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Heads of families often arranged marriages in traditional Nez Percé society, sometimes during childhood. The relative prestige of both families was weighed in making selections. Kin relationships, even distant ones, were avoided; on the other hand, commonly several sons and daughters of two families might marry. In cases where marriage was not arranged, when a male found a female he wanted as a wife, an older female relative of the male initiated negotiations with the female's family. The woman might be observed by the elder relative over a period of time to determine if she was acceptable. The couple might then live together for a while to determine compatibility. Once the couple decided to marry, a ceremony and somewhat competitive gift exchange was held. Relatives of the groom might give horses, equipment for hunting and fishing, and skins. The bride's relatives would give baskets, root bags, digging sticks, and beaded bags. When two prestigious families were involved in an exchange ceremony, many people participated. After a second exchange ceremony, the wedding was considered complete. Since the 1960s, wedding ceremonies are often conducted in traditional longhouses.

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http://www.everyculture.com/multi/Le-Pa/Nez-Perc.html

https://northwesttribes.wordpress.com/socialstructures/

http://lewisandclark.today/1806_3/19.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Looking_Glass_(Native_American_leader)

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The Nez Percé felt a deep spiritual connection with the earth and sought to live in harmony with nature. They believed all living things and all features of the natural environment were closely related to each other and to people. Every member of the Nez Percé tribe had a personal link with nature in the form of a guardian spirit, or wyakin, that protected him or her from harm and provided assistance during his or her life. For example, a person might pray to his or her wyakinfor success in war or for help in crossing a dangerous river. A small medicine bundle containing materials that represented one's wyakin was often carried.

Around the onset of puberty, a young Nez Percé would leave the village in hopes of acquiring awyakin through a sacred experience. The youth traveled alone to an isolated place, often at a high mountain or along a river, without food or weapons, and sat upon a pile of stones and waited for the wyakin to reveal itself. The wyakin might appear as something material, such as an elk illuminated in a flash of lightning, or as a hallucenation or dream. After returning to the village, the young person did not tell others of the experience but interpreted the power of thewyakin privately. From that point on, there were certain rules to follow in order to avoid bad fortune, but one could also appeal to the wyakin in times of need.

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Before acquiring horses, the Nez Percé lived in houses covered with plant material. In the summer, they moved often in search of food, living in leantos consisting of a pole framework covered with woven mats of plant fibers. In the winter, they built pole-framed structures over large pits and covered them with layers of cedar bark, sagebrush, packed grass, and earth. Each dwelling usually housed several families, and a village might consist of five or six such pit houses. As horses increased their mobility and contact with other tribes, Nez Percé buildings grew larger and more sophisticated. Their winter pit houses sometimes extended up to 100 feet in length and housed many families. They also adopted the use of hide-covered tepees during summer fishing and hunting trips.

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They called themselves the Nimipu (nee-mee-poo). They pieced their noses as a religious symbol. They lived in tepees and are noted in Lewis and Clarkes'. They peacefully traded with the Americans to acquire guns and powder to defend their land from neighboring native tribes and to hunt buffalo and other animals. Traditional Nez Percé clothing was made of shredded cedar bark, deerskin, or rabbitskin. Men wore breechcloths and capes in warm weather, adding fur robes and leggings when it turned cold.

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The traditional Nez Percé economy was based on fishing, gathering, hunting, and, later, raising large herds of horses. Prior to incursions by white settlers, a number of major villages existed along the lower courses of the Snake, Salmon, and Clearwater Rivers and their tributaries. Having rich fisheries on these watercourses, including seasonal runs of a variety of salmon and steelhead trout, annual fish consumption in the traditional economy was estimated at more than 500 pounds per person. The traditional territory contains a diversity of landscapes with rugged mountains and numerous valleys and high prairies, primarily within the Snake River drainage system. Each area offered something different in terms of resources.

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Before European colonization, women mostly tended to what we think of as domestic activities including food preparation, cooking and maintaining shelters, while men were the warriors, hunters, and protectors. Individual bands of Nez Perce were lead by a chief who was always an elder man among them. This person could also serve as the religious leader. There was a village council that existed, made up of band leaders and important warriors. The most famous of all Nez Perce leaders was Chief Joseph. Currently the Nez Perce tribe does not relegate certain everyday practices to men or women, but work collectively on tasks. The tribe is governed now by the Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee. This is an elected group of nine men and women who deal with the representation and internal affairs of the tribe. They perform in roles such as governmental negotiation, promotion of education, distribution of tribal funds, and conducting elections. This is the largest part of the tribe’s current social structure.

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Each village was led by a headman, and was made up of several related, extended families.  The head man was generally one of the elder men of the group, attending to the general welfare of the village members.  This was generally an inherited position, although the headman was at times also a shaman who was a religious figure, and healer.  The largest village within the composite band had a band leader, including the administrating peace chief, and the war chief.  The village council was made up of the band leaders, and important warriors.  The council was in charge of making major decisions involving the village.  The band leader was elected by the village council even though the position could be semi-hereditary.

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meaning literally "pierced nose"