The Hopi   Term Paper ID:38337 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: A brief history of the Hopi tribe that focuses on their experiences in the ...... More...

10 Pages / 2250 Words 9 sources, 15 Citations, Other Format $40.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: A history of the Hopi tribe that focuses on their experiences in the New World, their culture, and their agricultural background. The Hopi's commitment to nature, to its culture and to its place as one of the most unique tribes in the New World. Paper Introduction: The Hopi Indians have lived in northern Arizona for centuries Theircontinued occupancy of the area since A D gives Hopi people thelongest authenticated history of occupation of a single area by any NativeAmerican tribe in the United States Hopi The Hopi Indians have a longhistory of peacefulness spirituality and culture This paper willexamine the history of the Hopi tribe illustrating the vibrant culture andthe innovative agricultural techniques that were pioneered by these mostremarkable of our American Indian tribes What will emerge from Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. However, the Spanishwere never able to firmly reestablish a foothold among the Hopi" (Hopi1).While the Spanish were not able to reassert their hold over the Hopi tribe,"Following on the heels of the Spanish, Navajos began moving into Hopiterritory in the late 16 's. Indeed,"[t]he Hopi creation story is about a succession through underworlds andeach of these is associated with a specific direction, color, mineral,plant, and bird" (Smith). They distributed themselves throughout thearea to graze their livestock and appropriated Hopi rangeland, farm fieldsand water resources. This is not surprising, of course, given the Hopi'slong tradition of farming. Indeed, boundary markings have been found hundreds ofmiles away from the mesas which demarcate the traditional territory held bythe Hopi. The Hopi typically placed their villages on top of the mesas fordefensive purposes, to ensure that they could monitor all those whoapproached. The peaceful and agriculturally minded Hopi Indianswere often the victims of the more warlike nomadic Indian tribes. This is what I have to giveyou'" (Wall). Additionally, the Hopi "participated in anelaborate trade network that extended throughout the Southwest and intoMexico" (Hopi1). Mexico's hold over the regionwas to be brief; in 1848 the Treaty of Guadalupe de Hidalgo ceded the Hopiland from Mexico to the United States. Faced with these inhospitable conditions, the Hopi perfected acultivation method known as dry farming. Handbook of the North American Indians. 1986.Hack, J.T. Government could dobusiness" (Hopi1). Sadly, the Hopi Indians have been undergoing a period ofcultural decline as the modern world continues to infringe upon thetraditional ways. "People of the Corn:Teachings in Hopi Traditional Agriculture, Spirituality,and Sustainability." American Indian Quarterly. Government opened the Hopi Indian Agency in Keams Canyon,and in 1882 President Chester Arthur granted the Hopi 2,472,32 acres ofland to form the Hopi Indian Reservation. For over eight hundredyears the Hopi have lived on the southern points of three fingers of theBlack Mesa in northern Arizona; the three fingers are typically referred toas the first, second, and third mesas (Lockett). University ofArizona. gives Hopi people thelongest authenticated history of occupation of a single area by any NativeAmerican tribe in the United States" (Hopi1). Around 5 A.D., the first Hopi ancestors had settled in the area.Roughly two centuries later, the first substantial presence in the Mesaarea was established on Antelope Mesa. However, this latter method isextremely labor intensive (Hack). Available at[http://www.ausbcomp.com/redman/hopi.htm]"The History of the Hopi Tribe." The Hopi Tribe (Hopi1). Over the next fewcenturies, "many small masonry villages appeared in the area. Federal Indian Law: Background and Current Issues.Congressional Research Service. Again, this method isreliant on the annual precipitation which causes the streams to break theirbanks and water the crops occasionally. Congress passed the Indian Reorganization Actwhich, in essence, codified the obligations of the U.S. Tribal matters arehandled internally by the 12 existing Hopi villages, which maintain a quasi-independence from the Hopi tribe as a whole. The Hopijoined the Pueblo Indians of New Mexico in an attempt to force the Spanishout of the Southwest. An identifiable culture began to develop in theregion roughly two thousand years ago. Contact with the Spanish proved devastating to the Hopi tribe, asthe diseases they brought with them from the old world devastated the Hopipopulation. 28, Nos. The Unwritten Literature of the Hopi. Despite this, the villages did not represent the entirety ofthe Hopi demesne. Tucson: AZ. Other villages mergetraditional with western governing policies by maintaining a villageKikmongwi (chief or leader) but also having representatives on TribalCouncil" (Hopi1). Even inthe 2 th Century, there have been winters were the carefully storedsurpluses of dried corn were essentially the only food available to theHopi tribe (Wall). During themillennia that the Hopi have tended to their fields in Arizona, they havefor the most part espoused a philosophy of peaceful cohabitation with otherIndians and with nature. The Hopi believe that the current world is thefourth time that life has been creating; the prior three creations ended indestruction. This ancestral holding is called the tutsqua in the Hopilanguage, and it is estimated that during the peak of the Hopi tribe thetutsqua covered over 18 million acres (Hopi1). Theircontinued "occupancy of the area since 5 A.D. "The Changing Physical Environment of the Hopi Indians ofArizona." Papers of the Peabody Museum 35(1). Indeed, the "Hopis' intimaterelationship with corn is a bond that reaches back for centuries...