Yowani (probably from the word for caterpillar) ('Yguanes/Yugani/Iguanes-Spanish') is a branch of the Choctaw tribe ". The Yowani were named for their village, the reason for the founding of a trading post and what became the European-American town of Shubuta, Mississippi nearby. The Yowani continued to expand their holdings, eventually venturing into Louisiana, where they established close ties with the Caddo and adopted many of the Caddo customs. When Louisiana became part of the United States under the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, many of the Indian tribes in the territory wanted to emigrate to less hostile environs. Spain agreed to allow the Yowanis and the Alabama-Coushatta to move to Spanish Texas. In 1824, a second group of Yowani received permission from Mexico to establish villages