![4770R Zia Pueblo Locator Map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/4770R_Zia_Pueblo_Locator_Map.svg)
The Zia or Tsʾíiyʾamʾé are an indigenous nation centered at
Zia Pueblo (Tsi'ya), a
Native American reservation
An Indian reservation is an area of land land tenure, held and governed by a federally recognized Tribe (Native American), Native American tribal nation whose government is accountable to the United States Bureau of Indian Affairs and not ...
in the U.S. state of
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
. The Zia are known for their pottery and use of the sun symbol. They are one of the
Keres
In Greek mythology, the Keres (; Ancient Greek: Κῆρες), singular Ker (; Κήρ), were female death-spirits. They were the goddesses who personified violent death and who were drawn to bloody deaths on battlefields. Although they were pre ...
Pueblo peoples
The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Z ...
and speak the
Eastern Keres language.
History
Archaeologists believe that the Keresan-speaking residents of Zia are descendants of the Ancestral Puebloan people of the
Four Corners region, who migrated to the
Jemez River Valley sometime in the 13th century.
[pg 189 - ] The Spanish explorer
Antonio de Espejo
Antonio de Espejo (1540–1585) was a Spanish explorer who led an expedition into New Mexico and Arizona in 1582–83.pg 189 - The expedition created interest in establishing a Spanish colony among the Pueblo Indians of the Rio Grande valley ...
first encountered the Zia in 1583, when he noted that the largest pueblo was the one the natives called Tsiya, which the Spanish later renamed to Zia.
Spanish settlers and their religious orders slowly took control of the region and outlawed traditional Zia religious ceremonies. The first missionary was assigned to the Zia in 1598 by
Don Juan De Oñate, and by 1613, a church and convent had been built by tribal members.
Tensions between the Spanish and Zia continued to build until 1680, when a
regional uprising led by
Popé
Popé or Po'pay (; c. 1630 – c. 1692) was a Tewa religious leader from Ohkay Owingeh (renamed San Juan Pueblo by the Spanish during the colonial period), who led the Pueblo Revolt in 1680 against Spanish colonial rule. In the first successfu ...
, a
Tewa
The Tewa are a linguistic group of Pueblo Native Americans who speak the Tewa language and share the Pueblo culture. Their homelands are on or near the Rio Grande in New Mexico north of Santa Fe. They comprise the following communities:
* ...
religious leader, overthrew the Spanish regime. The uprising was successful and the Spanish were forced to flee south. The Pueblo Indians acquired horses from the Spanish, thus allowing the further spread of horses to the Plains tribes.
[pg 32 - ]
The Spanish did not return for another 9 years, laying siege to Zia Pueblo in 1689. Soldiers led by Governor
Domingo Jironza Petriz de Cruzate sacked the pueblo, killing 600 people and taking 70 Zia Indians captive.
[pg 33 - ] Three years later, the Spanish had crushed any Pueblo resistance and convinced the Zia people and their leader, Antonio Malacate, to return to their homes, but fighting and disease had taken their toll, with only about 120 people left living in Zia in 1892.
Living and culture
Farming techniques
Because of the
arid
A region is arid when it severely lacks available water, to the extent of hindering or preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life. Regions with arid climates tend to lack vegetation and are called xeric or desertic. Most ...
climate of the land where they live, the Zia had to adapt to the way of life in a way best suited for the desert. Since they were home dwellers instead of
nomads
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...
, farming was essential to their supply of food.
In New Mexico, rain was scarce during certain parts of the year, so new techniques of farming were developed (such as
dry farming
Dryland farming and dry farming encompass specific agricultural techniques for the non-irrigated cultivation of crops. Dryland farming is associated with drylands, areas characterized by a cool wet season (which charges the soil with virtuall ...
and
crop rotation
Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of different types of crops in the same area across a sequence of growing seasons. It reduces reliance on one set of nutrients, pest and weed pressure, and the probability of developing resistant ...
) The Zia would plant seeds in a fertile piece of land close to a river or stream. They would then dig paths to the fields from the stream, and thus the water flowed from the stream to water the crops. By strategically placing rocks in the paths, they controlled the flow of water to their crops.
