The Nez Perce are Native American people who live in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. An anthropological theory says they descended from the Old Cordilleran Culture, which moved south from the Rocky Mountains and west in Nez Perce lands. The Nez Perce nation currently governs and inhabits a reservation in Idaho.
Nez Perce is French for 'Pierced Nose' - a name mistakenly bestowed upon them by French fur traders. Nose-piercing has in fact never been a part of Nez Perce culture, but for some reason the name stuck. The tribe refers to itself as the Nimíipuu, which means 'The People.'
