Oklahoma's original Native world included a number of tribal cultures that had used the area for economic subsistence for millennia before the Europeans' arrival.
When first encountered by Europeans, the Caddo and the numerous Wichita subgroups were farmers living in established villages, mostly in the southern and eastern parts of the present state.
The Plains Apache, Osage, Pawnee, and other nomadic groups found Oklahoma's northern and western prairie-plains regions to be a trove of animal and vegetable resources useful for subsistence.
Over time, the composition of Native populations changed in the region, and the Comanche began moving into the area around 1700.