KACHINAS OF THE HOPI

Kachinas play an important role in the religion of most of the Pueblo Indian tribes of Arizona and New Mexico but are most conspicuous among the Hopi, whose present-day villages, with the exception of Moencopi about 40 miles away, are situated on the top or close to the base of three barren mesas  overlooking the Painted Desert in northeastern Arizona. The Hopi, an abbreviation of Hopituh Shinumu meaning "the peaceful people," are the westernmost of the Pueblo groups which include the Zuni, Laguna, Acoma, Jemez, and a number of pueblos in the Rio Grande valley. The term "Pueblo," Spanish for "village," was applied to these Indians by the early Spanish explorers in the Southwest because the closely-packed, many-roomed, flat-roofed dwellings built around plazas with connecting passageways reminded them of their villages in Spain. Although the different Puebloan groups share many cultural characteristics and similarities in the architecture of their dwellings, they belong to different language groups, which is indicative of origin from different ancestral stocks. The Hopis speak a language belonging to the Uto-Aztecan group. The Zuni language, Zunian, belongs to a distinct family with no known relative. The languages of the remaining pueblos of New Mexico include Tewa, Towa, and Tiwa of the Kiowa-Tanoan linguistic family, and Keres of the Keresan group. The Hopi homeland (Hopitutskwa) was called "Tusayan" and its inhabitants the "Moqui" by the early Spanish explorers and 19th century anthropologists. The name was abhorred by the Hopis, perhaps because it bore too close a resemblance to the Hopi words for death (mookiwa) or to die (mooki).  Although the origin of the word is obscure, it may have been the Spanish version of Mukwi, the Zuni name for the Hopis. The Zuni were the first pueblo Indians to come in contact with  the Spanish when in 1540 the expedition of Francisco Vásquez de Coronado reached a now-extinct Zuni village. It was there that Coronado learned of the existence of the Hopis farther to the west  and sent a party led by Pedro de Tovar and accompanied by Zuni guides to the Hopi mesas.  It was not until 1924 that the name of the agency of the Bureau of Indian Affairs that administered to the Hopi was changed from Moqui to Hopi.

Kachinas are supernatural beings that represent the spirits of revered ancestors, clan ancients, different kinds of plants and animals, celestial bodies, weather phenomena, landscape features, and other elements of nature. They serve as intermediaries between the Hopis and their gods, and they have been regarded as being somewhat comparable to the Catholic saints. A major function of the kachinas is to insure an adequate amount of moisture for the growth of crops - a critical factor in the arid Hopi homeland. The kachinas also provide many other services that aid the Hopis to live harmoniously among themselves and with their harsh environment. The kachina cult originated among the Anasazi ancestors of the Hopi and other Pueblo Indians. Anasazi is a Navajo word meaning "ancient enemies" or "enemy ancestors." The Hopi name for their ancestors is hisat yesqam (ancient people). Archaeological evidence in the form of kachina-like images in murals, rock carvings (petroglyphs), and potsherds date the existence of the kachina cult back to the early 1300s. Factors that led to the development of the cult are believed to have been increasing aggregations of populations and communal living with the associated need for more food production. Then, as at present, the kachina cult fostered the cooperation and integration of efforts of the members of the community for the benefit of all.

Although authorities agree that the origin and development of the kachina cult among the Anasazi was largely indigenous, there is evidence, such as similarities between certain Aztec gods and Hopi deities and kachinas, of a Mesoamerican influence. Some experts believe that the cult arose in the Lower Colorado River region and spread from there to the Rio Grande area, while others hold the opposite view that the Rio Grande Valley was the center of origin and spread. According to Hopi legend, kachinas came with the Hopis when they emerged from the underworld to the present world and accompanied them on their migrations, assisting them in bringing rain and in many other ways with their powerful ceremonies. In one version the kachinas were killed in an enemy attack and their spirits returned to the underworld, leaving behind their masks and other paraphernalia which the Hopis used to imitate their ceremonies. In another version the kachinas returned to the underworld because the Hopis lost their respect and reverence for them, but before departing taught some of the faithful Hopi men to make masks and costumes. When the people realized their mistake, they turned to the human substitute-kachinas to revive the ceremonies, which have continued to the present day.

