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Blackfoot Numbers

  1. Ni’tokskaa - ni’toksskam

  2. Naato’ka - naato’kam

  3. Niooska - niooskam

  4. Niiso - niisoiyim

  5. Nisito - nisotoim

  6. Naoi - noiyim

  7. Ihkitsika - ihkitsikam

  8. Naaniso - naanisoim

  9. Piihksso - piihkssoim

  10. Kiipo - kiipoim

  11. Ni’tsikopoto

  12. Natsikopoto

  13. Niikopoto

  14. Niisikopoto

  15. Nisitsikopoto

  16. Naikopoto

  17. Ihkitsikikopoto

  18. Nanisikopoto

  19. Piihkssikopoto

  20. Naatsippo

  21. Naatsippo ni’tsikopoto

  22. Naatsippo natsikopoto

  23. Naatsippo niikopoto

  24. Naatsippo niisikopoto

  25. Naatsippo nisitsikopoto

  26. Naatsippo naikopoto

  27. Naatsippo ihkitsikikopoto

  28. Naatsippo nanisikopoto

  29. Naatsippo piihkssikopoto

  30. Niiippo

  31. Niiippo ni’tsikopoto

  32. Niiippo natsikopoto

  33. Niiippo niikopoto

  34. Niiippo niisikopoto

  35. Niiippo nisitsikopoto

  36. Niiippo naikopoto

  37. Niiippo ihkitsikikopoto

  38. Niiippo nanisikopoto

  39. Niiippo piihkssikopoto

  40. Niisippo

  41. Niisippo ni’stikopoto

  42. Niisippo natsikopoto

  43. Niisippo niikopoto

  44. Niisippo niisikopoto

  45. Niisippo nisitsikopoto

  46. Niisippo naikopoto

  47. Niisippo ihkitsikikopoto

  48. Niisippo nanisikopoto

  49. Niisippo pihkssiikopoto

  50. Niisitsippo

  51. Niisitsippo ni’tsikopoto

  52. Niisistippo natsikopoto

  53. Niisitsippo niikopoto

  54. Niisitsippo niisikopoto

  55. Niisitsippo nisitsikopoto

  56. Niisitsippo naikopoto

  57. Niisitsippo ihkitsikikopoto

  58. Niisitsippo nanisikopoto

  59. Niisitsippo pihkssiikopoto

  60. Naaippo

  61. Naaippo ni’tsikopoto

  62. Naaippo natsikopoto

  63. Naaippo niikopoto

  64. Naaippo niisikopoto

  65. Naaippo nisitsikopoto

  66. Naaippo naikopoto

  67. Naaippo ihkit sikikopoto

  68. Naaippo nanisikopoto

  69. Naaippo pihkssiikopoto

  70. Ihkitsikippo

  71. Ihkitsikippo ni’tsikopoto

  72. Ihkitsikippo natsikopoto

  73. Ihkitsikippo niikopoto

  74. Ihkitsikippo niisikopoto

  75. Ihkitsikippo nisiksikopoto

  76. Ihkitsikippo naikopoto

  77. Ihkitsikippo ihkitsikikopoto

  78. Ihkitsikippo nanisikopoto

  79. Ihkitsikippo pihkssiikopoto

  80. Nanisippo

  81. Nanisippo ni’tsikopoto

  82. Nanisippo natsikopoto

  83. Nanisippo niikopoto

  84. Nanisippo niisikopoto

  85. Nanisippo nisitsikopoto

  86. Nanisippo naikopoto

  87. Nanisippo ihldtsikikopoto

  88. Nanisippo nanisikopoto

  89. Nanisippo pihkssiikopoto

  90. Pihkssippo

  91. Pihkssippo ni’tsikopoto

  92. Pihkssippo natsikopoto

  93. Pihkssippo niikopoto

  94. Pihkssippo niisikopoto

  95. Pihkssippo nisitsikopoto

  96. Pihkssippo naikopoto

  97. Pihkssippo ihkitsikikopoto

  98. Pihkssippo nanisikopoto

  99. Pihkssippo pihkssiikopoto

  100. Kiipippo

Write the Scrambled Blackfoot Numbers in Order

  • Niiso

  • Naoi

  • Piihksso

  • Ihkitsika

  • Naato’ka

  • Kiipo

  • Nisito

  • Ni’tokskaa

  • Naaniso

  • Niooska

Blackfoot ways of counting

In the past, the Blackfoot People counted the months by marking notches on a stick; one month equals one full moon. Months were named after cold weather, variable weather, ducks, frogs, scents, rainy times, birds flyings, chokecherries ripening, leaves change colour, when leaves fall, when cold weather arrives, and holy moon month.

Winter counts were painted on hides.

