I have never found so rich a culture than that of ours, the Navajo Native American culture. I take pride in writing about our own race because it is an opportunity for us to let other people know our history, our beliefs, our culture, our religion, and our government. There are other Native Americans in the State of Arizona and in some other states, but our own tribe is what interests me the most, for obvious reasons.
Our History
Decades back, our ascendants originally occupied considerable segments of the State of Colorado. However, due to progress and constant battles with the new settlers and invaders, we were driven out of the land until later on our community finally founded a nation in the places where we now breathe.
The tracts of land on which our community presently straddles are witnesses to so many struggles, upheavals, wars, and political turmoil. Before this part of the national patrimony was finally awarded to us and recognized by the US Government, our walk for identity and autonomy seemed endless. We were nearly comparable to nomads because in every place we settled we were always driven out. Constant fights against other settlers for supremacy over ownership of the lands made the environment volatile and perilous; and so, to avoid further bloodshed, we perennially transferred from one place to another in order to escape from being hit in the middle of the wars. Our settlement then was never permanent.
Countless bitter experiences befell upon our grandfathers and one of the infamous events was when our brothers and grandparents were imprisoned sometime in 1864 and by force were vanished from their settlement in favor of foreigners who became interested in our land. After the release from detention, our Long Walk, or Hweeldi Baa Hane (discovernavajo.com), which was a very significant chapter in our history, continued. Nonetheless, our forefathers’ fight for self-determination, independence and recognition finally earned our dignity. If there is one entity to which we, the Navajos, owe our gratitude, it is the US Government because we were given, at last, a fair share of the vast reservation where we are now permanently settled without fear of being harassed and ejected. This is now the place which we can truly call our home, our Diné Bikeyah, or Navajoland (navajo-nsn.gov).
Our settlement comprises of more or less 27,000 square miles located in the States of Arizona, some in Utah, and in New Mexico. It is a home to natural parks and grandiose environmental beauty, which used to be just desolate places. Happily settled in our present abodes, we have evolved into a new people for being able to combine our traditional skills and culture with the modern day life. One of the best things in our Diné Bikeyah is the discovery of rich oil deposit, which attracted developers, and drillers to lobby for the lease and consortium of certain portions of our land.
Our Government
Owing to the growing demands from concessioners to develop our oil-rich Navajoland, and after the discovery that wealth indeed abounded in our place, we have established in the 1920’s a unique form of systematic, indigenous government which checks, balances, and regulates the exploration activities. It was during this period that our first Navajo Tribal Council, which was headed by a Chairman, came into its existence. Nonetheless, it was only in 1938 that we started to have a regular election.
As the years passed, our form of government had advanced from just a simple Tribal Council into a more sophisticated three-branch system, which consisted of the executive branch, the judiciary, and the Navajo Nation Council which acts as the legislative, or the law-making body. The executive branch is headed by the President and the Vice President (discovernavajo.com), who are both elected by us for a term of four years. The President appoints the Chief Justice, who heads the judiciary. His appointment is later confirmed by the Council, which is composed of twenty-four delegates. In our form of government, the President is the overall executive head of the whole Navajo Nation, while the Vice President is second in command. Our judiciary, which is led by the Chief Justice, settles disputes among our people. Meanwhile, our Nation Council is tasked to pass laws and policies for the peace, security, and welfare of our own people.
Our Culture
Rituals and ceremonies are the indispensable part of our daily Navajo life. There is a ritual for birth as well as a ritual for death; a ceremony for planting as well as for harvesting. In all these vibrant celebrations, we never set aside songs and prayers since our people are highly spiritual. In the mere treatment of the sick members of our tribe, we dedicate nine days of rituals whereby we call upon deities to intercede for us. However, among all these events, we have a negative attitude towards death. For us, it is considered as the work of the evil spirit. That is why we have a very poor regard for death. So, when someone dies, we leave the remains in a desolate place after doing some rituals of some prayers and songs.
Our Beliefs
Every race has belief in anything or in any god. This is exactly true in the case of our own people, the Navajos. Belief in many deities is deeply imbued within our veins. We believe in many supernatural beings, be they good or evil. Our belief goes to the extent of attributing our human characteristics to some animals, trees, non-living beings, or even to abstract ideas and natural phenomena, like fire and wind. This anthropomorphic belief influenced so much our earthly activities. These were evident in giving names to a tribe member. Some of our names were derived from the names of nature or animals, like Smiling Wind. Oftentimes, we called upon Yei through dancing around the bonfire in order to grace our celebration. Communal ceremonies are most often dedicated to prayer for harmony and peace.
Our Patriotism
The word Navajo is almost synonymous with patriotism. One cannot think of our own people without remembering the Navajo Code Talkers. During the World War II, from 1942 to 1945, about 400 of our grandfathers joined the US Armed Forces, particularly the Marines Corps. This tested our loyalty and patriotism, and it was proven also how unique was our Navajo language. It started with a small size of six of our grandparents who were selected to codify our Navajo language in order to use it as the medium of communication in sending messages from one post to another and to the battlefront of the US Military Forces. The Navajo language was so complicated that it was entirely difficult to crack or understand. From the original six Navajos, the number grew larger, since the scheme became very effective and the need for Code Talkers arose. However, only about less than thirty non-Navajos knew the Code. It had been battle-tested and proved to be very tactical and efficient. So genius were our grandparents, so-called Navajo Code Talkers, that they were able to crack the coded messages in only 20 seconds, which was much better than the usual decoding process that took hours just to break them. Were it not for the intelligent and innovative idea of employing the Navajos in the US Armed Forces and for using our own very unique language as part of the war tactics, perhaps the battle on Iwo Jima could not have been to the advantage of American Forces. And maybe, many lives could have been wasted. The most rewarding part of this code was the news that the Japanese enemy was never able to decode or decipher any message at all.
Indeed, I am really very proud to say that the Navajo Code Talkers were instrumental in winning the battles, especially on Iwo Jima. This is one of the greatest contributions our tribe ever had. Finally, on September 17, 1992, the US Government officially gave honors to our grandparents, who were members of the Navajo Code Talkers, for their courage and patriotism which they had shown during World War II.
Works Cited
"History." History. Web. 20 Mar. 2016. <http://www.navajo-nsn.gov/history.htm>.
"Navajo Culture." Navajo Culture. Web. 20 Mar. 2016. <http://navajopeople.org/navajo-culture.htm>.
"Navajo History." Navajo History. Web. 20 Mar. 2016. <http://www.discovernavajo.com/navajo-culture-and-history.aspx>.
"Navajo - Religion and Expressive Culture." Religion and Expressive Culture. Web. 20 Mar. 2016. <http://www.everyculture.com/North-America/Navajo-Religion-and-Expressive-Culture.html>.
