would consider maize to be "not real food" and would not touch it.

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12y ago

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