States with Dakota Communities Today: Minnesota, the Dakotas, Montana, Nebraska

Federally recognized Dakota (Sioux) tribal nations and communities are located in five U.S. states, primarily descended from groups displaced during 19th-century conflicts (U.S.–Dakota War 1862, subsequent removals):

1. Minnesota: Lower Sioux (Morton), Upper Sioux (Granite Falls), Shakopee Mdewakanton (Prior Lake), Prairie Island (Welch).
2. North Dakota: Spirit Lake Nation (Fort Totten, mostly Dakota/Lakota), Standing Rock (straddles SD, includes Dakota bands).
3. South Dakota: Crow Creek (Fort Thompson), Flandreau Santee, Lake Traverse (Sisseton-Wahpeton, extends into ND), Lower Brule, Pine Ridge (mostly Lakota), Rosebud (Lakota), Yankton.
4. Montana: Fort Peck Assiniboine & Sioux (includes Dakota bands).
5. Nebraska: Santee Sioux Nation (Niobrara), Omaha Reservation (Winnebago, includes some Dakota), Ponca (includes Dakota descendants).

Canadian Dakota communities (Manitoba, Saskatchewan) descend from those who fled north after 1862. The Dakota language (Dakhótiyapi) is actively revitalized across these communities.