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Native American Indian Information
THE HOPI TRIBE
The Journey from the First World into the Fourth World
Before all there was Tokpella, Endless Space. Only Dawa,
the Sun Spirit, existed with some lesser gods. Dawa gathered the elements of
Tokpella and added some of his own substance to create the First World. There
were no people then, merely insect-like creatures who lived in a dark cave deep
in the earth. Dawa watched them but was deeply disappointed because they did not
understand the meaning of life....
Please learn more about the Hopi beginnings at: http://www.hopi.nsn.us/emergence.asp
Climate and Geography
The Hopi Reservation is located in the high deserts of
northeastern Arizona and is landlocked by the Navajo Reservation. The
total land area is 1.5 million acres and the elevation ranges between 4,700 feet
in the valley floors to 7,800 feet atop the northern reaches of the mesas.
Temperatures range from an average daily maximum of 87°F in summer to an
average daily minimum of 18°F in winter. Average annual precipitation
ranges between 6 to 10 inches in lower elevations and 10 to 14 inches in higher
elevations. Annual precipitation is roughly divided between summer rains
and winter snowfall...
Please learn more about the Hopi reservation at: http://www.hopi.nsn.us
The People
The Hopi Indians, which means good, peaceful, or wise,
come from a group of Southwestern people called Pueblo.
Hopis call themselves Hopitu - The Peacable
People.
Hopis live in northeast Arizona at the southern end of the
Black Mesa. A mesa is the name given to a small isolated flat-topped hill
with three steep sides called the 1st Mesa, 2nd Mesa, and
the 3rd Mesa. On the mesa tops are the Hopi villages called
pueblos. The pueblo of Oraibi on the 3rd Mesa started in 1050,
and is the oldest in North America that was lived in continuously.
Art is a way for the Southwestern Native Americans to
communicate their dreams, visions, and beliefs to each other or to people today.
Pottery, clothing, and making baskets are just a portion
of the great arts and crafts of the Southwest Native Americans. Their art used
symbols and signs to represent their ideas, beliefs, dreams, and visions.
Please learn more about the Hopi people at:
http://www.crystalinks.com/hopi.html
The Craftsmanship
Pottery was made for everyday use, including cooking,
storage, bathing, and religious ceremonies. They were painted and carved with
designs that told a story.
Modern earthen ware is considerably softer and of coarser
texture than the pieces that have been exhumed in large numbers from the ruins
of this region. The most successful imitator of this ancient ware, who is not a
Hopi at all, but the Tewa woman Nampeyo, of the village Hano, says that its
superiority was obtained by the use of lignite, by which the prehistoric potters
were able to fire their vessels for several days; but a well-informed
traditionalist, on the contrary, asserts that it is the result of burying the
clay in moist sand for a long time, perhaps two moons, which 'caused something
in the clay to rot'."
Please learn more about the Hopi craftsmanship at:
http://www.crystalinks.com/hopi.html
Welcome to the Official Hopi Cultural
Preservation Office Web Site. Find out about Hopi Culture, Arts and Crafts, and
Research Policies... http://www.nau.edu/~hcpo-p
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