Namely, the Native American peoples, and the wildlife.
Out of respect for the place, and those who came before us, we have named our virtual domain "Mato.com".
"Mato" (pronounced Mahtoe) is a Lakota word, which means "Bear". Bear Butte north of Sturgis, SD is a native sacred place, in the Lakota language it is called "Mato Paha" or Bear Mountain. Devil's Tower to the northwest in Wyoming is called "Mato Tipili" or Bear's Lodge. Before the Lakota were the Kiowa, another group of peoples who for thousands of years knew this place as "home", as we do now.
The Lakota are a group of Native American Peoples, part of what is known as the "Sioux Nation". Particularly, the Lakota are the western part of that nation, sometimes called the "Teton Sioux". There are many tribes often included in these peoples, such as the "Oglala" and "Hunkpapa". We are not experts on the tribes of this area, nor are we members of them, but we do believe that they deserve all of our recognition, and respect.
The wild life, present and past, also deserve our recognition. One of the most beautiful, and respectable of all the creatures of this area was the Bear. The Grizzly and Black Bear once called this land home. They are gone now, with the exception of tourist parks, and we feel it necessary to remind everyone that they were once one of the greatest forms of life in this area. We hope that such wild life losses as the Bear and Buffalo will not continue, or at least can be minimized with as much consideration as we can give them.
Mato.com is simply a tribute to our region, the Black Hills (Paha Sapa), of South Dakota and Wyoming.