There are different ways to count people and animals. For example, one person is ni tsi tapi, two people is na tsi tapi. The suffix is “itapi”. 

To count animals, the suffix is “kom” e.g., ni tos kom imitaa: one dog. More than one dog is I mi ta ksi: ends with plural ksi. To count animals, the suffix is “yim” as in Niisoyim (4) e.g., skunks.

Alive animated ends with “nom” for animals.

Stories about numbers

The Wonderful Bird

Old Man went walking in the woods. He came upon a little bird sitting on a tree limb, making a strange noise. Every time the little bird made the noise his eyes came out and stuck onto the tree. When it made another strange noise, the eyes came back into place. Old Man asked the little bird to teach him how to do it. The little bird agreed but told Old Man he could not do the trick more than three times per day or he would be sorry. Old Man agreed to do as he was told. He was happy that he could do the trick and did it three times right away. He wanted to do it again. He said to himself, that bird has no sense. So Old Man did the trick one more time. This time his eyes got stuck on the tree and he could not call them back. Old Man called for the little bird to help, but he had flown away. Poor Old Man could not see. He called to the animals to help him find his eyes. Wolf came along and he began to tease Old Man with a piece of buffalo meat. Old Man was hungry. He felt around all over the place but could not find the meat. Wolf had a good laugh until Old Man caught him. Old Man plucked out one of Wolf’s eyes and put it into his own head. Old Man was able to see. He found his own eyes but could never again do the trick the little bird had taught him. (Adapted from George Bird Grinnell, Blackfoot Lodge Tales: The Story of a Prairie People. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1892; Scituate, Digital Scanning Inc., 2001, pp.153-154.)

The Elk and Deer

Old Man saw the elk and deer playing a game of “follow your leader.” He asked to join and they agreed. They were all having fun playing their game. Old Man was getting hungry. He saw a steep embankment up ahead and led the elk and deer to it. He told them it would be fun to jump off the embankment and that he would jump first to show them. Old Man jumped off the steep embankment and got his breath knocked out. After a while he got up and walked back up the hill. The deer and elk asked him why he had lain there for a long time. Old Man responded that he was laughing so hard that he could not get up; the game was so fun that they would lay there too. He encouraged the elk to jump and sure enough they did not move after they had gone over the embankment. Old Man encouraged the deer to follow. All the animals jumped off except for a pregnant elk and deer, who asked Old Man if it was okay if they did not jump off. Old Man agreed and told the deer and elk they could go and multiply in numbers. That is why the deer and elk are still with us today. (Adapted from Grinnell, Blackfoot Lodge Tales, p.158; and Clark Wissler and D.C. Duvall, Mythology of the Blackfoot Indians. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1908; Lincoln: Nebraska University Press, 2007, pp.27-28.)

Match the Blackfoot Numbers

Ni’tokskaa

Naato’ka

Niooska

Niiso

Nisito

Naoi

Ihkitsika

Naaniso

Piihksso

Kiipo

(8) Eight

(3) Three

(4) Four

(9) Nine

(1) One

(6) Six

(5) Five

(2) Two

(10) Ten

(7) Seven