Pueblo
Encyclopedia
Pueblo is a term used to describe modern (and ancient) communities of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States of America. The first Spanish explorers of the Southwest used this term to describe the communities housed in apartment-like structures built of stone, adobe
mud, and other local material. These structures were usually multi-storeyed buildings surrounding an open plaza. They were occupied by hundreds to thousands of Pueblo people.
(people), meaning "town".
Of the federally recognized Native American communities in the Southwest, those designated by the King of Spain as Pueblo at the time Spain ceded territory
to the United States, after the American Revolutionary War, are legally recognized as Pueblo by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
. Some of the Pueblo also came into under jurisdiction of the United States (in its view) by its treaty with Mexico
, which had briefly gained rule over territory in the Southwest ceded by Spain after Mexican independence. There are 21 federally recognized Pueblos that are home to Pueblo people
. Their official federal names are as follows:
Pre-Columbian
towns and villages in the Southwest, such as Acoma
, were located in defensive positions, for example, on high steep mesa
s. Anthropologists and official documents often refer to ancient residents of the area as pueblo cultures. For example, the National Park Service
states, "The Late Puebloan cultures built the large, integrated villages found by the Spaniards when they began to move into the area."
The people of some pueblos, such as Taos Pueblo
, still inhabit centuries-old adobe pueblo buildings.
Contemporary residents often maintain other homes outside the historic pueblos. Adobe and light construction methods resembling adobe now dominate architecture at the many pueblos of the area, in nearby towns or cities, and in much of the American Southwest
.
In addition to contemporary pueblos, numerous ruins of archeological interest are located throughout the Southwest. Some are of relatively recent origin. Others are of prehistoric origin, such as the cliff dwellings and other habitations of the Ancient Pueblo Peoples
or Anasazi, who emerged as a people about 12th century BCE and began to construct their pueblos about AD 750-900.
Adobe
Adobe is a natural building material made from sand, clay, water, and some kind of fibrous or organic material , which the builders shape into bricks using frames and dry in the sun. Adobe buildings are similar to cob and mudbrick buildings. Adobe structures are extremely durable, and account for...
mud, and other local material. These structures were usually multi-storeyed buildings surrounding an open plaza. They were occupied by hundreds to thousands of Pueblo people.
Etymology and usage
The Castilian word pueblo, evolved from the Latin word populusPeople
People is a plurality of human beings or other beings possessing enough qualities constituting personhood. It has two usages:* as the plural of person or a group of people People is a plurality of human beings or other beings possessing enough qualities constituting personhood. It has two usages:*...
(people), meaning "town".
Of the federally recognized Native American communities in the Southwest, those designated by the King of Spain as Pueblo at the time Spain ceded territory
Spanish Cession
The Spanish Cession includes land that makes up all of present-day Florida, and parts of present-day Louisiana, Mississippi, Colorado, and Alabama. It was given to the United States in the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819, after Andrew Jackson invaded Spanish forts in Spanish Florida without approval from...
to the United States, after the American Revolutionary War, are legally recognized as Pueblo by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
. Some of the Pueblo also came into under jurisdiction of the United States (in its view) by its treaty with Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, which had briefly gained rule over territory in the Southwest ceded by Spain after Mexican independence. There are 21 federally recognized Pueblos that are home to Pueblo people
Pueblo people
The Pueblo people are a Native American people in the Southwestern United States. Their traditional economy is based on agriculture and trade. When first encountered by the Spanish in the 16th century, they were living in villages that the Spanish called pueblos, meaning "towns". Of the 21...