As is the case of many Hopi words translated into English, the name for kachinas has been spelled in different ways. Although katsina (plural katsinam) is considered to be the more correct  form, "kachina" is the more familiar form. One author has used "katsina" for the actual spirit and human impersonator and "kachina" for the dolls carved to represent the spirit (see below). The Hopi Dictionary (Hopìikwa Lavàytutuveni) gives "katsina (plural, katsinam)" and "kachina (kachinas)," respectively, as the Hopi and English words for this "spirit being." The origin of the word katsina is obscure. It has been noted that the word is not compatible with the Hopi language and thus must have been derived from some other linguistic source. Kachinas are known by different names among other Pueblo peoples.

From December to July, the kachinas visit the Hopi villages from their home in the San Francisco Peaks visible from the Hopi mesas some 65 miles southwest near the city of Flagstaff. During this period the kachinas are impersonated by men wearing masks who perform secret rituals in an underground chamber (kiva) entered by a ladder from the roof. In early spring Night Dances are held in the kivas but later in the season the kachinas appear in daytime public dances in a village plaza (kisonvi)with the audience sitting or standing around the sides of the plaza or on rooftops overlooking the scene. The dances involve many kachinas of the same or mixed types (soyohimkatsinam) who dance in a line, sometimes accompanied by side dancers, and sing songs specific to the particular ceremony. One informant has described the experience of participating in a kachina dance with the eyes of the audience on you as exhilarating and a "natural high." The dances are directed by Kachina Fathers, who call out instructions and periodically sprinkle the kachinas with cornmeal, sometimes also making a cornmeal pathway on the ground for the dancers to follow. The singing is accompanied by hand-held rattles, bells or turtle shell rattles attached to the legs below the knees, and often by drums. Kachina "women," actually impersonated by men, also take part in dances and sometimes accompany the songs by rhythmically scraping a sheep shoulderbone on a notched stick with one end resting on half of a dried, hollow gourd placed upside down on the ground as a resonater. The resulting sound resembles distant thunder. In between dance sets the kachinas usually distribute gifts of food and other items to members of the audience. Girls and women receive carved kachina dolls (see below) and boys are presented with attractively painted miniature bows and arrows. Distribution of gifts is a particularly conspicuous feature of the final dance of the kachina season - the Niman or Home Dance (Nímaniw), which has been compared to the Christian Christmas celebration. The Hopis consider the kachina ceremonies to benefit all mankind and not just themselves. Dances in one village are always well attended by residents of other Hopi villages, as well as by members of other tribes, particularly the Navajo whose huge reservation surrounds the Hopi reservation. The policy toward white visitors has varied over the years. In the early days the dances were generally open to white visitors, and both kachina and non-kachina dances, particularly the Snake Dance among the latter, attracted many whites (pahaana ) from near and far. However, in more recent years dances in some or all villages have been periodically closed to white people because of their failure to dress properly, for example, women wearing shorts, or their rude or other inappropriate behavior.

It is believed that when a man dons a kachina mask, which he refers to as his "friend" (kwaatsi),  he loses his own identity and in effect becomes the kachina spirit he is representing. This imposes a heavy responsibility on participants in kachina ceremonies to perform the rituals correctly in every detail and with a pure heart. Among other taboos, they are forbidden to eat certain foods and must abstain from sexual relations. Failure of a kachina ritual to bring about the desired result is usually blamed on participants who did not have the proper mental attitude or did not follow the prescribed code of behavior. Likewise, spectators at dances are expected to behave with the dignity and respect demanded by the serious religious purpose of the ritual. Photography, note-taking, sketching, or recording are strictly forbidden.

