List of Native Americans of the United States

This is a list of notable Native Americans from peoples indigenous to the contemporary United States, including Native Alaskans, Native Hawaiians, and Native Americans in the United States. Native American identity is a complex and contested issue. The Bureau of Indian Affairs defines Native American as having American Indian or Alaska Native ancestry. Legally, being Native American is defined as being enrolled in a federally recognized tribe or Alaskan village. Ethnologically, factors such as culture, history, language, religion, and familial kinships can influence Native American identity. All individuals on this list should have Native American ancestry. Historical figures might predate tribal enrollment practices and would be included based on ethnological tribal membership,

A

 * Ai, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Southern Cheyenne, and Comanche-descent poet
 * Ahaya (ca. 1710 – 1783), the first recorded chief of the Alachua band of the Seminole tribe.
 * Richard Aitson, Kiowa-Kiowa Apache bead artist and poet
 * Sherman Alexie, (Spokane, Coeur d'Alene) author and comedian
 * Elsie Allen, Cloverdale Pomo basketweaver
 * Paula Gunn Allen, (Laguna Pueblo, Sioux) poet, literary critic, activist, and novelist
 * Marcus Amerman, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma multimedia artist
 * Bill Anoatubby, (Chickasaw Nation), Governor of the Chicksaw Nation since 1987
 * Annie Antone, Tohono O'odham basketweaver
 * William Apess, (Pequot) author and minister
 * Anna Mae Aquash, Mi'kmaq activist
 * Spencer Asah, Kiowa artist
 * Attakullakulla, Cherokee chief
 * Hayley Atwell, actress
 * James Auchiah, Kiowa artist
 * Marilou Awiakta, Eastern Band Cherokee author and poet
 * Awashonks, Sakonnet 17th century female chief

B

 * Jimmy Santiago Baca, Apache-descent author and poet
 * Bill John Baker, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation
 * Dennis Banks, Anishinaabe activist, teacher, lecturer, author and co-founder of the American Indian Movement
 * Jim Barnes, Choctaw editor, author, poet and founder of the Chariton Review Press
 * Fred Begay Navajo nuclear physicist
 * Notah Begay III, Navajo PGA Tour golfer
 * Betty Louise Bell, Cherokee-descent author and editor
 * Clyde Bellecourt White Earth Ojibwe activist and co-founder of the American Indian Movement (AIM)
 * Johnny Bench, Choctaw Hall of Fame Catcher
 * Chief Bender, Ojibwa Hall of Fame pitcher
 * Diane E. Benson, (Tlingit) politician, inspirational speaker, poet and author
 * George Bent, Cheyenne, soldier, warrior, interpreter, and cultural informant
 * Martha Berry, Cherokee Nation bead artist
 * Chuck Billy, (Pomo) singer for the thrash metal band, Testament
 * Lisa Johnson Billy, Chickasaw Nation, Oklahoma State Legislator and Chickasaw Tribal Legislator
 * Sherwin Bitsui, Navajo poet
 * Black Elk, Oglala Lakota religious leader
 * Black Hawk, Sauk chief
 * Black Kettle, Cheyenne chief
 * Andrew Blackbird, Odawa leader, historian, and author
 * Kimberly M. Blaeser, (Chippewa, Anishinaabe) author and poet
 * Elias Boudinot, Cherokee leader, journalist and publisher
 * Billy Bowlegs, Seminole chief
 * Joseph Brant, Mohawk leader
 * Jack Brisco, Chickasaw Nation Pro Wrestler, Former NWA World Champion
 * Mary Brave Bird, Brulé Lakota author and activist
 * Ignatia Broker, Ojibway author
 * Ellison "Tarzan" Brown, Narragansett U.S. Olympian/Marathon Runner
 * Joseph Bruchac, Abenaki author and poet
 * Buffalo Bird Woman, Hidatsa writer

