Hú
Encyclopedia
In Hopi
and Zuni dance rituals, Hú, also known as Huhuwa and Tithu, is the Kachina
of the hummingbird
.
The Hummingbird was, and is, an important bird in puebloan
cultures. Hopi legend speaks of the Hummingbird as intervening on behalf of the Hopi people to convince the gods to bring rain. Even today Hummingbird feathers are highly prized and used ceremonially and in dance costumes. All Hummingbird Kachinas are depicted with a green mask and green moccasins. Hú dolls are carved from the root of the cottonwood tree.
During traditional ceremonies, the Hú dancer bobs while dancing and calls like a bird. His songs are prayers for rain to wet freshly planted crops in the spring, and women reward him with baskets of flowers; then they scatter to find him more flowers so the rain won't be scared away like a hummingbird might be scared away by a crowd.
The Hú dancer appears in both winter and spring ceremonies as well as the summer night dances in a lesser role.
These dances are often performed in underground ceremonial rooms which are only opened for the Hú dance.
Hopi
The Hopi are a federally recognized tribe of indigenous Native American people, who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona. The Hopi area according to the 2000 census has a population of 6,946 people. Their Hopi language is one of the 30 of the Uto-Aztecan language...
and Zuni dance rituals, Hú, also known as Huhuwa and Tithu, is the Kachina
Kachina
A kachina is a spirit being in western Pueblo cosmology and religious practices. The western Pueblo, Native American cultures located in the southwestern United States, include Hopi, Zuni, Tewa Village , Acoma Pueblo, and Laguna Pueblo. The kachina cult has spread to more eastern Pueblos, e.g....
of the hummingbird
Hummingbird
Hummingbirds are birds that comprise the family Trochilidae. They are among the smallest of birds, most species measuring in the 7.5–13 cm range. Indeed, the smallest extant bird species is a hummingbird, the 5-cm Bee Hummingbird. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings...
.
The Hummingbird was, and is, an important bird in puebloan
Ancient Pueblo Peoples
Ancient Pueblo People or Ancestral Pueblo peoples were an ancient Native American culture centered on the present-day Four Corners area of the United States, comprising southern Utah, northern Arizona, northwest New Mexico, and southern Colorado...
cultures. Hopi legend speaks of the Hummingbird as intervening on behalf of the Hopi people to convince the gods to bring rain. Even today Hummingbird feathers are highly prized and used ceremonially and in dance costumes. All Hummingbird Kachinas are depicted with a green mask and green moccasins. Hú dolls are carved from the root of the cottonwood tree.
During traditional ceremonies, the Hú dancer bobs while dancing and calls like a bird. His songs are prayers for rain to wet freshly planted crops in the spring, and women reward him with baskets of flowers; then they scatter to find him more flowers so the rain won't be scared away like a hummingbird might be scared away by a crowd.
The Hú dancer appears in both winter and spring ceremonies as well as the summer night dances in a lesser role.
These dances are often performed in underground ceremonial rooms which are only opened for the Hú dance.