More than 400 different kinds of kachinas are known, but an exact count is probably impossible. The great diversity of Hopi kachinas is partly explained by the fact that different clans whose migrations following their emergence into the fourth world terminated in the present Hopi heartland brought with them different rituals and kachinas.  Some of the kachinas appearing at present are very ancient, sometimes singing songs in an unknown language, but others that are known from early times no longer appear, while new ones have been added over the years. A number of Hopi kachinas have been adopted from other Pueblo tribes, chiefly the Zuni who live closest to the Hopis in western New Mexico. Further complicating creating a complete catalog of kachinas is the fact that some appear only in certain villages, while in other cases the same kachina differs greatly in appearance in different villages. In the case of kachina women, a distinction is made between an unmarried maiden (maana, plural mamant) who wears her hair in "butterfly" coils and a married woman (wùuti, plural momoyan) with straight hair, paralleling the traditional practice among the Hopis themselves. Also, as in humans, kachinas may have relatives, including mothers, brothers, uncles, and aunts. The names of many kachinas pertain to the ancestor, plant or animal, Indian tribe, weather element, or other entity whose spirit they represent. Some are named for the call they utter, such as the one called Hututu, or for an article of apparel, for example, the Red Kilt Runner (Palavitkuntaqa). Still others are named for some distinctive behavioral trait, such as the Mocking Kachina (Kwikwilyaka) who immediately repeats back anything said to him, or the Swaying Man (Ngayaytaqa) which relates to his style of dancing. As Hopi is not a written language, the spelling of the native names of kachinas given by different authors may vary so greatly that it is often hard to recognize names for the same kachina. To make matters worse, many kachinas not only have Hopi names but also names in the Tewa language spoken by the residents of the village of Hano who immigrated to the Hopi mesas from the Rio Grande region many years ago.

The kind of kachina can best be told by the features of the mask or "face." Every element of the mask has a symbolic meaning. Different kinds of kachinas also are characterized by the pattern of their body paint, type of apparel, objects carried in their hands, distinctive calls, or certain postures or movements they make. Many kachinas have a ruff, or collar, of evergreen twigs, fur, feathers, cornhusks, or rags that conceals the junction of the mask with the body. The Sun Kachina (Taawakatsina) has eagle feathers radiating from the margin of the mask which simulate the sun's rays. The kilt, sash, belt, bandolier, and fox  pelt suspended from the belt at the back are features common to many kinds of kachinas.

Various roles in kachina ceremonies are played by different kinds of kachinas. Chief (Mongwi) Kachinas have high status and appear only in certain important ceremonies and not in public dances. Whipper (Hu) Kachinas are involved in initiation ceremonies in which initiates and sometimes others present are lashed with yucca whips for purification. Runner Kachinas (Wawarkatsinam) challenge men and boys of the village in foot races and punish those who lose in various ways depending upon the particular kind of runner involved. The names of some of these kachinas, such as He Cuts Your Hair (Hömsona) and Dung-feeding (Kwitanono'a), give a clue as to the kinds of punishment meted out. Clowns (tsutskut) of several types entertain the audience between dance sessions, sometimes picking out individuals for public humiliation. Although their antics are humorous and sometimes obscene, the purpose is serious - to illustrate the kind of behavior (qahopi) that is unacceptable in Hopi society. Warrior (Qalèetaqa) or Guard (Tuwalan'aya) Kachinas keep the audience away from performing kachinas, discipline the clowns, and oversee communal activities such as cleaning out springs. Monster Kachinas (Sooso'yokt ) intimidate children to enforce good behavior. Other general classes of kachinas include the Raider Kachinas (Kipokkatsinam) who attack clowns at the end of the dance day and the Proud Kachinas (Kwivikatsinam) so-named because of their particularly fancy dress. Some kachinas have power to cure certain illnesses or insure success in the hunt. The Deathfly Kachina (Mastopkatsina) mimics copulation with women to insure their fertility. A rather unusual role for kachinas was revealed in 1891 during a confrontation at the village of Oraibi between a detachment of U. S. Cavalry and the Hopis who were accused of removing surveyor's stakes and threatening to destroy a government boarding school. At the height of the confrontation, the shouting and gesticulating Hopi warriors fell silent and the soldiers were astonished to see an Old Spider Woman (Kòokyangwso wùuti)  Kachina  and an Earth God or God of Death Kachina (Masawkatsina) emerge from the crowd and warn them to leave the village.