C

 * Gregory Cajete, Santa Clara Pueblo ethnobotanist, author, and educator
 * Carter Camp, Ponca, activist
 * Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Northern Cheyenne chief, U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and silversmith
 * Mary Katherine Campbell, (Muscogee Creek-Cree-descent ) former Miss America winner
 * Canonicus, Narragansett chief
 * Rob Capriccioso, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, journalist and writer
 * Captain Jack, Modoc chief
 * Gladys Cardiff, writer and poet of Eastern Cherokee-descent
 * Brad Carson, Cherokee, former Democratic U.S. congressman from Oklahoma
 * Chainbreaker, Seneca war chief
 * Duane Lee Chapman, II, Star of Dog The Bounty Hunter
 * Leland Chapman, Star of Dog The Bounty Hunter
 * Joba Chamberlain, Ho-Chunk pitcher for the Detroit Tigers
 * Nathan Lee Chasing His Horse, Lakota medicine man, actor
 * Chris Chavis, Lumbee professional wrestler
 * Kelly Church, (Grand Traverse Band Odawa-Ojibwe) basketweaver, painter, and educator
 * Chrystos, Menominee-descent activist and poet
 * Cochise, Chiricahua Apache chief
 * Radmilla Cody, (Navajo) model, singer and activist
 * Holmes Colbert, Chickasaw government official
 * Tom Cole, Chickasaw Nation Congressman from Oklahoma
 * Robert J. Conley, Cherokee Nation-United Keetoowah Band author
 * Elizabeth Cook-Lynn, Crow Creek Sioux author, poet, editor, and co-founder of the Wicazo Sa Review
 * Polly Cooper, Oneida Tribe aid to the Continental Army during the American Revolution at Valley Forge
 * Cornplanter, Seneca chief and diplomat
 * Jesse Cornplanter, Seneca author and artist
 * Leonard Crow Dog, Sicangu Lakota medicine man, activist, and author
 * Amanda Crowe, Eastern Band Cherokee woodcarver and educator
 * Crazy Horse, Oglala Lakota chief
 * Pierre Cruzatte, (Omaha) member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
 * Rod Curl, (Wintu) PGA tour golfer
 * Charles Curtis, (Kaw, Osage, Potawatomi) U.S. Senator and 31st Vice President of the United States
 * David Cusick, Tuscarora illustrator and author, ca.1780–ca.1831
 * Dennis Cusick, Tuscarora painter, ca. 1800–1824

D

 * Karen Dalton (singer), (Cherokee) Blues singer, banjoist
 * Nora Marks Dauenhauer, (Tlingit) author and poet
 * Brent Michael Davids, (Stockbridge Mohican) composer and flutist
 * Deganawida, (Haudenosaunee), founder of the Iroquois Confederacy, more respectfully called The Great Peacemaker
 * Delaware Prophet, (Lenni Lenape) religious leader
 * Ella Cara Deloria, (Yankton Dakota) educator, anthropologist, ethnographer, linguist, and novelist
 * Vine Deloria, Jr., Yankton Dakota-Standing Rock Nakota theologian, historian, writer and activist
 * Michael Dorris, Modoc writer
 * Dragging Canoe, Cherokee war chief
 * Frank Dufina (Mackinac Band of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians), professional golfer

E

 * Charles Eastman, Santee Dakota author, physician and helped found the Boy Scouts of America.
 * Larry EchoHawk, Pawnee head of the BIA, former Attorney General of Idaho
 * Nokie Edwards, Cherokee instrumental rock guitarist, on and off lead guitarist of The Ventures
 * Jacoby Ellsbury Navajo outfielder for the New York Yankees
 * Louise Erdrich, Anishinaabe writer and poet
 * Chris Eyre, Cheyenne-Arapaho director and producer

F

 * Abel Fernandez, Yaqui actor
 * Logan Fontenelle, Omaha chief and interpreter
 * L. Frank, (Tongva, Ajachmem) Indian artist, tribal scholar, writer and activist
 * Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty, Fort Peck Assiniboine and Sioux quillworker and beadartist

G

 * Chief Gall, (Hunkpapa Lakota) chief
 * Geronimo, Chiricahua Apache leader
 * Owl Goingback, (Choctaw, Cherokee) author
 * Jamie Gomez, (Shoshone-descent) rapper and singer
 * Jewelle Gomez, (Ioway-descent) writer
 * Angel Goodrich, (Cherokee) WNBA basketball player
 * Janice Gould, (Maidu) writer
 * Kiowa Gordon, (Hualapai) actor

