‘Instructor’s Name’
Native American Research
Introduction
American Indians are an integral part of the great history of this nation, and learning about their culture and lifestyle, will offer us valuable insights into our cultural past. Before the European colonization (1492), estimates say that, there were close to twenty five million Native Americans inhabiting the American continent. Sadly most of these indigenous tribes have been erased by diseases, famine, conflicts and rehabilitation. Every tribe has its own history and cultural heritage, and to know about them, would help us in empathizing with their struggle for survival. The aim of this essay is, to elucidate the history and cultural highlights of one such Indian tribe namely the Apache Indians.
Origin and Geography
Apache is the combined phrase used to denote a group of culturally related Native Indian tribes. The South Western regions of America, including Arizona, New Mexico, Southern Colorado, Utah and some parts of the Mexico, are believed to have been the home of this tribe. The word apache is derived from Zuni phrase which means ‘enemy’, and few others claim that it is derived from Yuma word which translates into ‘fighting men’. They were first encountered by the Spaniards in a place called chilchilticalli, and their next reference occurs in 1541 again sighted by the Spaniards.
The apache tribe is a collection of many sub tribes like, Chiricahua, Jicarilla, the Western Apache, Kiowa, Mescalero, and Lipan. Hence the term apache is generally used to denote all those native tribes in this geography, which broke up into different groups upon the contact from Europeans, particularly the Spaniards.
Landforms, water bodies and Natural resources
Most historians, estimate their arrival time to the Southwest, to be somewhere between 1000 A.D and 1550 A.D. According to Grenville Goodwin, an ethnographer, prior to the establishment of reservations in the year 1881, the Western Apache were divided into five sub groups. Their boundaries were marked by many geographical landmarks such as the Santa Catalina Mountains, Pinaleno Mountains, White Mountains, Salt River and the Verde River. Oil, gas and timber were some of the abundant natural resources found in these areas.
Language
There are 5 apache reservations today: White Mountain, Tonto, Fort MacDowell, Camp Verde and San Carlos. Their population today is close to 56,000. There is consent among ethnologists that, the apache tribe belongs to the Athapascan family, which is one of the most widely distributed Indian linguistic families of North America. The Apache language has undergone many modifications with time, and various tribes in different geographical regions speak in their own dialects. Reverend Frank Uplegger, a linguistic scholar, who spent many years working with the Apache people say that
“The chief characteristic of the Apache language, as of other languages in the Athapascan family, consists in its being a tone language in a very strict sense of this term.”
It is an intricate language, and difficult one to master due to its complex vowel sounds and tones.
Food Habits, Plants and Animals
Apache Indians led a nomadic lifestyle and heavily relied on hunting and gathering for their food needs. They ate farm produce, meat, beans, squashes and corn. They did not eat fish which was considered to be tabooed. The Spanish sailor Castaneda states that, they dried the meat of buffalo, powdered it, and made a variety of soup out of it. Since they could not depend on agricultural products throughout the year, they shifted their bases seasonally. Except for early spring and early fall, they did not stay put during other seasons, and they were constantly on the move. During May, they left their low altitude winter dwelling and moved to agricultural lands located near the streams of the mountains. Hunting expeditions were undertaken during late fall. The hunted animals include deer, beavers, elks, buffalos, bighorn sheep, and squirrels. Their dogs were huge and were trained to drag weights.
Dressing and Role of men/women
Apache Indians wore buckskin dresses and blankets, and even today during puberty ceremonies the girls wear dresses made up of buckskins. The clothing of this tribe, was mainly designed to suit the desert climate in which they lived, and when it was cold they switched to buckskin clothing. The men went for hunting, while the women tended to the domestic needs and helped in plant gathering.
Unique Religious Rituals
They were very religious people, and like most other Indian tribes they had some exclusive ceremonies to please their Gods. A woman’s coming of age puberty rite ceremony, is the most important ritual for many Apache tribes. They also use a unique one stringed instrument for music, made up of hollow Agave stalk. When they dance, they wear a cap containing owl feathers.
Climate and Shelter
The climate they lived in was mostly hot and dry, and this influenced the way they built their houses. They lived in a round house called wickiup. The house is covered with leaf and animal skins. The other forms of includes teepee and Hogan. The houses were built in a way, which offered a cool environment to combat the hot Mexican weather.
Relationship with Europeans/United States
The Apache Indians were considered to be ruthless enemies and skilled in ambush and warfare. The Pueblo Indian tribe was their traditional enemies, and when this tribe came under the protection of the Spaniards, their anger turned towards the White men. The other hostile tribes, such as the Sobaipuri Indians and Mabos, were either absorbed or exterminated by them. During the civil war they made large fertile parts of Arizona uninhabitable, such was their hostility
Their relationship with Spanish colonists was characterized by frequent raids and trades, from both the sides. Though they were historically hostile to independent Mexico, some individual tribes (belonging to the Apache group) still had trade relations with them. In the year 1856, Mexican authorities claimed that Apache Indians had caused 6,000 deaths and abducted over 748 people.
When the United States launched war against Mexico, the Apache Indians allowed safe passage through their territory and recognized them as conqueror’s of Mexico. However the influx of gold miners broke the uneasy peace that existed between the two factions, and gave birth to the Apache wars. . In 1875, the forced rehabilitation of Apache Indians by the US Government resulted in many life losses. The final defeat of Apache Indians occurred when the troop of Geronimo, a famous Apache clan leader, was defeated by the US troops. Today they mostly live in the regions of Arizona, Oklahoma and New Mexico.
Conclusion
The core values of Indian tribes, like respecting each other, taking care of elders, respecting all living things and living in harmony with the nature, has empowered them, to weather the challenges faced by them, and put up a spirited fight for survival. The history of tribal survival, apart from sharing crucial historical facts about the American history, also imparts some valuable life lessons.
Bibliography
Basso, Keith H. Western Apache Witchcraft, Issues 15-20. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1969.
Benavides, Alonso de . Benavides' Memorial of 1630. New York: Academy of American Franciscan History, 1954.
Brian, DeLay. The War of a Thousand Deserts. New Haven: Yale U Press, 2008.
Census 2000 PHC-T-18, "American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes in the United States: 2000." Last modified 2000. Accessed February 24, 2014. http://www.census.gov/population/cen2000/phc-t18/tab001.pdf.
Deogaonkar, S. G, and Shailaja Shashishekhar Deogaonkar . Native Americans and Native Indians. New Delhi: Concept Publishing Company, 2002.
Lockwood, Frank C. The Apache Indians. New York: U of Nebraska Press, 1938.
Lund, Bill. The Apache Indians. Mankato: Capstone, 1998.
Palmer, Jessica Dawn. The Apache Peoples: A History of All Bands and Tribes Through the 1880s. Jeferson: McFarland, 2013.
Tiller, Veronica E. Velarde. Culture and Customs of the Apache Indians. Santa barabara: ABC-CLIO, 2010.
