Their Neighboors
The Tonkawas traded regularly with other tribes
of the southern Plains and the Southwest. They
particularly liked to trade buffalo products to
farming tribes like the Caddo Pueblo Indians in
exchange for corn.
The Tonkawas also fought wars with other
tribes. Plains Indian tribes treated war
differently than European countries did. They
didn't fight over territory but instead to prove
their courage, and so Plains Indian war parties
rarely fought to the death or destroyed each
other's villages. Instead, their war customs
included counting coup (touching an opponent
in battle without harming him), stealing an
enemy's weapon or horse, or forcing the other
tribe's warriors to retreat. Some tribes the
Tonkawas frequently fought with included
the Apaches and Comanches.
of the southern Plains and the Southwest. They
particularly liked to trade buffalo products to
farming tribes like the Caddo Pueblo Indians in
exchange for corn.
The Tonkawas also fought wars with other
tribes. Plains Indian tribes treated war
differently than European countries did. They
didn't fight over territory but instead to prove
their courage, and so Plains Indian war parties
rarely fought to the death or destroyed each
other's villages. Instead, their war customs
included counting coup (touching an opponent
in battle without harming him), stealing an
enemy's weapon or horse, or forcing the other
tribe's warriors to retreat. Some tribes the
Tonkawas frequently fought with included
the Apaches and Comanches.