Zuni people
A:shiwi | |
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Pueblo people |
The Zuni (
History
Archaeology suggests that the Zuni have been farmers in the general area for 3,000 to 4,000 years. It is now thought that the Ancestral Zuni people inhabited the Zuni River valley from the last millennium B.C., when they began using irrigation to farm maize on at least household-sized plots.[4][5]
Zuni culture is associated with
In 1539,
Before the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the Zuni lived in six villages. After the revolt, until 1692, they took refuge in a defensible position atop Dowa Yalanne, a steep mesa 5 km (3.1 miles) southeast of the present Pueblo of Zuni; Dowa means "corn", and yalanne means "mountain". After the establishment of peace and the return of the Spanish, the Zuni relocated to their present location, returning to the mesa top only briefly in 1703.[10] By the end of the 17th century, only Halona was still inhabited of the original six villages. Yet, satellite villages were settled around Halona, and included Nutria, Ojo Caliente, and Pescado.[8]: 67–69, 73–78
Of the three Zuni missions, only the church at Halona was rebuilt after the reconquest. According to Nancy Bonvillain, "Indeed, by the late eighteenth century, Spanish authorities had given up hope of dominating the Zuni and other western Pueblo Indians, and in 1799 only seven Spanish people were recorded as living among the Zuni.". In 1821, the Franciscans ended their missionary efforts.[8]: 71–74
In 1848, U.S. Army Lt. Col. Henderson P. Boyakin signed a treaty with Zuni and Navajo leaders stating the Zuni "shall be protected in the full management of all their rights of Private Property and Religion...[by] the authorities, civil and military, of New Mexico and the United States." Observing the Zuni in the 1850s, Balduin Möllhausen noted "In all directions, fields of wheat and maize, as well as gourds and melons, bore testimony to their industry."[8]: 81, 83
The Zuni Reservation was created by the United States federal government in 1877, and enlarged by a second Executive order in 1883.[8]: 86–88
Frank Hamilton Cushing, an anthropologist associated with the Smithsonian Institution, lived with the Zuni from 1879 to 1884. He was one of the first non-native participant-observers and ethnologists at Zuni. In 1979, it was reported that some members of the Pueblo consider he had wrongfully documented the Zuni way of life, exploiting them by photographing and revealing sacred traditions and ceremonies.[11]
During the early 2000s, the Zuni opposed the development of a
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John K. Hillers, c. 1871–1907
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Image ofCorps of Topographical Engineers's 1851 expedition to Arizona which was led by Captain Sitgreaves[14]
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Lutakawi, Zuni Governor, photographed before 1925 by Edward S. Curtis
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Zuni pueblo middle court, in 1879
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Zuni River, Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico. The Zuni people have inhabited the Zuni River valley since the last millennium BCE
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Zuni men and the ancient Pueblo Town of Zuni, c. 1868
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Two Zuni girls, photographed by Edward S. Curtis, c. 1926
Culture
This section needs additional citations for verification. (February 2023) ) |
The Zuni traditionally speak the
The Zuni were and are a traditional people who live by
The Zuni Tribal Fair and rodeo is held the third weekend in August. The Zuni also participate in the Gallup Inter-Tribal Ceremonial, usually held in early or mid-August. The A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center is a tribal museum that showcases Zuni history, culture, and arts.[citation needed]
Ethnobotany
The Zuni utilize many local plants in their culture. For an extensive list, see the main article, "Zuni ethnobotany". Zuni have developed knowledge of local plants that are used for medical practices and religious rites.[16]
Pottery
Traditionally, Zuni women made pottery for storing food and water. They used symbols of their clans for designs. Clay for the pottery is sourced locally. Prior to its extraction, the women give thanks to the Earth Mother (Awidelin Tsitda) according to ritual. The clay is ground, sifted, mixed with water, rolled into a coil, shaped into a vessel or other design, and scraped smooth with a scraper. A thin layer of finer clay, called slip, is applied to the surface for extra smoothness and color. The vessel is polished with a stone after it dries. It is painted with home-made organic dyes, using a traditional yucca brush. The shape and painted images depend on the intended purpose of the pottery. To fire the pottery, the Zuni used animal dung in traditional kilns. Today, Zuni potters might use electric kilns. While the firing was usually a community enterprise, silence or communication in low voices was considered essential in order to maintain the original "voice" of the "being" of the clay, and the purpose of the end product.[17][18] Sales of pottery and traditional arts provide a major source of income for many Zuni people today.[19] An artisan may be the sole financial support for her immediate family as well as others. Many women make pottery or, more rarely, clothing or baskets.[20] Brown, black and red ornamentation can be found on traditional Zuni pots that are first covered with white slip. Common motifs are spiral scrolls edged with triangles, deer, as well as frogs, dragonflies and other symbols associated with rain and water. In addition to pots, Zuni produce owl figurines that are covered with white slip and painted with black and red motifs before firing.[21]
Carving and silversmithing
Zuni also make fetishes and necklaces for the purpose of rituals and trade, and more recently for sale to collectors.
