The Nez Perce /ˌnɛzˈpɜrs/ (autonym: Niimíipu) are a Native American tribe who live in the Pacific Northwest region (Columbia River Plateau) of the United States. An anthropological interpretation says they descended from the Old Cordilleran Culture, which moved south from the Rocky Mountains and west into lands where the tribe coalesced. The federally recognized Nez Perce Nation currently governs and lives within its reservation in Idaho.