La Flesche, Francis, 1857-1932

Contributed to

Osage marriage customs
article 1912

Summary: Francis La Flesche was the first professional Native American ethnologist; he worked with the Smithsonian Institution. He specialized in Omaha and Osage cultures. Working closely as a translator and researcher with the anthropologist Alice C. Fletcher, La Flesche wrote several articles and a book on the Omaha, plus more numerous works on the Osage. He made valuable original recordings of their traditional songs and chants. Beginning in 1908, he collaborated with American composer Charles Wakefield Cadman to develop an opera, Da O Ma (1912), based on his stories of Omaha life, but it was never produced. A collection of La Flesche's stories was published posthumously in 1998. Wikipedia
Encyclopædia Britannica: Biography [4]
Gender or Sex: Male [1][2][3][4]
Born: 1857-12-25 [2]
Birth Place: Omaha, Neb. [2]; Nebraska [4]
Died: 1932-09-05 [2]
Death Place: Comté de Thurston (Nebraska, États-Unis) [3]; Thurston County [4]
Country: United States [2]
Language: English [3]
Occupation: anthropologist [4]; ethnologist [4]
Educated at: George Washington University [4]
Country of Education: United States [4]

Sources: 1. VIAF; 2. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek (Germany); 3. Bibliothèque nationale de France; 4. Wikidata

Last updated Jun 12, 2025