[and]reflects their profound reliance on theplant to sustain them in both good and difficult times" (Wall). The Spanish did, however,also introduce horses, burros, sheep, and cattle to the Hopi, as well asnew fruits and vegetables. In the early 19 s, the Hopiarea was included "within the greater Navajo Reservation and administeredby a branch of the latter Indian agency" (Lockett). "The Utes." InD'Azevedo, Warren ed. 1933.Murphy, Maureen. Harvard University, CambridgeKelly, Isabel, and Fowler, Catherine. Althoughthere are now many commercial seeds available, most have proven to beunable to adapt to local conditions" (Hopi2). water dissipates quickly from the land). The Hopi have maintained a permanent settlementin the Arizona mesas for over 1,2 years, well outstripping the five-hundred years that the West has occupied the New World. According to Hopi tradition, Masau'u warned thetribe when they emerged into the fourth world that their existence woulddepend on their ability to adapt to the harsh conditions of their new life: "To show them that life, Masaw gave the people a planting stick, a bag ofseeds, and a gourd of water. Thus, we have seen that the Hopi people are the longest tenuredcitizens of the New World. Hopifarmers sow several different small fields in various locations in order toensure that at least one of their fields produces a sufficient harvest fromthe localized thundershowers that occur during the growing season. SmithsonianInstitution. Navajos also conducted frequent raids against Hopivillages" (Hopi1). Hopi. This paper willexamine the history of the Hopi tribe, illustrating the vibrant culture andthe innovative agricultural techniques that were pioneered by these mostremarkable of our American Indian tribes. Washington, DC. What will emerge from this briefanalysis of the Hopi is a tribe that is committed to nature, to itsculture, and to its prideful place as one of the most unique and cherishedIndian tribes in the New World. Works Cited Callaway, Donald, Janetski, Joel, and Stewart, Omer. The reason for this warning could be attributed to the factthat the Hopi growing season is a short one, averaging only between 12 and16 days. Initially successful in driving the Spanish out, theso called Pueblo Revolt ended badly for the Pueblo Indians when the Spanishreasserted control over their holdings in New Mexico. The Act, among other things, ended theshameful practice of allotting tribal lands to individuals that haddevastated some reservations, extended the trust periods of existingallotments, provided for the consolidation of tribal lands, and perhapsmost importantly "encouraged tribal formation of governments based onconstitutions, and authorized incorporation of tribal business corporationsunder federal law" (Murphy). By the 15 's the Hopi culture had developed more fully. The Hopi Indians have lived in northern Arizona for centuries. 3 & 4.Summer and Fall 2 4. In 1934, the U.S. The Hopi Indians have developed a wide variety of their own crops,including 17 varieties of corn. It is not surprising, given the plant's pride of placein Hopi life, that corn forms a centerpoint of most of the Hopi spiritualceremonies. Their culture is rooted in an appreciation of theland, which is reflected in their remarkably low-impact agriculturaltechniques. The planting process involves using a long stick todig precise holes and place the seeds deep in the ground; in doing so Hopifarmers take great care to make these holes small in order to reduce theground moisture loss (Hopi1). He handed them a small ear of blue corn andtold them, 'Here is my life and my spirit. According to archaeological scholars, the "Hopibase their existence on faith only, and their story is a fascinating taleof that faith sustaining them: 'White men come, white men go, but we shallalways be here/" (Smith). This incrediblyshortsighted decision led to some issues between the Navajo and Hopi tribesthat will be discussed in greater detail subsequently. The Hopi farmers have taken great care tomaintain their traditional foodstuffs by "keeping household seed stocks andobtaining seed through traditional family and community networks. Four yearslater, the U.S. The land surrounding the mesas was apportioned betweendifferent clans and families within the tribe, while certain areas wereheld in reserve for the tribe as a whole and were used for medicinal andreligious purposes. For example, the Oraibi village "remains strictlytraditional in its governing structure and does not accept funds or anyother form of assistance from the Tribal government. 