H

 * Janet Campbell Hale, Coeur d'Alene-Ktunaxa-Cree writer
 * Handsome Lake, Seneca religious leader
 * Enoch Kelly Haney (Seminole Nation of Oklahoma), tribal leader, Oklahoma state legislator, and artist
 * Terri Crawford Hansen, Ho-Chunk-Potawatomi journalist, and author
 * Joy Harjo, Muscogee Creek Nation-Cherokee poet, musician, and author
 * Keith Harper, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, U.S. representative to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva
 * Larry Echo Hawk, Pawnee Nation, former Democratic Attorney General of Idaho and current United States Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs
 * Ira Hayes, (Pima) one of five Marines, along with a United States Navy corpsman, immortalized in the iconic photograph of the flag raising on Iwo Jima.
 * Allison Hedge Coke, Wendat/Huron-Metis-Cherokee heritage writer
 * Gordon Henry, Chippewa writer
 * John Herrington, Chickasaw Nation NASA astronaut
 * Hiawatha, Onondaga-Mohawk chief was credited as the founder of the Iroquois confederacy
 * David Hill, Choctaw, activist
 * Hobomok, Wampanoag interpreter
 * Linda Hogan, Chickasaw Nation poet, storyteller, academic, environmentalist and writer.
 * Stan Holder, Wichita, activist
 * John Christian Hopkins, Narragansett people Journalist, Author.
 * Al Hoptowit, American football player
 * John Horse, African-American leader of the Black Seminole.
 * Michael Horse, Yaqui-Mescalero Apache-Zuni-descent actor, jeweler, and painter.
 * Janel Horton, Shinnecock professional wrestler known as "Alere Little Feather"
 * Chuck Hoskin, member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 6th district
 * LeAnne Howe, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma author and scholar
 * Al Hunter, Anishinaabe writer and poet
 * Vanessa and Stella Hudgens, actresses

I

 * Ishi, Yana educator and last member of his tribe

J

 * Joseph James and Joseph James, Jr., Kaw-Osage interpreters and guides
 * Mickie James, Powhatan-descent professional wrestler
 * Overton James, Chickasaw, educator, former Governor of the Chickasaw Nation
 * Stephen Graham Jones, Blackfeet author
 * Chief Joseph, Nez Percé chief and humanitarian
 * Juanillo, chief of the Guale  Nchiefdom.
 * Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, first female chief of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, also a publisher
 * Daniel Heath Justice, Cherokee Nation author

K

 * Maude Kegg, (Ojibwa) writer, folk artist, and cultural interpreter
 * Keokuk, (Sac, Fox) chief
 * Thomas King, (Cherokee) novelist and broadcaster

L

 * Winona LaDuke, White Earth Ojibwe environmental activist and writer
 * Francis LaFlesche, Omaha-Ponca-Iowa ethnologist and author
 * Susan LaFlesche Picotte, Omaha-Ponca-Iowa activist, first female Native American physician
 * Susette LaFlesche Tibbles, Omaha-Ponca-Iowa activist
 * Carole LaFavor, Ojibwe novelist and activist
 * Edmonia Lewis, Mississaugas Ojibwe sculptor
 * Sacheen Littlefeather, White Mountain Apache-Yaqui-descent actress
 * Litefoot, Cherokee Nation-Chichimeca actor, hip hop artist
 * Kyle Lohse, Nomlaki pitcher, Milwaukee Brewers
 * Little Turkey was First Beloved Man of the Cherokee people, becoming the first Principal Chief of a united Cherokee Nation in 1794.
 * Little Turtle, Miami chief
 * Clayton J. Lonetree, Winnebago-Navajo U.S. Marine and alleged KGB spy
 * Lone Wolf the Elder, Kiowa chief
 * Lone Wolf the Younger, Kiowa leader
 * Phil Lucas, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma filmmaker, actor, writer, producer, director, and editor

M

 * Major Ridge, Cherokee chief, led Lighthorse Patrol and signed the Treaty of New Echota.
 * Byron Mallott, Lieutenant Governor of Alaska
 * Mangas Coloradas, Apache chief
 * Wilma Mankiller, Cherokee Nation chief
 * Manuelito, Navajo chief, diplomat, and warrior.
 * Joseph Marshall III, Lakota educator and author
 * María Martínez, San Ildefonso Pueblo potter
 * Massasoit, Wampanoag chief
 * John Joseph Mathews, Osage author
 * Janet McAdams, Alabama-Creek author
 * Edward "Wahoo" McDaniel, Choctaw-Chickasaw professional wrestler
 * Alexander McGillivray, Muscogee Creek chief
 * William McIntosh, Muscogee Creek chief
 * D'Arcy McNickle, Salish Kootenai author, activist, and anthropologist
 * Peter McQueen, Creek Indian chief, prophet, trader and warrior from Talisi (Tallassee, among the Upper Towns in present-day Alabama).
 * Russell Means, Lakota activist and actor
 * Joe Medicine Crow, Crow Nation anthropologist
 * Louis Gonzaga Mendez, Jr., highly decorated WWII United States Army officer of the 82nd Airborne Division
 * Metacomet, Wampanoag chief
 * Miantonomo, Narragansett chief
 * Devon A. Mihesuah, Choctaw historian, author, and editor
 * Billy Mills, Oglala Lakota athlete
 * Deborah A. Miranda, Esselen-Chumash author and poet
 * N. Scott Momaday, Kiowa-Cherokee poet, author, scholar, and painter
 * Jason Momoa, actor
 * Lola Momoa, actress
 * Nakoa-Wolf Momoa, actor
 * Irvin Morris, Navajo author
 * Mountain Wolf Woman, Hochunk autobiographer
 * Mourning Dove, Flathead author