The Zuni are known for their fine lapidary work. Zuni jewelers set hand-cut turquoise and other stones in silver.[22] Today jewelry-making thrives as an art form among the Zuni. Many Zuni have become master stone-cutters. Techniques used include mosaic and channel inlay to create intricate designs and unique patterns.
Two specialties of Zuni jewelers are
Religion
Religion is central to Zuni life. Their traditional religious beliefs are centered on the three most powerful of their deities: Earth Mother, Sun Father, and Moonlight-Giving Mother. The religion is katsina-based, and ceremonies occur during winter solstice, summer, harvest, and again in winter.[8]: 14–15, 25–40
Priesthood includes three priests (north, above and below), and Pekwin (the above priest) determines the religious calendar. A religious society is associated with each of the six kivas, and each boy is initiated into one of these societies.[23]
Shalako
Shalako is a series of ceremonial dances that take place throughout the night[24] on or around the winter solstice. They are closed to non-native individuals unless there is a personal invitation by a tribal member. The ceremony also blesses the houses that were built during the year. The blessing takes the form of singing that accompanies six dancers who are dressed in Shalako outfits.[25] These outfits can be as high as eight feet; the dancers wearing them represent "couriers of the rain deities come to bless new homes".[26][27][28] The dancers move from house to house throughout the night; at dawn Saiyatasha performs a final prayer and the ceremony is complete.[28]
In popular culture
In the novel Brave New World, a Zuni native named John comes to grip with sexual realities in the New State and how they differ from his own culture.
Gallery
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Zuni Girl, photographed by Edward S. Curtis
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Zuñis in typical modern costume, 1896
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Zuni water vases
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Zuni pottery
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Zuni paint and condiment cups
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Zuni ceramic ladles
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Zuni bird effigies
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Zuni clay baskets
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Zuni animal effigies
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Zuni woven sashes
Notable Zuni people
- Emily Pinto, painter
- Percy Tsisete Sandy (Kai-Sa [Red Moon]), painter
- We'wha, weaver
See also
Citations
- ^ "Zuni Tribe: Facts, Clothes, Food and History ***". www.warpaths2peacepipes.com. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
- ^ "Welcome", Pueblo of Zuni, (retrieved 13 Feb 2011)
- ^ "Experience Zuni". www.zunitourism.com. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
- ISBN 978-0816528936, edited by David A. Gregory and David R. Wilcox, p. 119
- ISBN 978-0-8165-2893-6.
- ISBN 978-0-8165-2893-6.
- ^ a b c Pritzker 109
- ^ ISBN 9781604137996.
- ISBN 0-7432-5517-8
- ^ Flint, Richard and Shirley Cushing Flint "Dowa Yalanne, or Corn Mountain". Archived 2012-07-14 at archive.today New Mexico Office of the State Historian. 21 April 2012.
- ^ Frank Hamilton Cushing, Zuni (University of Nebraska, 1979).
- ^ Neary, Ben (February 18, 2001). "Mining Plan Pits Tribe Against Power Industry". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
- Santa Fe New Mexican. Archived from the originalon June 30, 2004. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
- ^ Granger, Byrd H. (1960). Arizona Place Names. University of Arizona Press. p. 21. Retrieved December 9, 2011.
- ^ "Zuni Origins". Archaeology Southwest. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
- PMID 6893476. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ Morrell, Virginia. "The Zuni Way ." Archived September 5, 2013, at the Wayback Machine Smithsonian Magazine. April 2007 (retrieved 13 Feb 2011)
- ISBN 0-8032-7007-0
- JSTOR 23325388. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
- ^ Belarde-Lewis, Miranda, A Zuni System of Knowledge: The Arts, University of Washington
- ISBN 9780735104822.