In the more elevated regions, men planted seeds in a patch on a sunny slope. When it rained, the rainwater ran down the slope to water the crops. Another method was digging trenches, used as
cisterns, to collect the rain. Women would go to these trenches with clay pottery to collect water for watering the fields.
Crops
![Corncobs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/Corncobs.jpg)
Zia farming produced a wide array of crops, but the most important of these were
corn,
beans, and
squash
Squash may refer to:
Sports
* Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets
* Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling
* Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...
, nicknamed the "three sisters". These crops were planted in shared or common ground, to which everyone contributed. They were the staple of Zia and Pueblo diets. Corn was the most important of all. While some was eaten fresh, most was stored away in pots and cellars for the winter and droughts. When some of the corn dried, it was turned into flour and bread by the women. They sat outside at grinding stones, singing religious songs while rubbing stones against the corn, producing flour. They sang, because they considered the corn to be sacred.
Once the flour was done, it was mixed with water to make dough. The dough was widened to round, flat sheets and placed on hot rocks over a fire. When done baking, a
tortilla
A tortilla (, ) is a thin, circular unleavened flatbread originally made from maize hominy meal, and now also from wheat flour. The Aztecs and other Nahuatl speakers called tortillas ''tlaxcalli'' (). First made by the indigenous peoples of M ...
was produced; it was the most important staple available to them.
Other minor crops were grown in personal, individual gardens, such as peppers, onions, chiles, and tobacco. New Mexico is well known for its spicy chiles that originated among tribes like this.
Meat sources
The Zia were primarily vegetarians, but they ate meat when it was available. Small hunting parties of men and teenaged boys were sent to hunt for small game such as rabbits, gophers, and squirrels. They also hunted large game such as deer, antelope, and mountain lions. When the spring season came, special groups would go close to the
Great Plains to hunt for
bison.
Housing
The natives of the
southwestern United States, including the Zia, were known for their "pueblo homes" made of
adobe. These were built like an apartment complex with a huge box base, smaller box on top, and an even smaller one on top of that. This architecture created different floors for storing different items and for families. Until recently, no doors were located on the bottom floor, so the only way to access the building was by ladders made from logs. One ladder would reach from the ground to the patio (second floor) and another led through an opening through a roof and down onto the first floor.
Other ladders led to higher floors. At night, ladders would be taken inside for protection, so no outsider could come in without permission.
Adobe houses are made from the natural resources of the nearby desert. Adobe, the building-block, is made by mixing clay, sand, water and organic materials such as sticks, straw, and dung. The mixture is formed into blocks and left to dry. Meanwhile, a hole is dug where the new building is to be constructed and supporting poles are planted firmly in the ground to make a frame. When the blocks of adobe are dry and hard, they are laid around the building and bonded by wet clay, used as a cement. Every year, a new coat of adobe mixture/clay is added to the walls for maintenance.
Religious customs
Kachinas
The Zia, like the other Pueblos, believe in different spirits called ''
kachina
A kachina (; also katchina, katcina, or katsina; Hopi: ''katsina'' , plural ''katsinim'' ) is a spirit being in the religious beliefs of the Pueblo peoples, Native American cultures located in the south-western part of the United States. In th ...
s''. These are thought to be ancestral spirits that live among their people. The spirits got offended when people did not pay them attention, so they fled to live in the sky. They were said to come occasionally and bring rain and clouds. Over 300 ''kachinas'' are present in the worship, and the Zia held religious festivals and ceremonies in which they ask them to bring rain and make their crops grow. They used drums and rattles in the dances during the ceremonies. Religious men dressed as the ''kachinas'' come down from the mountains and dance among the people during the festival. After three days, they go back up.
Art
Pottery
Pottery is a widely recognized art form and an important part of daily life in Zia Pueblo. Due to the fine quality of the craftsmanship and the poor agricultural land where the pueblo is located, pottery has been historically important for trade. At the end of the 19th century, an estimated 25 or fewer women were making the entirety of the pottery for the village.
Zia pottery is unique in that it is
tempered with basalt, a hard volcanic rock.
