crow

Crow, indigenous people of North America

Crow, indigenous people of North America whose language belongs to the Siouan branch of the Hokan-Siouan linguistic stock (see Native American languages) and who call themselves the Absaroka, or bird people. They ranged chiefly in the area of the Yellowstone River and its tributaries and were a hunting tribe typical of the Plains cultural area. Their only crop was tobacco, which they used for pleasure and religious purposes. Until the 18th cent. the Crow lived with the Hidatsa on the upper Missouri River; after a dispute they migrated westward until they reached the Rocky Mts. The Crow developed a highly complex social system. They were enemies of the Sioux and helped the whites in the Sioux wars. Today most Crow live in Montana, near the Little Bighorn, where tourism, ranching, and mineral leases provide tribal income. In 1990 there were over 9,000 Crow in the United States.

Bibliography

See R. H. Lowie, The Crow Indians (1935, repr. 2004); P. Nabokov, Two Leggings: The Making of a Crow Warrior (1967); E. G. Denig, Five Indian Tribes of the Upper Missouri (1975).

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crow, in zoology

crow, partially migratory black bird of the same family as the raven, the magpie, the jay, and the rook and the jackdaw of Europe. The American, or common, crow, about 19 in. (49 cm) long, has a wingspread of over 3 ft (92 cm). Crows eat some eggs and nestlings and grain, but destroy many harmful insects and rodents. In winter they gather at night by thousands in communal roosts. Crows, along with the other members of the family Corvidae, are considered to be the most intelligent of all birds. They are easily tamed and can learn to mimic some human sounds. Their throaty "caw" is familiar, although they can also produce a musical warble. The fish crow of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts is smaller than the common crow. The carrion crow of Great Britain is a flesh-eating bird 18 to 20 in. (46–51 cm) long. Crows are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Aves, order Passeriformes, family Corvidae.

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crow

Carrion crow (Corvus corone corone).

(credit: Eric Hosking)

Any of more than 20 species of black perching birds (see passerine) of the genus Corvus (family Corvidae) that are smaller than most ravens and have a thinner bill. They are named for the sound of their call. Common crows are found in North America and Eurasia. They eat grain, berries, insects, carrion, and the eggs of other birds. Crows may damage grain crops, but they also eat many economically harmful insects. At times tens of thousands roost together, but most species do not nest in colonies. Crows are considered the most intelligent of all birds (tool use is documented), and pet crows can be taught to imitate speech.

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Crow

 self-name Absaroka

North American Plains Indian people of southern Montana, U.S. The Crow, whose language belongs to the Siouan language stock, were historically affiliated with the Hidatsa. Their traditional territory was the area around the Yellowstone River in what are now northern Wyoming and southern Montana. Much of Crow life revolved around the buffalo and the horse. The Crow were prominent as middlemen, trading horses, bows, and other items to village-based tribes in return for guns and metal goods that they carried to the Shoshone in Idaho. The basic element in Crow religious life was the vision quest, induced by fasting and isolation. The Crow continually suffered losses from wars with the Blackfoot and Sioux and sided with the U.S. military in the Indian wars of the 1860s and '70s. In 1868 they accepted a reservation carved from former tribal lands in southern Montana. Crow descendants numbered some 15,000 in the early 21st century.

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crow

symbolizes one who lives by his wits. [Western Folklore: Jobes, 388]

See : Cunning

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crow

faithful; does not mate again for nine generations. [Animal Symbolism: Mercatante, 161]

See : Faithfulness