Hopi Tribe Essay

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The Hopi American Indian tribe occupy northeastern Arizona, which is, and was their original location. Presently, the Hopi reservation is surrounded completely by the Navajo reservation. Hopi societies consist of unnamed phratries which are further divided into individual, named clans, and subdivided into households. Additionally, Hopi religion consists of cosmology and mythology. The Hopi people also rely on supernatural forces called kachinas who are essential for the manipulation and control of the elements (“Culture summary”, p. 1-5). This paper will discuss Hopi social organization, from the largest to the smallest unit, and their religious ideology.
In Hopi social organization, exogamous phratries are the largest social unit. Within the phratry are numerous matrilineal clans, and kinship is shared amongst all members of the phratry. Each clan has a distinct position within the phratry as well as a set of expected behaviors and responsibilities that are dictated by the prime clan (Connelly, p. 542-543). Furthermore, each Hopi clan share three inherent characteristics that make them synonymous with each other. First, each clan is believed to be descended from a single female ancestor who founded the clan. For this reason, every member of the clan is considered kin, and proper kinship terminology is used for all members. Secondly, each clan has its own distinctive name and clan house where all the clan’s individual sacred objects are stored. Finally, all principal properties, which includes homes and farms, are held in the name of the clan (Bradfield, p. 8).
The smallest unit of social organization within the Hopi society are households. Typically a household consists of a mother and father, many adult married...

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...epresents. Kachina dolls represent this individualization and are given to young girls as gifts. The Kachina doll is given to the child by her father, in which he solicits another member of the tribe to dress up and represent the same Kachina as the doll (“Fathers, daughters, and kachina dolls”, p. 7). The dolls are then taken home and used as aids to teach the girls the names and distinct characteristics of all of the Kachinas (Colton, p. 5).
The Hopi society is a proud American Indian tribe that has been around for hundreds of years. Over the years Hopi villages have decreased in size, Christianity has emerged, sustenance practices have changed, and commercial activities have become another source of income. However, Hopi tribe members today still participate in kachina ceremonies as well as operate the same social organizations as they did aboriginally.

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