Navajo Indians
The Navajo Indians are a group of Native Americans who refer to themselves as the Dine, meaning "The People." The word Navajo comes from the term, "Tewa Navahu," which derives from the Spanish language and means, "highly cultivated lands."
The Navajo Indians' ancestors probably originally came from parts of Canada and Alaska and traveled south, eventually settling in the southwestern part of the US. By the 1500's they were an established tribe, living in New Mexico and Arizona, as well as parts of Utah and Colorado. The Navajo had close ties to the Pueblo people in the nearby area, learning farming methods and other skills from this group.
The Navajo Indians first had contact with Spaniards around 1540, which they traded with, setting up trading posts to exchange their woven blankets and other textiles, maize, and bison meat for sheep, horses, and raw materials to make weapons and tools. The Navajo often raided Mexican and Spanish settlers living near the Rio Grande, leading to punitive action by the US, Spanish, and Mexican governments. This period of raids and counter-raids is known as the Navajo Wars, and lasted from the early 1800s to about 1865.
By 1864, the United States had gained control of the Southwest, and had begun a series of military actions against the Navajo Indians. Over 9,000 Navajo people were sent on a forced march, known as The Long Walk, to Fort Sumter, New Mexico-a distance of over three hundred miles from their starting point at Fort Defiance. Supplies ran short on this trek, and the Navajo suffered many hardships. Eventually, the US government gave up this effort and allowed these Native Americans to return to their native lands to set up a reservation.
Today, The Navajo Nation is considered to be the largest North American tribe. Their reservation, located primarily in Arizona, is the largest in the US, encompassing 16 million acres and over 140,000 members. Many Navajo Indians still speak their native language today, and still build the sacred, traditional homes, called hogans, which they use for ceremonial purposes.
Navajo jewelry and its distinctive bold design
Native Americans loved to adorn themselves and jewelry played a big part of their culture. Bracelets made of shell and carved into snakes and frogs were worn to represent fertility, beautiful beads also called Heishi, and even jewelry made from straps of leather were common among tribes. While all tribes decorated themselves with beautiful jewelry, the Navajo Indians learned how to become silversmiths from the Mexicans and brought the art home to their tribe. They frequently used silver and turquoise, which quickly became the main materials used in Navajo jewelry.
Turquoise was frequently used with other materials before the Navajos learned how to use silver in their jewelry. It was paired with shells and other stones to make necklaces. Wood was often used to make the stones into earrings. In the late 1800's the Spanish toured the southwest bringing with the art of turning silver into jewelry. The Navajo Indians were the first tribe to learn this art and from then one paired turquoise with the silver to expand their jewelry into beautiful bracelets, rings, and even belts. They used Spanish and U.S. coins to create their jewelry. Preferably Spanish coins because the silver was easier to mold. Sometimes when trading other items they would receive things like candlesticks that could easily be melted down to make jewelry.
Navajo jewelry may be more described as art rather than jewelry. It is known and coveted worldwide. While turquoise is an important part of the jewelry, the Navajos can take pride in the beautifully designed ornate detail in the silver itself. The beautiful pieces the create not only are meant for accessories, but some have meaning as well. There are even pieces themselves that actually tell an entire story.
There are many people who have a great respect for Navajo jewelry, thus, the popularity of it has carried throughout the years. From simple pieces to more elaborate pieces, like squash blossom necklaces, the popularity of this jewelry has lasted well over a century. Navajo Indians will always be known for the beautiful works of art they have hand crafted over the years.
Navajos are known for their beautiful Rugs
Native Americans are known for their wonderful hand crafted products. They make beautiful jewelry and hand woven rugs. Many Native American products come from the Navajo reservation. The Navajo reservation is the largest Native American reservation in the United States and covers portions of four states in the southwest. Navajo rugs are wonderful works of art that have been made for over 300 years and will be made for generations to come.
The Navajo reservation is divided up into smaller communities. Throughout the various communities different rug patterns are found. Certain smaller communities produce certain patterns. While some rug patterns have names, like "storm pattern," others are called ceremonial rugs. These rugs aren't actually used in traditional Navajo ceremonies. The rugs don't have any religious or ceremonial meaning, but because of financial gain they have continued to be produced over the years. While only pure wool is used for authentic Navajo rugs, ones with cotton wefts are produced for tourists.
The Navajo learned the art of rug weaving from their neighbors in the Pueblo tribe. While not friendly neighbors, some of the Pueblo tribe took refuge with the Navajo when the Spanish arrived. The Pueblo tribe had been weaving rugs for hundreds of years before the Spanish arrived, but it was the Spanish who first introduced sheep into the Southwest. The Navajo tribe traditionally used large stand up looms with no moving parts to weave rugs and the rugs were not only used to adorn the floor, but also hung as doors to their homes.
Navajo rugs are some of the most recognized southwestern rugs in the United States. Including the process to ready the wool for weaving, it can take months to complete one rug. Traditionally, the rugs were made mostly neutral using colors like brown white and indigo. By the mid nineteenth century, the color palette expanded to include red, black, green, yellow, and grey. Red was the hardest color to obtain locally, but by the end of the nineteenth century railroads brought in a vast array of colors. The rugs become full of color and made in beautiful patterns. Its taken centuries to perfect the art the Navajo tribe takes such pride in and the rugs are sure to continue to be woven for years to come.
