The Quapaw (known as Ugahxpa in their own language) are a tribe of Native Americans who historically resided on the west side of the Mississippi River in what is now the state of Arkansas. They are federally recognized as the Quapaw Tribe of Indians.

The state of Arkansas was named after the Quapaw, who were called Akansea or Akansa, meaning “land of the downriver people”, by other Native Americans.

The Quapaw Reserve Lands today, are centered around the Tar Creek Superfund Site, which at one time was considered to be the worst environmental disaster in the country. This issue was keystone to the environmental documentary Tar Creek, made in 2009 by Matt Myers. Tar Creek tells the full story of the Tar Creek Superfund Site and discusses the environmental and governmental racism that led to the creation of this disaster, at the center of which are the Quapaw.

Text adapted from Wikipedia’s article on the Quapaw peoples

Apache Arapahoe Arikara Cherokee Cheyenne Chumash Comanche Coos Crow Dineh Havasupai Hawaiian Hoopa Hopi Houma Hualapai Inupiat Kalapuya Karuk Klallam Lakota Luiseno Maidu Mandan Maricopa Miwok Mojave Muscogee Navajo Oglala Ohlone Onondagega Onyotaaka Paiute Passamaquoddy Penobscot Pomo Pueblo Quapaw Quechan