Martha Birdbear

Martha Birdbear, also known as Owl Woman or “Idaakube-wia,” was born on July 8, 1948, in Elbowoods, North Dakota, to John Yellow Wolf and Thelma Yellow Wolf (Young Bear). A member of the Knife Clan, she spent her early years in Elbowoods before her family moved to Mandaree in 1954. She graduated from Mandaree Public School, attended San Pueblo College, and later earned a Master of Education from the University of North Dakota.

On November 26, 1968, Martha married Fritz Birdbear in Watford City. The couple made their home in Mandaree, where she dedicated thirty years to teaching the Hidatsa Language and Culture at Mandaree Public Schools. She served as an advisor for the West Segment on Hidatsa culture and tradition, contributed to multiple boards and committees focused on the Hidatsa Language, and in 2018 taught at the Maagarishda Hidatsa Language School. Martha was a devoted mother and grandmother who supported her family at sporting events and powwows. She enjoyed traveling across the United States and abroad, visiting New York City, Florida, Hawaii, Rome, and Okinawa. An excellent cook known for her fry bread, she also loved quilting, beading, and remained a devout Catholic who faithfully attended Mass at St. Anthony Church in Mandaree.

Martha passed away peacefully on March 11, 2026, at the age of 77, surrounded by her loving family in her home in Bismarck. She was preceded in death by her parents, her baby daughter Cora Lee, sons Calvin Birdbear and Fritz Damon Birdbear Jr., granddaughter Cedar Rose Jarski, brothers Bert, Tony, and Raymond Yellow Wolf, sisters Victoria Tarrant, Kathleen Charles, Katherine Romero, Delphine Yellow Wolf, Veronica Good Iron, and Frances Wolf, and many other relatives.

She is survived by her husband, Fritz Birdbear; daughter, Anna Birdbear; grandchildren Gerard Jarski Jr., Samuel Lincoln, John Hawkins, Delphine Birdbear, and Primberly Birdbear; great-grandchildren Opal Martha Shay Jarski, Kayloni Rose McCarty, and Joshua Damon Ramos; sister Mary Gachupin; special daughter Nora Packineau; half-siblings Les Yellow Wolf and Joan Church; and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.