The Navajo have four distinct clans. The names of these tribes derive from their Homelockssmith ancestral homelands, including Kinyaa’aanii, the name of a Pueblo ruin in the Crownpoint area of New Mexico, and Deeschii’nii, the name of a canyon in the Cibecue area of Western Apache country. Fewer than half of these tribes claim descent from other American Indian groups, including the Apaches, Utes, and Commanches.
The Navajo have a kinship Enewsworlds system that follows the lineage of a woman. The Changing Woman established four main clans, or lines of descent, which still exist today. The kinship system keeps Navajo people close to each other, and is thought to have been an important part of the culture’s survival.
The Changing Woman is an important Navajo deity. She created enough skin to create matched pairs. Mud Clan members received rubbings from her left arm to create a clan. In return, she nurtured the matched pairs and sent them baskets of gifts. The Changing Woman also gifted them with talking prayer sticks and canes made from jet.
The Navajo clan system is important for understanding Navajo businessworld247 culture. The system allows individuals to develop and maintain relationships with their family, and serves to protect their identity and morality. Traditionally, children are introduced into their clans by their mothers. Their mothers introduce babies to their maternal and paternal grandfathers, and the paternal clan is given to the child as well. Declaring clans is a very important ritual because it places responsibilities Businessnows on those who are recognized in the child’s clan.