Kachina dolls are copies of actual kachinas carved by Hopi craftsmen. Their Hopi name is tihu (plural tithu), meaning child, the dolls being considered to be children of the kachinas. The dolls are carved from the roots of the cottonwood tree. Although the lightweight and fine-grained roots of this tree are well-suited for carving, their use also has a symbolic basis, as the cottonwood grows in moist places which relates to the rain-bringing role of kachinas. Kachina dolls have traditionally been carved by men, but in recent years some women have begun to make them, particularly miniature types. Although kachina dolls may be played with by children, they have a much more important function. They are presented to girls and women by the kachinas to help them learn about the kachinas and their importance to the Hopis. Dolls are also given to married women to enhance their fertility. The children are told that the dolls are carved by kachinas in the kivas, but in this day and age with hundreds of kachina dolls on the shelves of Native American craft shops both on and off the reservation, the children probably do not believe this any more than white children believe that all their Christmas gifts come from Santa Claus. The dolls are often hung on the walls of the home where they serve as a constant reminder of the kachinas.

Over the years kachina dolls have been much sought after as examples of Native American art, and their form has evolved from the simple flat or slightly-rounded types first observed by white men to the beautifully crafted, realistic action figures and abstract sculptural types produced by expert carvers today. Some modern day carvers are also producing dolls of the traditional type. This type of contemporary old-style doll  has been termed the New Traditional style. Among the historic changes in the manufacture of kachina dolls exhibited by contemporary examples is the substitution of feathers of wild bird species (e.g. eagles) traditionally used on particular kachinas with those of domestic birds as the result of wildlife protection laws. In more expensive dolls the feathers are often intricately carved, which not only increases the artistic value of the doll but also avoids any legal problem. In the early days there was strong opposition to the sale of kachina dolls because of their religious significance, and those who sold dolls to whites tried to remain anonymous. Some carvers justified selling their dolls by mixing features of different kachinas in the same doll, so that it was not an authentic representation of an actual kachina. The situation is much different today. Although kachina dolls are still held in great respect and some carvers still refuse to make dolls of certain kachinas such as the Terrific Power (Chowilawu) and Ashes (Qöchaf) kachinas because "they are too powerful," the number produced for commercial purposes far exceeds that for personal use and most carvers do not hesitate to sign their work. High quality contemporary dolls sell for hundreds to thousands of dollars, and relatively crude dolls from the late 1800s recently sold at auction for more than $100,000.

Besides being reproduced in carved wooden dolls, kachina images are incorporated in designs on baskets, pottery, and silverwork produced by Hopi craftsmen and in many paintings by Hopi artists. They also have been produced as nontraditional metal sculptures and have unfortunately been commercialized in the form of advertising for various businesses in the Southwest, wood and ceramic Christmas tree ornaments, teeshirts, painted neckties, craft kits, cutout and coloring books, cloth dolls, whiskey bottles, and as the name of a breed of miniature horses.  Several novels in recent years have included kachinas in their plots with widely varying degrees of accuracy, and perhaps the most reprehensible example of the exploitation of the kachina image is the depiction of kachinas being impersonated by white criminals in an issue of Marvel Comics in 1992. Kachinas have even been identified with America's space program. A painting entitled "Emergence"  by Hopi painter Dan Namingha on display at the Kennedy Space Center shows an astronaut with several kachinas and a Hump-backed Flute Player - an ancient symbol of the Pueblo Indians and their ancestors. The theme of the painting is that man, after emerging from the Fourth World, is again emerging into another world - space - and needs the combined forces of technology and Hopi spirituality to survive and enjoy what nature has provided. The kachina is also represented in the realm of science as the scientific name of a rare plant - Erigeron kachinensis, the Kachina daisy - often associated with Anasazi ruins in alcoves in canyon walls in parts of Utah and Colorado.

