Lesley Hunley

2/27/06

EDUC 405

 

Pueblo people: History, Economy, and Culture

 

            The Pueblo people are a group of First Americans who reside in the Southwest region of the United States, in what are now the states of New Mexico and Arizona.  The word “pueblo” is a term the Spanish settlers used to describe the villages the Pueblo people were living in when the Spanish first came to the American Southwest in the 1500s.  The rich history and culture of the Pueblo people as well as their economy distinguish them from other First American tribes.

            Historically, the Pueblo people descended from the Anasazi culture that existed in the Southwest prior to Spanish exploration of the area.  The history of the Anasazi culture can be traced back over 7000 years to when they were a nomadic tribe.  After the Anasazi’s unexplained mass exodus from their settlements, the first Pueblo tribes originated in the late 15th century.  The Pueblos were a peaceful people who welcomed the Spanish settlers and existed cooperatively with them for a number of years.  As tensions grew, the Pueblo people staged several revolts against the Spanish, the first successful one coming in 1680, when the Spanish were driven out of their territory for 12 years.  After this time many Pueblos moved away from their villages to safer locations where they could construct heavier fortifications to protect themselves.  The Pueblo population then began to rapidly decline due to the spread of European diseases.  By this point Spanish missionaries had also converted nearly one hundred Pueblo villages from their native religion to Christianity.  Currently, 19 Pueblo tribes remain in the southwestern United States and all are assimilated into American culture but retain their own culture and heritage.

            The economy of the Pueblo Indians was largely based on agriculture.  Members of a village would share irrigated agricultural fields, raising crops such as corn, beans, and squash (the three sisters), melons, cotton, and chili peppers.  Both women and men participated in the farming.  In addition to farming, Pueblo people also hunted and gathered, raised livestock, and sold their handicrafts.  Pueblo hunters hunted antelope and deer in the mountains, bison in the plains, and rabbit.  Women also gathered edible wild plants.  Pueblo people traditionally practiced weaving, pottery, and basketry.  Using the cotton that they grew in their agricultural fields, the Pueblo men wove clothing and blankets.  Pueblo women began making pottery around 400 A.D. to use for cooking and to hold water.  Women also wove baskets.  The technique and style of basketry varied depending on the community.

            Although the Pueblo people share a common ancestry, they are divided linguistically among four distinct language families: Keresan, Kiowa-Tanoan, Uto-Aztecan, and Zuni.  These language families are like different dialects of a language.  Although the languages differ, speakers are usually able to understand one another without much difficulty.  In the present day, most Pueblo descendants can also speak English or Spanish.  The native Pueblo languages were primarily oral languages but currently some pueblos are having their language put in writing to help preserve their culture and to be able to teach their children how to read and write in the native language.

            The religion of the Pueblo people encouraged balance and harmony between people and the universe.  Pueblos performed religious ceremonies to ensure that they would have rain to water their fields, a successful crop yield, good health, and overall well-being.  The kachina cult is one particular element of Pueblo religion that continues today and serves as a unifier for all Pueblo tribes.  Kachinas are supernatural beings who visit the pueblos between December and July and are an intermediary between humans and the gods.  When kachinas visit they bring good things to the Pueblo people, such as rain for the fields of crops or small gifts for the children of the pueblo.  One of the kachinas’ most important duties is to usher Pueblo youth into adulthood and initiate them into the social structure of the Pueblo community.  Although Pueblo people continue to practice their native religion today, most Pueblos also follow Catholicism which originated in the Southwest with the Spanish missionaries. 

            Beginning around 700 A.D., the Pueblo people began to reside in villages that Spanish settlers later termed “pueblos”.  Pueblos are large buildings that are several stories high and are constructed of adobe brick and stonework.  They may be constructed as community buildings or as residences, such as apartment-type buildings.  Rooms in pueblos were square and the roofs were flat and thick.  To get from one story to the next there were movable ladders on the exterior and ladders in trapdoors in the interior of the pueblos.  Pueblos were often constructed on high mesas or other such places that would be difficult for enemies to attack.  There were no doors or windows on the exterior walls of pueblos to further protect them from attackers.  Today there are 19 pueblos remaining in the American Southwest, each home to an individual tribe of Pueblo people with its own unique government.  Like the historic pueblos, modern day pueblos consist of public buildings and homes but you will also find shopping centers, government buildings, and clinics.  Today pueblos are constructed of adobe as well as wood frame construction and steel and concrete construction.  Pueblos are commonly named after saints, based on traditions instilled by the Spanish missionaries, or according to their own indigenous traditions. 

            The Pueblo people of the American Southwest are set apart from other groups of First Americans by their history descending from the Anasazi, agriculture based economy, language, religion, and their namesake pueblo dwellings.  Pueblo communities continue to exist in the Southwest today, incorporating traditions of the Spanish settlers to the area with their native Pueblo beliefs and customs.  The Pueblos are a good example of a First American tribe existing in the Southwest from prehistory to present day.

           

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Croke, B. (2005). How rebelling Pueblos put 3,000 Spanish to hasty flight. World and I, 20. Retrieved February 25, 2006, from http://find.galegroup.com.proxy.wm.edu/itx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T002&prodId=ITOF&docId=A130735762&source=gale&userGroupName=viva_wm&version=1.0.

Dozier, E.P. (1964). The Pueblo Indians of the Southwest: A survey of the

anthropological literature and a review of theory, method, and results.

Current Anthropology, 5 (2). Retrieved February 25, 2006 from http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0011-3204%28196404%295%3A2%3C79%3ATPIOTS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-Y.

Greene, S. (2002). History of the Pueblo Indians. Retrieved February 25, 2006, from

        http://www.puebloindian.com/pueblo_history_001.htm.

Pueblo Indians (2006). Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved February 25, 2006, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online  http://search.eb.com.proxy.wm.edu/eb/article-9061820.

Pueblo Languages (n.d). Native Languages of the Americas. Retrieved February 26, 2006, from http://www.native-languages.org/pueblo.htm.

Pueblos: Your children are we (2001). BYU Museum of Peoples and Cultures. Retrieved February 26, 2006, from http://fhss.byu.edu/anthro/mopc/PAGES/Exhibitions/Earth/Pueblos.html#Religion.

Wikipedia contributors (2006). Pueblo. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 26, 2006 from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pueblo&oldid=40260617.