Removal of all or part of the scalp, with hair attached, from an enemy's head.
It is best known as a practice of North American Indian warfare. At first confined to eastern tribes, it spread as a result of bounties offered by the French, English, Dutch, and Spanish for the scalps of enemy Indians and sometimes of enemy whites. Many American frontiersmen and soldiers adopted the custom. Among Plains Indian s, scalps were taken for war honours, usually from dead enemies, although some warriors preferred a live victim. The operation was not necessarily fatal, and some victims were released alive.