And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
Date: Tue, 23 Mar 1999 23:33:41 -0700
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
>From my Masters' Thesis, "Intercultural Dynamics of the Hopi-Navajo Land
Dispute: Colonialism and Manifest Destiny in the Southwest," 1995,
University of
Arizona, UMI Dissertation Services, Ann Arbor, Michigan, I offer the
following:
(From Chapter 2)
Copyright 1995
PERSPECTIVES ON THE ABORIGINAL TERRITORY (Din�tah) OF THE NAVAJO IN THE
SOUTHWEST
The purpose of this chapter is to investigate the origins and earliest
settlements of the Navajo people (Din�) in the Southwest, define the
boundaries of their aboriginal territories (Din�tah) from several
different perspectives, and discuss some of the problems related to
defining such boundaries. By comparing the various boundary
definitions and their sources, some conclusions and value judgments may
be made about the relative validity of each of the perspectives.
This discussion is significant to the realization that in order to
understand the dynamics of Navajo territorial growth, it would be
necessary to go back to its origins and develop a broader based and
unbiased understanding of both Navajo and Hopi history as it pertains to
their territories and the interactions between the two. To gain an
unbiased perspective it was also important to have an understanding of
the origins, traditions, and "character" of the Navajos as well as to
investigate the various perspectives on defining Navajo Din�tah in the
same way that Hopi aboriginal territory (Tutsqua) was investigated.
Being reasonably familiar with Hopi culture and "character," it became
conversely important to attempt a comparable understanding of Navajo
origins, culture, and "character" in hopes of getting some kind of
handle on what it is about the two groups that causes them to have so
much difficulty living in close proximity with any sort of harmony.
Defining the Din�tah is problematic for many reasons. Among them are:
1) the mobile or migratory nature of the Din�, 2) the numerous
definitions of the Din�tah, each with its own unique perspective, and
3) the presumption of clarity in the terms aboriginal and traditional.
This paper will present definitions of the Din�tah from the following
perspectives:
*Archaeological evidence,
*"Traditional" evidence, i.e.: origin stories and mythology,
*Descriptions contained in claims submitted to the Indian Claims
Commission, and,
*Findings and Opinions of the Indian Claims Commission.
The Navajo Today:
Located in northeastern Arizona and extending into northwestern New
Mexico and southeastern Utah, the Navajo reservation sprawls over more
than 16 million acres and is the largest Indian reservation in the
country. A treaty with the United States in 1868 set aside a 3.5
million acre reservation for the Navajos. Fourteen increases through
Executive Orders and Congressional Acts between 1868 and 1934 enlarged
the original reservation to near its current impressive size. (See Map,
Appendix "A")
In 1864 there were approximately 9,000 Navajos in the Southwest. By
1960 this number had risen to 80,000. Today (1995) there are close to
200,000 members of the Navajo Tribe. A great percentage of the people
maintain essentially traditional lives, living in Hogans in remote areas
of this arid reservation, raising sheep and goats, and growing corn.
Traditional life is difficult to maintain in view of the surrounding
pressures of modern American society and the increased emphasis on a
dollar-based economy. But within the Sacred Mountains, traditional
Navajo life continues to be carried on and passed from generation to
generation.
Navajo culture and religion today is largely a conglomerate of traits
acquired from the Pueblos, Spaniards, Mexicans, and Americans after the
arrival of the Navajos in the Southwest. These traits were adapted to
conform to the world view and values of these Athapaskan speaking people
from the north. Hidden somewhere in the variations of these acquired
traits are clues to the nature of the people before they came to the
Southwest and became Navajo.
Traditional Origins:
There are many versions of Origin story or Creation story in Navajo
tradition. These stories can provide some insight into the world view
and "character" of the Navajo people. They also reflect some of the
values passed down through many generations to become part of the
essence of modern Navajo life.
Locke's condensed version of the Navajo Origin story is an intricate
tale of successive emergences from one underworld to the next until the
people climb into this, the fifth world, from the bottom of a sacred
lake through a giant hollow reed. It explains how First Man and First
Woman were created, how there came to be so much diversity in the people
of the world, and provides detailed answers about the creation and
nature of the universe. It also explains the association and struggles
between the Navajos and the Pueblos as well as the differences in their
basic nature. In this version, the seven sacred mountains were created
long after the Navajos became acquainted with the Pueblo Tribes. This
is consistent with indications that the concept of "Sacred Mountains"
was acquired later in Navajo history, after concentrated exposure to the
Puebloan cultures. As we will see later in this paper, this is a clue
to the establishment of some dates in Navajo history and links oral
tradition to history. (See Appendix "B" for a synopsis of Locke's
version.)
There are other versions of the Din�'s emergence into the fifth world.
In one, they came into this world through a hole in the center of the
earth. Then they spread out in all directions and are, ultimately, to
return to the center "in the end." This is similar to the Hopi
tradition that they emerged at the center of the world and, after
several prescribed migrations in different directions, returned and
regrouped at the center. This center is at the current Hopi Mesas.
Another has "....the first beings climb[ing] out of the earth near
Silverton, Colorado." Pinxten, vanDooren, and Harvey relate a
version that has the place of emergence, as well as the center of the
universe and the center of the world, on top of "Huerfano Mesa."
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Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit)
Unenh onhwa' Awayaton
http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/
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