. Their official federal names are as follows:
|
Picuris Pueblo, New Mexico Picuris Pueblo is a census-designated place in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 86 at the 2000 census. The Pueblo people are from the Tiwa ethnic group of Native Americans. Picurís Pueblo is a member of the Eight Northern Pueblos.Picuris village has occupied its present... , New Mexico Pojoaque, New Mexico Pojoaque is a census-designated place in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Santa Fe, New Mexico Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,261 at the 2000 census. Pojoaque and Pojoaque Pueblo are neighboring communities... , New Mexico San Felipe Pueblo, New Mexico San Felipe Pueblo is a census-designated place in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States and is located 10 miles north of Bernalillo. As of the 2000 census, the CDP population was 2,080. It is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area... , New Mexico San Ildefonso Pueblo, New Mexico San Ildefonso Pueblo is a census-designated place in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Santa Fe, New Mexico Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 458 at the 2000 census... , New Mexico Sandia Pueblo Sandia Pueblo is a tribe of Native American Pueblo people inhabiting a 101.114 km² reservation of the same name in the eastern Rio Grande Valley of central New Mexico, located three miles south of Bernalillo off Highway 85 in southern Sandoval County and northern Bernalillo County, at... , New Mexico Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico Santa Ana Pueblo is a census-designated place in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 479. It is part of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area... , New Mexico |
Santa Clara Pueblo, New Mexico Santa Clara Pueblo is a census-designated place in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 980 at the 2000 census. Santa Clara Pueblo was established about 1550.... , New Mexico Santo Domingo Pueblo, New Mexico Santo Domingo Pueblo, also known as Kewa Pueblo , is an Indian pueblo and a census-designated place in Sandoval County, New Mexico, in the United States. The pueblo is located approximately southwest of Santa Fe west of Interstate 25. As of the 2000 census, the CDP population was 2,550... , New Mexico Taos Pueblo Taos Pueblo is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos speaking Native American tribe of Pueblo people. It is approximately 1000 years old and lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico, USA... , New Mexico Tesuque, New Mexico Tesuque is a census-designated place in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Santa Fe, New Mexico, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 909 at the 2000 census... , New Mexico Zia Pueblo, New Mexico Zia Pueblo is a census-designated place 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 is named is included within the CDP; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Zia Pueblo is part of... , New Mexico Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo Ysleta del Sur Pueblo is a Puebloan Native American tribal entity in the Ysleta section of El Paso, Texas, comprising a formerly Southern Tiwa-speaking people who were displaced from New Mexico in 1680 and 1681 during the Pueblo Revolt against the Spaniards.-Tigua:In Spanish the people and... of Texas |
Historical places
Pre-Columbian
Pre-Columbian
The pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
towns and villages in the Southwest, such as Acoma
Acoma Pueblo
Acoma Pueblo is a Native American pueblo approximately 60 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico in the United States. Three reservations make up Acoma Pueblo: Sky City , Acomita, and McCartys. The Acoma Pueblo tribe is a federally recognized tribal entity...
, were located in defensive positions, for example, on high steep mesa
Mesa
A mesa or table mountain is an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs. It takes its name from its characteristic table-top shape....
s. Anthropologists and official documents often refer to ancient residents of the area as pueblo cultures. For example, the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
states, "The Late Puebloan cultures built the large, integrated villages found by the Spaniards when they began to move into the area."
The people of some pueblos, such as Taos Pueblo
Taos Pueblo
Taos Pueblo is an ancient pueblo belonging to a Taos speaking Native American tribe of Pueblo people. It is approximately 1000 years old and lies about north of the modern city of Taos, New Mexico, USA...
, still inhabit centuries-old adobe pueblo buildings.
Contemporary residents often maintain other homes outside the historic pueblos. Adobe and light construction methods resembling adobe now dominate architecture at the many pueblos of the area, in nearby towns or cities, and in much of the American Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
.
In addition to contemporary pueblos, numerous ruins of archeological interest are located throughout the Southwest. Some are of relatively recent origin. Others are of prehistoric origin, such as the cliff dwellings and other habitations of the Ancient Pueblo Peoples
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...
or Anasazi, who emerged as a people about 12th century BCE and began to construct their pueblos about AD 750-900.
See also
- Ancient Pueblo PeoplesAncient Pueblo PeoplesAncient 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...
- Pueblo RevoltPueblo RevoltThe Pueblo Revolt of 1680, or Popé's Rebellion, was an uprising of several pueblos of the Pueblo people against Spanish colonization of the Americas in the province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México.-Background:...
- Puebloan buildings and structures
External links
- The SMU-in-Taos Research Publications digital collection contains nine anthropological and archaeological monographs and edited volumes representing the past several decades of research, primarily on Pueblo Indian ruins and excavations, at the SMU-in-Taos (Fort Burgwin) campus near Taos, New Mexico, including Papers on Taos archaeology, Taos archeology, Pueblo through time: eight centuries of change in a northern Rio Grande pueblo and Excavations at Pot Creek Pueblo.