Painting from 1847 by Paul Kane, showing a Chinookan child in the process of having its head flattened.

Head flattening is deformation of the human skull in such a way as to cause it to become flatter. It can be accidental but more usually is a part of a cultural ritual, typically on an infant as the skull is most sculptable at this time. Image File history File links Kane_Flathead_Child. ... Image File history File links Kane_Flathead_Child. ... This article is about the painter. ... Interior of a Chinookan plankhouse in the 1850s Chinookan refers to several groups of Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. ... For symbolic or mythic uses of the human skull, see Skull (symbolism). ... A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value, which is prescribed by a religion or by the traditions of a community. ... An infant Infant is a slightly more formal word for baby, the youngest category of child, meaning a human from birth to age 1. ...

The Native American group known as the Flathead did not in fact practise head flattening, but were named such in contrast to other Salishan people who used skull modification to make the head appear more round [1]. However, other tribes, including the Choctaw [2], did practise head flattening, by strapping the infant's head to a cradleboard. An Atsina named Assiniboin Boy Native Americans in the United States (also known as Indians, American Indians, First Americans, Indigenous Peoples, Aboriginal Peoples, Aboriginal Americans, Amerindians, Amerinds, or Original Americans) are the indigenous peoples within the territory that is now encompassed by the continental United States and their descendants in... Kootenai group near tipis (ca 1900) The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation are the Bitterroot Salish, Kootenai and Pend dOreilles Tribes. ... The Salishan languages are a group of languages of western Canada and the Pacific Northwest of the United States. ... Pushmataha was the most famous leader of the Choctaws. ... Navajo child in cradleboard, Window Rock, Arizona, 1936 A cradle board is a typical North American baby carrier used to keep babies secure and comfortable and at the same time allowing the mothers freedom to work and travel. ...