Siouxland is a vernacular region that encompasses the entire Big Sioux River drainage basin in the U.S. states of South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa.A "vernacular region" is a distinctive area where the inhabitants collectively consider themselves interconnected by a shared history, mutual interests, and a common identity. Such regions are "intellectual inventions" and a form of shorthand to identify things, people, and places. Vernacular regions reflect a "sense of place," but rarely coincide with established jurisdictional borders.The lower Big Sioux River drainage basin stretches from Sioux City, Iowa, to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, an area that includes much of northwestern Iowa, the northeast corner of Nebraska, the southeast corner of South Dakota, and the extreme southwest corner of Minnesota.The term "Siouxland" was coined by author Frederick Manfred in 1946. Manfred was born in Doon, Iowa, a small town in Lyon County.OriginFrederick Manfred, who grew up in this region, set his novels in Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa, and Nebraska, but these names alone did not meet his needs. Manfred said, "I wanted to find one name that meant this area where state lines have not been important. I tried Land of the Sioux, but that was too long, so Siouxland was born" in 1946.
