Dinétah
Ancestral homeland of the Navajo people in the Southwest.
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Dinétah is the traditional homeland of the Diné, or Navajo, people in the Southwestern United States. The term means "among the people" in the Navajo language. Its boundaries are marked by mountain peaks corresponding to the four cardinal directions.
History
Evidence suggests Navajo presence in Dinétah as early as 1500 CE, though dating is debated. Occupation is divided into the Dinétah phase (ca. 1500-1630), covering initial settlement, and the Gobernador phase (ca. 1630-1800), when Navajo culture became fully defined. Distinction between phases relies on Gobernador Polychrome ceramics and the presence of pueblitos.
Geography and topography
The region features high mesas and deep canyons draining to the San Juan River. Canyons consist of irregular sandstone layers with multiple benches and talus slopes. Elevations average 5,000 to 6,500 feet, with some peaks exceeding 14,000 feet. Four mountains demarcate the traditional boundaries.
Cultural overview
Navajo creation stories center on Dinétah, and place names reflect its mythological role. The heart of the region is the canyons of the Largo and Carrizo washes south of the San Juan River in New Mexico. According to tradition, the infant deity Changing Woman was found on Gobernador Knob by the Holy People, and the first four Navajo clans arrived there after migrating from the north.
Archaeological sites
Thousands of recorded sites include remains of Ancestral Puebloans, Navajo, and early Hispanic settlers. Dry conditions have preserved stone and wood structures, as well as pictographs and petroglyphs. The most visible sites are Navajo pueblitos, stone structures of one to six rooms dating to the late 17th century, often defensive in nature, including towers, fort-like enclosures, and cliff dwellings.
More in Religious Places of the Indigenous Peoples of North America
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Dinétah (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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