- ^ Adair 14
- ISBN 9780960132249.
- ^ "Zuni Shalako Figure". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ISBN 9780960132249.
- ^ "Our Culture". Pueblo of Zuni. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ISBN 9781604137996.
- ^ ISBN 9780826313874.
References
- Adair, John. The Navajo and Pueblo Silversmiths. Norman: ISBN 978-0-8061-2215-1.
- Cushing, Frank Hamilton. Jesse Green, ed. Zuni: Selected Writings of Frank Hamilton Cushing. Lincoln: ISBN 0-8032-2100-2.
- Pritzker, Barry M. A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples. Oxford: ISBN 978-0-19-513877-1.
- Wade, Edwin L. "The Ethnic Art Market in the American Southwest, 1880–1980." George, W. Stocking, Jr., ed. Objects and Others: Essays on Museums and Material Culture (History of Anthropology). Vol. 3. Madison: ISBN 0-299-10324-2.
Further reading
- Benedict, Ruth. Zuni Mythology. 2 vols. Columbia University Contributions to Anthropology, no. 21. New York: Columbia University Press, 1935. AMS Press reprint, 1969.
- Bunzel, Ruth L. "Introduction to Zuni Ceremonialism". (1932a); "Zuni Origin Myths". (1932b); "Zuni Ritual Poetry". (1932c). In Forty-Seventh Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology. pp. 467–835. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1932. Reprint, Zuni Ceremonialism: Three Studies. Introduction by Nancy Pareto. University of New Mexico Press, 1992.
- Bunzel, Ruth L. Zuni Texts. Publications of the American Ethnological Society, 15. New York: G.E. Steckert & Co., 1933
- Cushing, Frank Hamilton, Barton Wright, The Mythic World of the Zuni, University of New Mexico Press, 1992, hardcover, ISBN 0-8263-1036-2
- Herrick, Dennis. (2018) Esteban: The African Slave Who Explored America. University of New Mexico Press, hardcover, ISBN 978-0-8263-5981-0
- Davis, Nancy Yaw. (2000). The Zuni enigma. Norton. ISBN 0-393-04788-1
- Eggan, Fred and T.N. Pandey. "Zuni History, 1855–1970". Handbook of North American Indians, Southwest. Vol.9. Ed. By Alfonso Ortiz. pp. 474–481. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1979.
- Hart, E. Richard, 2000. "Zuni Claims: An Expert Witness’ Reflections," American Indian Culture and Research Journal, 24(1): 163–171.
- Hart, E. Richard, ed. Zuni and the Courts: A Struggle for Sovereign Land Rights. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1995. ISBN 978-0-7006-0705-1.
- Kroeber, Alfred L. (1984). Zuni kin and clan. AMS Press. ISBN 0-404-15618-5
- Newman, Stanley S. Zuni Dictionary. Indiana University Research Center, Publication Six. Bloomington: Indiana University, 1967. ASIN B0007F3L0Y.
- Roberts, John. "The Zuni". In Variations in Value Orientations. Ed. by F.R. Kluckhorn and F.L. Strodbeck. pp. 285–316. Evanston, IL and Elmsford, NY: Row, Peterson, 1961.
- Smith, Watson and John Roberts. Zuni Law: A Field of Values. Papers of the Peabody Museum of the American Archaeology and Ethnology, Vol. 43. Cambridge, MA: Peabody Museum, 1954.
- Tedlock, Barbara. The Beautiful and the Dangerous: Dialogues with the Zuni Indians, New York: Penguin Books, 1992.
External links
- Pueblo of Zuni official website
- A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center at Zuni
- Pueblo of Zuni official Artist’s Art Walk website
- The Zuni Worldview Archived June 4, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- Zuni Indian Tribe History, Access Genealogy
- The Religious Life of the Zuñi Child by (Mrs.) Tilly E. (Matilda Coxe EStevenson), from Project Gutenberg
- Pueblo tribe (Zuni is Pueblo)
- Collection of Historical Photographs of Zunis
- Quand les Katchinas dansent a Cibola. Mythologie et rites des indiens Zunis, 15 July 2008
- Zuni Breadstuff by Frank Hamilton Cushing, from Michigan State University Libraries – The Historic American Cookbook Project