A comprehensive guide to the historic and contemporary indigenous cultures of the American Southwest, intended for college courses and the general reader.

This focuses on the history, costume, and material culture of the native peoples of North America. It was in the Southwest – modern Arizona, New Mexico, and parts of California and other neighboring states – that the first major clashes took place between 16th-century Spanish conquistadors and the indigenous peoples of North America. This history of contact, conflict, and coexistence with first the Spanish, then their Mexican settlers, and finally the Americans, gives a special flavor to the region. Despite nearly 500 years of white settlement and pressure, the traditional cultures of the peoples of the Southwest survive today more strongly than in any other region. The best-known clashes between the whites and the Indians of this region are the series of Apache wars, particularly between the early 1860s and the late 1880s. However, there were other important regional campaigns over the centuries – for example, Coronado's battle against the Zuni at Hawikuh in 1540, during his search for the legendary “Seven Cities of Cibola”; the Pueblo Revolt of 1680; and the Taos Revolt of 1847 – and warriors of all of these are described and illustrated in this book.

Introduction to the Native peoples of the American Southwest.

Describes the history, culture, and social structure of the Pueblo, Navajo, Apache, Ute, and Paiute Indian tribes.

A major work on the history and culture of Southwest Indians, The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Southwest tells a remarkable story of cultural continuity in the face of migration, displacement, violence, and loss. The Native peoples of the American Southwest are a unique group, for while the arrival of Europeans forced many Native Americans to leave their land behind, those who lived in the Southwest held their ground. Many still reside in their ancestral homes, and their oral histories, social practices, and material artifacts provide revelatory insight into the history of the region and the country as a whole. Trudy Griffin-Pierce incorporates her lifelong passion for the people of the Southwest, especially the Navajo, into an absorbing narrative of pre- and postcontact Native experiences. She finds that, even though the policies of the U.S. government were meant to promote assimilation, Native peoples formed their own response to outside pressures, choosing to adapt rather than submit to external change. Griffin-Pierce provides a chronology of instances that have shaped present-day conditions in the region, as well as an extensive glossary of significant people, places, and events. Setting a precedent for ethical scholarship, she describes different methods for researching the Southwest and cites sources for further archaeological and comparative study. Completing the volume is a selection of key primary documents, literary works, films, Internet resources, and contact information for each Native community, enabling a more thorough investigation into specific tribes and nations. The Columbia Guides to American Indian History and Culture also include: The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Great Plains Loretta Fowler The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Northeast Kathleen J. Bragdon The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Southeast Theda Perdue and Michael D. Green

Describes the history and culture of the Native peoples of the regions on either side of the border with Mexico