Pots are made by mixing clay and ground basalt with water and then coiling ropes of this mixture into specific shapes.
Once they dry out, the pots are painted with nature and religious symbols. They then sit for about a week before they are fired in the kiln, in which cattle dung is usually used for fuel. Common motifs include geometric designs, plants, and animals, and are often on a white or red background.
Most pottery is made by women.
One of the most well-known Zia potters is
Elizabeth Toya Medina (originally of
Jemez).
Sun symbol
![Flag of New Mexico](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Flag_of_New_Mexico.svg)
The Zia regard the Sun as sacred. Their
solar symbol
A solar symbol is a symbol representing the Sun.
Common solar symbols include circles (with or without rays), crosses, and spirals.
In religious iconography, personifications of the Sun or solar attributes are often indicated by means of a hal ...
, a red circle with groups of rays pointing in four directions, is painted on ceremonial vases, drawn on the ground around campfires, and used to introduce newborns to the Sun. Four is the sacred number of the Zia and can be found repeated in the four points radiating from the circle. The number four is embodied in:
* the four points of the compass (north, south, east, and west)
* the four seasons of the year (spring, summer, autumn, and winter)
* the four periods of each day (morning, noon, evening, and night)
* the four seasons of life (childhood, youth, middle years, and old age)
* the four sacred obligations one must develop (a strong body, a clear mind, a pure spirit, and a devotion to the welfare of others), according to Zia belief
The symbol is representative of the much broader
Puebloan
The Puebloans or Pueblo peoples, are Native Americans in the Southwestern United States who share common agricultural, material, and religious practices. Currently 100 pueblos are actively inhabited, among which Taos, San Ildefonso, Acoma, Zu ...
, affiliated
Hispano communities, and
New Mexican culture, for example it is featured on the
flag of New Mexico
The official flag of New Mexico consists of a Gules, red sun symbol of the Zia people (New Mexico), Zia people on a field of Or (heraldry), gold (yellow). It was officially adopted in 1925 to highlight the state's Native Americans in the United St ...
, in the design of the
New Mexico State Capitol
The New Mexico State Capitol, located in Santa Fe at 490 Old Santa Fe Trail, is the seat of government of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the only round state capitol in the United States and is known informally as "the Roundhouse".
Desig ...
, on New Mexico's
State Quarter entry, numerous city flags including
Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
and
Roswell, and the
state highway marker. The Zia tribe does not hold a trademark to the symbol because, under U.S. federal law, it has ubiquitous regional representation. The state government of New Mexico guides people to educational resources on the appropriate use of the sun symbol at Zia Pueblo and at the
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, including information on receiving permission for commercial use and asking for the symbol be used respectfully in civil use.
The symbol was featured on the
flag of Madison, Wisconsin
The flag of Madison, Wisconsin, includes a sky blue background with a diagonal white stripe that goes from the bottom left corner to the top right which symbolizes Lake Mendota, Lake Monona and the isthmus between them. At the center of the flag ...
from 1962 through 2018, when concerns about cultural appropriation of the Zia, Puebloan, and New Mexican symbol led the city to remove it.
A resolution was passed in 2014, by the National Congress of American Indians to recognize the Zia pueblo’s right to the symbol as its.
Notable Zia people
*
Marcelina Herrera, painter
*
Elizabeth Toya Medina, potter (originally of
Jemez)
See also
*
Mission Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Zia
*
Pueblo Revolt
The Pueblo Revolt of 1680, also known as Popé's Rebellion or Popay's Rebellion, was an uprising of most of the indigenous Pueblo people against the Spanish colonizers in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, larger than present-day New Mex ...
*
Zia Pueblo, New Mexico
Zia Pueblo ( Eastern Keres: Tsi'ya, Ts'iiy'a , es, Pueblo de Zía) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 646 at the 2000 census; Male: 310 Female: 336 The pueblo after which the CDP ...
References
External links
Pueblo of ZiaSynth pop band, ZIA, named after the Zia sun symbol
{{authority control
Colonial Mexico
Native American tribes in New Mexico
Puebloan peoples
New Mexico Missions