Although the Quapaw were brave and adept warriors, their general nature was described by the French in the 17th century as being a peaceable people of liberal disposition and light humor. The Quapaw were sedentary farmers who raised corn, beans, squash, gourds, melons, and tobacco in their fields. Some fields were quite large and scattered among the villages.
Quapaw women were in charge of gathering food. Women also butchered animals the men had hunted and tanned the hides. They gathered wood and wild foods, prepared the food and cared for children, and performed household chores. The women also wove baskets and made clay pots. In fact, the Quapaw women were so industrious that they prompted one European to remark that they were the hardest working women he had ever seen. Forms of ornamentation for women depended upon their marital status. Married women wore their hair loose while unmarried women wore their hair in two braids that were rolled into coils secured behind each ear and decorated with ornaments.
Men hunted, fished, waged war, and managed community and political affairs. Positions of political and religious leadership were held by men. In the early days of exploration, Quapaw men developed a reputation for their manufacture of fine, high quality dugout canoes. Ornamentation for men was different than for women. They decorated themselves with tattoos and strings of beads in their ears and noses. During the winter, buffalo robes were worn. Decorated wooden masks were also worn for some ceremonies.