1942. Handbook of the North American Indians. As a result of this Act, the "Hopi TribalCouncil was formed in 1936 in an effort to establish a singlerepresentative body of the Hopi with which the U.S. The thirdworld was destroyed by floods, and the Hopi were saved by the mysteriousSpider Woman who hid them in reeds and floated them to try land and thefourth world. Contact between the Hopi and theUnited States government remained sporadic, however, until the 187 whenthe Bureau of Indian Affairs named its first Hopi Indian agent. These fields are typically placedeither at the arroyo mouths of smaller streams (known as akchins), or thoselocated on the flood plains of larger streams. Vol. One, knownas flood-water farming, involves planting fields in areas where streamfloods spread in thin sheets of water. 1986.Lockett, Hattie. A subsequentdrying of the climate over the next 2 years saw a clustering of thearea's population into larger villages" (Hopi1). This sad story is replicated across all Native Americantribes, though the Hopi's unique and lasting legacies make it all the morepoignant. Today, the Hopi Tribal Council represents the interests of the Hopipeople with regards to matter external to the tribe. Masonry walls were developed, andthe Hopi began to construct above-ground dwellings in place of the pit-houses that had been the legacy of the Hisatsinom. However, not much isknown about the individuals who lived on the land for the first 8, yearsor so "except that the people hunted locally available animals and gatheredwild plants" (Hopi1). government withregards to Native Americans. Over two centuries, the Hopi population was reduced fromthousands to hundreds through a series of epidemics, including aparticularly devastating incidence of smallpox. The first world, known as "endless space,"contained the First People and was pure and happy until it was destroyed byfire. Available at[http://www.hopi.nsn.us/history.asp]."The Importance of Farming to the Tribe." The Hopi Tribe (Hopi2).Available at [http://www.hopi.nsn.us/farming.asp].Wall, Dennis, and Masayesva, Virgil. The Spanish crown did not have frequent contactwith the Hopi until 1592, when Catholic missionaries settled in the town ofAwatovi. Hopifarmers do not plow their fields, instead leaving rows of naturalvegetation in the fields to retain soil and moisture as well as to serve asa natural windbreak. TheUtes, for example, often plundered the Hopi villages (Callaway). It featuredelaborate ceremonial cycles, a complex social organization, and a highlyadvanced agricultural system. By 7 A.D., these individuals,referred to as Hisatsinom (or the People of Long Ago) by the Hopi and asAnasazi by archaeologists, were cultivating crops and creating smallsettlements comprised of two to five pit-houses. The dry farming method "dependscompletely on natural precipitation -- winter snows or summer monsoons.Corn and bean fields are usually located in areas to maximize surfacemoisture: at the foot of the mesas, on sand slopes, in small canyons, alongalluvial plains in washes, and in the valleys between mesas" (Hopi2). The current world, or fourth world, is known as "the worldcomplete" and its care-taker is known as Masau'u, or the Fire God (Smith). "Southern Paiute." In D'Azevedo,Warren ed. The Hopi tribe fell under the jurisdiction of Mexico in 1821following the Mexican War of Independence. The Hopi culture, and their creation myths, have always revolvedaround agriculture. In 154 , the first western men to arrive in the lands of the Hopiwere Spanish explorers led by Don Pedro de Tovar. Having reviewed the broad outline of Hopi history, we now turn ourattention to the vibrant Hopi culture and how it has informed theirtraditional lifestyle. The Hisatsinom leftbehind many traces of their once vibrant culture, but began to fall by thewayside (Hopi1). This destruction came about when conflict, which is not apart of the Hopi Way, emerged as people lost sight of the Creator's plan.Those individuals who were faithful were protected underground with the antpeople, and the kivas, or mounds, that are created today arerepresentations of the anthills that sheltered the Hopi ancestors. Hopi shirts were prime trading goods for many Indiantribes, and the Hopi had developed a reputation as skilful artisans(Kelly). The Hopi lands are seemingly desolate, characterized by dryingwinds and high summer temperatures that produce significantevapotranspiration (i.e. September 15, 1997.Smith, Michael. The second world, known as "dark midnight," was destroyed by coldand ice and the Hopi survived in the care of the ant people. There are two other farming techniques used by the Hopi. Washington, DC. Theseconditions are exacerbated by a lack of surface water and the low andvariable rates of annual precipitation (Hopi2). Another technique used by the Hopiinvolves planting in sand dune fields near water, where the high moisturecontent of the sandy soil is utilized. The Hopi Indians have a longhistory of peacefulness, spirituality, and culture. De Tovar was searchingfruitlessly for the fabled Seven Cities of Gold, and did not have muchcontact with the Hopi. Archaeological records show that people have inhabited the FourCorners area of the Midwest for over 1 , years. SmithsonianInstitution. Only one of the villages hasadopted a western form of government based on a formal constitution; theremaining 11 villages practice varying forms of the traditional Hopi formof governance. By 168 , the Hopi had grown tired of the missionaries' constantattempts to convert them and of the Spanish Crown's demands. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.