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Are The Zuni And Pueblo The Same?
The Zuni is the largest of the Pueblo people. The Pueblo is a group of people with many different tribes. Zuni shares a similar culture and religion to the other Pueblo people.
What Are The Zuni People Known For?
Many things would include basket weaving and their culture. They are also known for their waffle gardens and excellent farming skills.
Do The Zuni And Navajo Get Along?
The Navajo and the Pueblos have never been great friends, and that continues to this day. The Zuni are not an exception to this dislike.
How Many Zuni Still Live Today?
It is estimated that there are around 10,000 Zuni people still living in the United States, with 90% living on the reservation.
#1. The Zuni Were Known For Their Farming
The Zuni tribe hunted like other Native Americans, and they also gathered from the land, as was the life for many other Native American Tribes.
However, they stood out in their farming. When the Americans first made contact with the Zuni, they were amazed at their industry and ability.
They use waffle gardens and build these gardens near a river. These gardens were unique and were used by the Zuni until after World War 2, when surviving off the land was not as necessary due to mass farming within the United States.
#2. The Zuni Tribe Came In Contact With The Spanish First
In the 16th century, the Zuni Tribe was unaware of what the Spanish Conquistadors were accomplishing in Mexico.
The Spanish were establishing an empire that would last for a couple of hundred years and, in doing so, were using Christianity to justify their behavior towards the natives rather than their quest for gold and power.
The Zuni tribe first made contact with the Spanish in 1539 when a Moorish slave, Estavanico, led an advance party for the Franciscan friar, Fray Marcos de Niza'.
This expedition had the mission of telling the native peoples of the land that they were subjected to the Spanish throne and needed to convert to Christianity.
The Zunis did not like that and slaughtered Estavanico as a spy.
#3. The Zuni Would Meet The Conquistadors
During his search for the fabled cities of gold, Francisco Coronado came into contact with 600 Zuni warriors.
The Zuni tribe was no match for the Spanish at this point, and Coronado inflicted heavy casualties on the tribe. there were missionaries who stayed behind with the Zuni for two years.
Many decades later, the Spanish Conquistador Juan de Onate met the Zuni looking for copper mines, which he did not find.
The Spanish would build many missions around the area where the Zuni lived.
#4. The Zuni Had A Good Relationship With The United States
Perhaps good is a relative term, but the relationship that the United States had with the Zuni Tribe was much better than other tribes within the region.
As stated earlier, they were impressed with their agriculture and how they maintained their land. They signed a treaty with the tribe in 1848.
In 1877, the tribe agreed to the reservation assigned to them, and in 1883, the reservation was expanded by executive order.
#5. The Zuni Are The Largest Of The Pueblo People
The Zuni Tribe, a Southwest Indian Tribe, has been living within the same region for at least 2,000 years. Their language has been preserved and is considered an isolate language, meaning that there are no other languages like it.
These two things have contributed to their population being sustained despite the disease that they had to endure from the Europeans who were unknowing carriers.
NativePartnership.org explains this about them being the largest Pueblo Tribe:
The Zuni Pueblo is the largest and most populous pueblo in New Mexico, with 724 square miles and over 9,000 people. The Zuni and their ancestors have been at this site for over 2,000 years. The soil here is rich and there is plenty of water for irrigation.