N

 * R. Carlos Nakai, Navajo musician
 * Nampeyo, Hopi potter
 * Nora Naranjo-Morse, Santa Clara Pueblo artist
 * Nas'Naga, Shawnee author
 * Jim Northrup, Anishnaabe columnist and political writer
 * Nila NorthSun, Shoshone-Ojibwe author and historian

O

 * St. David Pendleton Oakerhater, Southern Cheyenne warrior, artist, deacon, and saint in the Episcopal church
 * Samson Occom, Mohegan clergyman
 * Old Tom, Blackfoot medicine man
 * Olotoraca (1548 – 1573), subchief of a tribe of Fort San Mateo, Florida.
 * Opechancanough, Pamunkey chief
 * Oratam, sachem of the Hackensack Indians
 * Simon J. Ortiz, Acoma Pueblo poet
 * Osceola, Seminole leader
 * Chief Oshkosh, Menominee leader
 * Chief Ouray, Ute Tribe leader
 * Louis Owens, Choctaw-Cherokee-descent author
 * Owl Woman, Cheyenne negotiator, peace-maker, Colorado Women's Hall of Fame

P

 * Ely S. Parker (Seneca) U.S. Army Brigadier General
 * Quanah Parker, Comanche chief
 * Pawhuska, Osage Chief
 * Leonard Peltier, Ojibwa-Lakota activist
 * William S. Penn, Nez Perce author
 * Robert L. Perea, Oglala Lakota author, educator, and veteran
 * Lori Piestewa, Hopi veteran, Died in the 2003 invasion of Iraq
 * Lawrence Plamondon, Odawa-Ojibwe activist and storyteller
 * Pocahontas (Matoaka), Powhatan Christian convert and diplomat
 * Leopold Pokagon, Potawatomi storyteller and activist
 * Simon Pokagon, Potawatomi author and activist
 * Chief Pontiac, Odawa chief
 * Popé, Ohkay Owingeh religious and military leader
 * Susan Power, Standing Rock Nakota author
 * Powhatan, Pamunkey chief
 * Pushmataha, Choctaw chief and U.S. Army Brigadier General

Q

 * Qualchan, 19th century Yakama chief

R

 * Rattling Blanket Woman (Miniconjou), mother of Crazy Horse
 * Red Cloud, Oglala Lakota chief
 * Ozzie Red Elk, activist
 * Red Jacket, Seneca Nation chief
 * Delphine Red Shirt, Oglala writer and chair of OCIDWIP at the United Nations
 * Martha Redbone, Choctaw-Shawnee-descent musician
 * Jeri Redcorn, Caddo-Potawatomi potter, b. ca. 1940
 * Ben Reifel, Brulé Lakota activist and U.S. representative from South Dakota
 * Carter Revard, Osage Nation author and poet
 * Lawney Reyes, Confederated Colville Tribes (Sinixt) artist, author, and curator
 * Luana Reyes, Confederated Colville Tribes (Sinixt) health activist and educator, 1933–2001
 * Chief G. Anne Richardson (Chief of the Rappahannock tribe - first female chief in Virginia since the 18th century)
 * Toby Riddle (1848–1920), Modoc interpreter and diplomat
 * John Rollin Ridge, Cherokee author
 * Will Rogers, Cherokee actor and humorist
 * Will Rogers, Jr., Cherokee Nation journalist and politician
 * Luana Ross, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes sociologist and author
 * Wendy Rose, Hopi-Miwok author
 * John Ross, Cherokee chief
 * Running Eagle, (Blackfoot)

