text: The Mandan were divided into bands. The Nup'tadi (does not translate) was the largest linguistic group. The other bands were the Is'tope ("those who tattooed themselves"), Ma'nana'r ("those who quarreled"), Nu'itadi ("our people"), and the Awi'ka-xa / Awigaxa (does not translate). The Nup'tadi and Nu'itadi lived on both banks of the Missouri River, while the Awigaxa lived further upstream at the Painted Woods.
  The bands all practiced extensive farming, which was carried out by the women, including the drying and processing of corn. The Mandan-Hidatsa settlements, called the "Marketplace of the Central Plains", were major hubs of trade in the Great Plains Indian trading networks. Crops were exchanged, along with other goods that traveled from as far as the Pacific Northwest Coast. Investigation of their sites on the northern Plains have revealed items traceable as well to the Tennessee River, Florida, the Gulf Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard.
  The Mandan gradually moved upriver, and consolidated in present-day North Dakota by the fifteenth century. From 1500 to about 1782, the Mandan reached the height of their population and influence. Their villages showed increasing densities as well as stronger fortifications, for instance at Huff Village. It had 115 large lodges with more than 1,000 residents.
  The bands did not often move along the river until the late 18th century, after their populations plummeted due to smallpox and other epidemics.
  European encounter
  The Koatiouak, mentioned in a 1736 letter by Jesuit Jean-Pierre Aulneau, are identified as Mandans. Aulneau was killed before his planned expedition to visit the Mandans could take place.