What was a key feature of the Dawes Act regarding land division?

The Dawes Act, enacted in 1887, aimed to assimilate Native Americans into American society by allotting them individual plots of land. Key to this legislation was the division of tribal lands into smaller parcels assigned to individual families, thus promoting the idea of private land ownership, which was aligned with Euro-American values. Each Native American family was given a specific amount of land, with the intention of encouraging farming and agriculture. This approach sought to break up communal tribal landholdings, which were traditional among many Native American groups, in favor of individual property rights. The overarching goal was to reduce the influence of tribal governments and facilitate the cultural integration of Native Americans into American society, often disregarding the implications this had for their traditional ways of living and governance.