North American Indian people of Caddoan linguistic stock who lived on the Platte River in what is now Nebraska, U.S., from before the 16th century to the latter part of the 19th century. In the 19th century the Pawnee tribe was composed of relatively independent bands: the Kitkehahki, Chaui, Pitahauerat, and Skidi. Each of these bands occupied several villages, which were the basic social unit of the Pawnee people.

Pawnee class distinctions favoured chiefs, priests, and shamans. Each chief of a village or band had in his keeping a sacred bundle. Shamans were believed to possess special powers to treat illness and to ward off enemy raids and food shortages. Priests were trained in the performance of rituals and sacred songs. Along with shamanistic and hunt societies, the Pawnee also had military societies.

The traditional religion of the Pawnee was quite elaborate. They believed some of the stars to be gods and performed rituals to entreat their presence, and they also used astronomy in practical affairs (e.g., to determine when to plant corn). Corn was regarded as a symbolic mother through whom the sun god bestowed his blessing. Other important deities were the morning and evening stars and Tirawa, the supreme power who created all these. For a time Pawnee religion included the sacrifice of a captive adolescent girl to the morning star, but this practice ended in the 19th century.

Early 21st-century population estimates indicated some 4,500 individuals of Pawnee descent.