Bdóte
Location in Minnesota considered the center of the universe in Dakota tradition / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bdóte (English: /bˈdɔːtɛ/[1] "ba-DOTE-tay"; lit. 'place where two rivers meet' or 'confluence'; deprecated spelling Mdote[2]) is a significant[1] Dakota sacred landscape where the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers meet, encompassing Pike Island, Fort Snelling, Coldwater Spring, Indian Mounds Park, and surrounding areas in present-day Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. In Dakota geographic memory, it is a single contiguous area not delineated by any contemporary areas' borders.[3] According to Dakota oral tradition, it is the site of creation; the interconnectedness between the rivers, earth, and sky are important to the Dakota worldview and the site maintains its significance to the Dakota people.
It is also an important[4] location in the history of European colonization of the region, including the 1805 Treaty of St. Peters with the Dakota people and the 1837 Treaty of St. Peters with the Ojibwe. After the Dakota War of 1862, it was the location of the concentration camp of the Dakota people before they were forcibly exiled from Minnesota. The cities of Mendota and Mendota Heights, Minnesota, which are part of Bdote, take their names from the Dakota name for the region.[3]
In recent years, a movement to recognize and protect Bdote as a sacred place has been growing.