Nambé Pueblo, New Mexico

The Nambe Pueblo Indians are and speak Tewa, a language from the Kiowa - Tano language family. The name corresponds to the proper name, meaning Pueblo on a round mound. The reserve is located in the southwestern United States on the Rio Grande, about 30 miles north of Santa Fe in New Mexico.

History

The ancestors of Nambe came from the area of ​​Mesa Verde in southwestern Colorado. They moved first to Bandalier south of Los Alamos in New Mexico. After a long drought finally came around 1300 AD in its present residential area in the valley of the Rio Grande. In the early 17th century tried the Spanish conquistadors, the indigenous people impose their religion, which eventually led to the 1680 Pueblo Revolt and its bloody history, the Spaniards were expelled. But after twelve years they came back to subdue the Pueblo Indians again. Looking for a easier against the Spaniards to defending local situation of the Nambe Pueblo left their village in 1694 and moved to the top of the nearby Black Mesa. Together with allies from neighboring tribes they resisted successfully here three attacks from Diego de Vargas troops. After they had endured nine months in this Mesa Fortress, they finally gave up and returned to their village. However, the revolt was a success for the Pueblo Indians in the long run. For never again attempted the Spaniards, the Indians impose their religion and culture with such brutality, such as before the uprising.

Life and culture

It seems that there is little difference between the Nambe village and some Spanish-American rural community in the valley of the Rio Grande. Only the Kiva identifies the location immediately as Indian settlement. The extensive remains of ancient walls indicate that Nambe has shrunk considerably in size since its inception in the early 14th century.

Intermarriage with the local Spanish-American population are responsible for ensuring that the tribal authority was weakened and the Indian way of life was lost gradually. Despite a recent revival of ancient ceremonies, typical of a general trend in many Rio Grande Pueblos of the past few years, there is a danger that the Indian culture as in Pojoaque finally disappears entirely.

Because wage labor in nearby towns is the main source of income is less than half of all registered Indians Nambes in the village. The chances of a decent income on the reservation are very small, although a little money can be earned with agriculture and livestock.

Nambe Falls is a picturesque resort area, which was developed by the Pueblo and open to the public. In the late 20th century there were about 400, of which 190 permanent residents in the approximately 77 -acre reserve.