This historical stone has a name closely associated with its intense color. Its name was derived from the Latin word 'lapis' meaning 'stone', and from the Arabic and Persian word 'lazaward'. 'Lazaward was the Persian name for lapis stone, as well as the name of its mining location.
History. The Standing Rock Sioux Reservation is situated in North and South Dakota. The people of Standing Rock, often called Sioux, are members of the Dakota and Lakota nations. Dakota and Lakota mean friends or allies.. The people of these nations are often called Sioux, a term that dates back to the seventeenth century when the people were living in the Great Lakes area.
The area is the birthplace of one of the Lakota's greatest warriors and most respected medicine men, Sitting Bull. Today, visitors can pay homage at his grave overlooking the Missouri River west of Mobridge. The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is part of the Great Sioux Nation with the Hunkpapa and Blackfeet bands.