Catawba is one of two Eastern Siouan languages of the eastern US, which together with the Western Siouan languages formed the Siouan language family.The last native speaker of Catawba died before 1960. Red Thunder Cloud, apparently an impostor born Cromwell Ashbie Hawkins West, claimed to speak the language until he died in 1996 (Goddard 2000). The Catawba tribe is now working to revive the Catawba language.