The Lakota (pronounced [lakota]; Lakota: Lakta/Lakhta) are a Native American people. Also known as the Teton Sioux (from Thtuwa), they are one of the three prominent subcultures of the Sioux people. Their current lands are in North and South Dakota. They speak Laktiyapithe Lakota language, the westernmost of three closely related languages that belong to the Siouan language family.

The seven bands or "sub-tribes" of the Lakota are:

Sihu (Brul, Burned Thighs)

Oglla ("They Scatter Their Own")

Itzipho (Sans Arc, Without Bows)

Hkpapa (Hunkpapa, "End Village", Camps at the End of the Camp Circle)

Mnikwou (Miniconjou, "Plant Near Water", Planters by the Water)

Sihsapa ("Blackfeet or Blackfoot")

Ohenupa (Two Kettles)Notable Lakota persons include Tatka yotake (Sitting Bull) from the Hnkpapa, Mapya Itagya (Touch the Clouds) from the Miniconjou, Heka Spa (Black Elk) from the Oglla, Mapya Lta (Red Cloud) from the Oglla, Billy Mills from the Oglla, Take Witk (Crazy Horse) from the Oglla and Miniconjou, and Sit Glek (Spotted Tail) from the Brul. More recent activists include Russell Means from the Oglla.

The Hunkpapa (Lakota: Húŋkpapȟa) are a Native American group, one of the seven council fires of the Lakota tribe. The name Húŋkpapȟa is a Lakota word, meaning "Head of the Circle" (at one time, the tribe's name was represented in European-American records as Honkpapa). By tradition, the Húŋkpapȟa set up their lodges at the entryway to the circle of the Great Council when the Sioux met in convocation. They speak Lakȟóta, one of the three dialects of the Sioux language.