Kellee Sheehy, right, development director of the Nez Perce Tribe Homeland Project near Wallowa, serves a customer July 20 2024, during the 32nd Tamkaliks Celebration at the Homeland.

WALLOWA — About 150 registered dancers, 13 drums and a much larger crowd descended on the Nez Perce Wallowa Homeland over the weekend for the 32nd Tamkaliks Celebration and potluck.

“I love it. It’s a real community effort,” said Kellee Sheehy, development director of the Homeland.

While there were tribal members from Wallowa County; the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation near Pendleton; Nespelem, Washington, where the Joseph Band settled; and the main Nez Perce Reservation based at Lapwai, Idaho; among other places, it was far from an “Indians-only” gathering, as many nonnatives were there, too.

Nancy Crenshaw of the Homeland, who kept track of the dancers and many of the activities, noted one dance — the one planned for midday Saturday — had to be put off until evening because of the heat and concern for its effect on older people in attendance.

“There was a cooling station at the Senior Center, but I’m not sure a lot of people went there,” she said. “A lot of people went to the lake or to the river.”

She said she was told the mercury got up to about 103 degrees Fahrenheit on Saturday.

“A lot of people didn’t stay for all of the dancing because of the heat,” she said.

That midday dance was delayed until evening and two dances were held simultaneously, Crenshaw said.

“That’s how we made up for those categories that we missed,” she said. “We didn’t skip them, we just doubled up that night.”

Naming ceremony

But dance contests weren’t the only displays of Nimiipuu culture at the Homeland over the weekend. There were a variety of naming ceremonies and memorials that hearkened back to Nez Perce history.

Lee Whiteplume, a tribal elder who had been asked by his son to bestow a Nimiipuu name on his toddler grandson, explained the importance and relevance of the name and how it was important for the boy’s place in his family and clan.

Before bestowing the name, Whiteplume recalled a bit of Nez Perce history, particularly the past century and a half when the Nimiipuu were driven from their vast homeland in the Northwest — which included Wallowa County. It was here that Young Chief Joseph led the Wallowa Band Nez Perce across the Snake River on a fighting retreat of 1,170 miles that culminated in a battle at the Bears Paw Mountains in Montana just 40 miles from their goal of sanctuary in Canada. From there, the tribe was put on trains to Indian Territory (Oklahoma) before being allowed to return to the Northwest.

The war was precipitated by the U.S. government’s desire to change the 1855 Treaty of Walla Walla, which granted the tribe 7.5 million acres of their ancestral lands and the right to hunt and fish on lands ceded to the U.S. government. That was to be replaced by the 1863 “Steal Treaty” that cut the reservation by 90% — roughly where it stands today.

After a time in the Midwest, the Nimiipuu were allowed to return to the Northwest, but they never regained the majority of their land.

In the naming ceremony, Whiteplume recalled the importance of bestowing a name that would honor their ancestors and the Creator.

“I’ll do the best I can — the best I can — I ask for forgiveness if I mispronounce some things but I’ll make my best effort,” he said. “I’ll say the name of my grandson.”

As he did, he acknowledged a fact of difference between native and nonnative cultures — the Nez Perce language has largely been oral and only in recent decades have efforts been made to preserve it as a written language.

Asked how to spell his grandson’s new name, he said, “Oh, I don’t know how to spell it.”

But that didn’t take away from its significance, as the Nimiipuu will remember the name and keep it alive.

Many of the activities at Tamkaliks revolved around dance contests. According to the Tamkaliks website, while the dancers are competing with one another, they are also in contest with the drummers and singers. A drum group may sing a trick song with many surprise stops. The best dancers know the songs, and dance closely to the beat to hit every drum stop.

Judges look for dancers to reflect their own personal style as well as their ability to carry on traditions that go with specific songs or dances. The dancers will be evaluated for footwork, rhythm, agility and demeanor.

Regalia should be appropriate and reflect care and maintenance. A dancer may be disqualified or disqualify himself or herself if an article of regalia falls off. Dancers follow directions from the whipman and whipwoman.

The event also featured vendors’ booths selling everything from Indian fry bread to T-shirts and caps and brochures about the tribe.

Dance categories and their winners were:

Junior Boy’s Grass and Fancy Combined 7-12

First place: Tahiny Jones, Pendleton

Second place: Timinah Ellenwood, Pendleton

Third place: Thunder Bad Warrior, Pendleton

Junior Boy’s Traditional 7-12

First place: Amadeo Tewee, Pendleton

Second place: Hunter Whiteplume, Lapwai, Idaho

Third place: Aaron Thompson, Pendleton

Teen Boy’s Grass and Fancy Combined 13-17

First place: Adam Bauer, Walla Walla, Washington

Second place: Eli Bauer, Walla Walla, Washington

Teen Boy’s Traditional 13-17

First place: Darryl Whiteplume, Lapwai

Second place: Hiyuum Nowland, Pendleton

Third place: Eli Bauer, Walla Walla

Men’s Golden Age Traditional 50+

First place: Bill Timentwa, Kamiah, Idaho and J. T. Williams, Arrow Junction, Idaho

Second place: Phill Allen, Lapwai

Men’s Grass 18-49

First place: Jesse Bevis, Sr., Pendleton

Second place: Ted Umtuch, Harrah, Washington

Third place: Phill Allen, Lapwai

Men’s Fancy 18-49 None

Men’s Traditional 18-49

First place: George Meninick, Toppenish, Washington

Second place: Andrew Tewawina, Pendleton

Third place: Louis Halfmoon, Pendleton

Junior Girls Jingle and Fancy Combined 7-12

First place: Abi Ford Kordatzky, Pilot Rock

Second place: Zariah Wallulatum Medina, Warm Springs

Third place: Kelsey Jones, Pendleton

Junior Girls Traditional 7-12

First place: Gabriella Calvillo, Pendleton

Second place: Abi Ford Kordatzky, Pilot Rock

Third place: Demiyah Say, Pendleton

Teen Girls Jingle and Fancy Combined 13-17

First place: Aurora Whiskeyjack, Pilot Rock

Second place: Carmella Graves, Spokane, Washington

Third place: Lillian Watchman, Pendleton

Teen Girls Traditional 13-17

First place: Dymond Say, Pendleton

Second place: Manaia Wolf, Cayuse

Third place: Quinney Meninick, Toppenish

Women’s Golden Age Traditional 50+

First place: Ramona Whiteplume, Lapwai

Second place: Dorothy Cyr, Pendleton

Third place: Bev Allen, Peshastin, Washington

Women’s Jingle Dress 18-49

First place: Teata Ellenwood, Pendleton

Second place: Oneida Hayes, Spokane

Third place: Latis Nowland, Pendleton

Women’s Fancy Shawl 18-49

First place: Teata Ellenwwood, Pendleton and Keyen Singer, Pendleton

Second place: Katelyn Tanewasha, Warm Springs

Women’s Traditional 18-49

First place: Tyera Hendrickson, Pendleton

Second place: Lydia Skahan, Lapwai

Third place: Abby Whitman

SPECIAL: 18-49 Women’s ALL Around, Jingle, Fancy, Traditional

First place: Lydia Skahan, Lapwai

Second place: Teata Ellenwood, Pendleton

Third place: Tyra Hendrickson, Pendleton

Fourth place: Latis Nowland, Pendleton.