S

 * Juan Sabeata, Jumano chief
 * Sacajawea, Shoshone interpreter
 * Will Sampson, Creek painter and actor.
 * Saturiwa, chief of the Saturiwa (a Mocama tribe of Timucua people, located in St. Johns River in Florida), during the 16th century
 * Carol Lee Sanchez, Laguna Pueblo author and artist
 * Greg Sarris, Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria tribal chairman, author, and professor
 * John Sassamon, Massachusett, interpreter
 * Shoni Schimmel, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, WNBA player
 * Jane Johnston Schoolcraft, Ojibwe author
 * Chief Seattle, Suquamish leader
 * Sequoyah (Cherokee), inventor of the Cherokee syllabary
 * Tenskwatawa, Shawnee religious leader
 * Leslie Marmon Silko, Laguna Pueblo poet and novelist
 * Sitting Bull, Hunkpapa Lakota chief
 * Chad Smith, former Principal Chief of Cherokee Nation
 * Paul Chaat Smith, Comanche, writer, Associate Curator of the National Museum of the American Indian
 * Cynthia Leitich Smith, Muscogee Creek author
 * Smohalla, Wanapum chief and religious leader
 * Sonuk Mikko, Seminole, Captain in the Indian Home Guard during the American Civil War often referred to as Billy Bowlegs
 * Louis Sockalexis (Penobscot), Major League Baseball player
 * Eddie Spears, (Lakota)
 * Michael Spears, (Lakota)
 * Squanto, Patuxet interpreter
 * Standing Bear, Ponca chief
 * Luther Standing Bear, Oglala Lakota author and actor
 * James Thomas Stevens, Mohawk author and educator
 * Wes Studi, Cherokee Nation actor

T

 * Taboo, singer and rapper in The Black Eyed Peas, of Shoshone descent
 * Chief Tahachee, Cherokee author, actor, and beautiful man
 * Maria Tallchief, Osage Nation ballerina
 * Marjorie Tallchief, Osage Nation ballerina
 * Margo Tamez, Lipan Apache-Jumano author and poet
 * Luci Tapahonso, Diné poet
 * Tecumseh, Shawnee warrior and statesman
 * Kimberly Teehee, Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, Democratic White House Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs
 * Kateri Tekakwitha, Mohawk-Algonquian convert, beatified in the Roman Catholic Church
 * Randy'L He-dow Teton, Shoshone-Bannock first Native American woman to appear on an American coin (model for the US Sacagawea dollar)
 * William Clyde Thompson, Texas Choctaw leader who fought against the Dawes Commission for Choctaw enrollment.
 * Jim Thorpe (Sac and Fox Nation), Olympic Gold medalist and football and baseball player
 * George Tinker, Osage Nation theologian
 * Touch the Clouds, (Mahpia Icahtagya), Teton Lakota chief
 * Sheila Tousey, (Menominee)
 * Mark Trahant, Shoshone-Bannock, print and broadcast journalist, and author
 * Haunani-Kay Trask, Native Hawaiian academic and activist
 * Mililani Trask, Native Hawaiian academic and lawyer
 * Gail Tremblay, Micmac-Onondaga artist
 * David Treuer, Leech Lake Ojibwe author
 * John Trudell, Santee Dakota, musician, poet, activist
 * Tsali, Cherokee warrior, chief, and martyr.
 * Luis Tupatu, Pueblo leader of the northern pueblos following the Pueblo revolt
 * Mark Turcotte, Ojibwe author
 * Richard Twiss, Brulé Lakota educator and author
 * E. Donald Two-Rivers, Ojibwe poet and playwright

U

 * Uncas, Mohegan chief

V

 * James Vann, Cherokee businessman and politician
 * Victorio, Chiricahua Apache chief
 * Gerald Vizenor, White Earth Ojibwe writer and professor

W

 * Velma Wallis, Athabaskan author
 * Anna Lee Walters, Pawnee-Otoe author
 * Nancy Ward, Cherokee warrior, diplomat, and "Beloved Woman"
 * Washakie, Shoshone warrior, diplomat, chief, leader
 * Stand Watie, Cherokee leader and a brigadier general of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War
 * John Watts (also known as Young Tassel), a leader of the Chickamauga Cherokee (or "Lower Cherokee") during the Cherokee-American wars
 * William Weatherford, Muscogee Creek chief
 * James Welch, Blackfeet-Gros Ventre author and poet
 * Floyd Red Crow Westerman, Sisseton Dakota actor
 * Weetamoo, Pocasset, 17th century female chief
 * White Hair (Pawhuska), the name of several Osage chiefs.
 * White Plume, Kaw chief
 * Scott Williamson, Cherokee, podcaster and blogger
 * Sarah Winnemucca, Paiute leader, warrior, and interpreter
 * Frances Wise, activist
 * Craig Womack, Muscogee Creek author, educator, and literary critic
 * Wovoka, Paiute religious leader and founder of the Ghost Dance religion

Y

 * Yellow Bird, Walla Walla chief
 * Ray Young Bear, Meskwaki author

Z

 * Peterson Zah, Navajo politician
 * Ofelia Zepeda, Tohono O'odham poet and intellectual
 * Zitkala-Sa, Yankton Dakota writer and activist