Although some of the other Pueblo Indians carve kachina dolls, the Hopis produce by far the greatest number and variety. The Zunis also turn out a fair number of dolls but nowhere near the quantity and variety as the Hopis. Typical Hopi and Zuni dolls vary in several respects. Hopi dolls, particularly the older ones, tend to have disproportionately large heads to emphasize the mask, and the better dolls have items of apparel such as kilts, sashes, belts, and animal tails carved and painted. In contrast, Zuni dolls have heads of more normal proportions and articles of clothing are of cloth or leather rather than carved. Zuni dolls may also have movable arms. Some carved figures found on the shelves of Native American craft shops do not represent true kachinas. Examples include the Hopi Snake Dancer and the Buffalo and other "social" dancers who perform unmasked. Some clearly unauthentic kachina dolls such as Santa Claus and the Easter bunny are produced as novelty items  and it is questionable if some dolls, such as Haley's Comet, have ever appeared as actual kachinas. Other non-kachina dolls encountered are the Mouse and Mountain Spirit Dancer. Although the Mouse is a subject of Hopi legend, it does not appear as a regular kachina, and the Mountain Spirit Dancer is actually an Apache ceremonial figure. At present, many kachina dolls are being carved by Navajos. Although as a rule these are intended to represent actual Hopi kachinas, they can usually be distinguished from authentic Hopi dolls by their relatively crude workmanship, excessively gaudy costumes, and cheaper price. Counterfeit dolls mass-produced in foreign countries have also appeared in the market.

It is not known when kachina dolls began to be carved. A simple, flat slab figurine dated to the 14th century and discovered in the Double Butte Cave site in Arizona is painted in such a way as to suggest a mask and other kachina-like features. This specimen has been regarded as a proto-kachina doll by some archaeologists, but this interpretation has been questioned by others. Spanish explorers who intruded into Pueblo Indian villages in the 1500s wrote of seeing small wooden "idols," which they promptly gathered up and burned in at least one case. Although one authority has suggested that these were kachina dolls, it seems more likely that they were the type of ceremonial object known as a prayer stick (paaho). The first undisputed kachina dolls were obtained in Hopi villages in the mid-1800s. One white visitor to the Hopi villages during this period, John Gregory Bourke, an army officer who participated in campaigns against the Apache, Sioux, and Cheyenne and spent his spare time studying Indians, described kachina dolls he had purchased in rather uncomplimentary terms as "...flat wooden gods or doll-babies" which "...are nothing but coarse monstrosities, painted in high colors, generally green." In addition to the uncertainty as to the time of origin of the kachina doll, there is also the question of the extent to which the Spanish influenced the development of the kachina doll when they became established in the Southwest. It is known that friars taught Pueblo Indians the art of carving to produce church decorations, and it is quite possible that the native craftsmen came to apply the techniques and styles used in carvings of Catholic saints (santos) to their own kachina dolls.

Flat type kachina dolls without arms or legs defined by carving are known as putsqatihu in Hopi and "infant" or "cradle" dolls in English. They are the first type presented to children and are also given to eagles that are raised in the villages and ritually sacrificed in July following the Niman ceremony, which marks the return of the kachinas to their home in the San Francisco Peaks until the following December when they will reappear in the villages in the Soyal ceremony. Cradle dolls given to eagles are termed kwaatihu, and the practice has its basis in a legend of the Hopi migrations in which some children who became lost were cared for by, and later transformed into, eagles. The first cradle doll usually presented to infants is the Kachina Mother (Hahay'iwùuti). Although simplified, the heads of the cradle dolls have all of the essential features that identify the particular kachina being represented. The bodies are typically painted in a highly stereotyped pattern - white with a blue or blue-green right shoulder and left arm, a yellow left shoulder and right arm, and vertical red stripes on the lower part of the body. The colors represent cardinal directions. The colors and associated directions are now usually given as yellow for north, white for east, red for south, and blue or blue-green for west, although the directions were originally the points of sunrise and sunset at the summer and winter solstices (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest). Black represents the zenith and all colors together or gray, the nadir.  Each of the directions is linked with a particular flower, bird, or corn ear of similar color, as well as a specific crop.  The red stripes on the body of cradle kachina dolls are said to stand for long life and also to symbolize the morning sun shining through rain. A similar pattern of red stripes is found in the decoration on the typical kachina dance kilt (katsinvitkuna). Black lines on the breast and wrists denote the necklace and yarn bracelets worn by many kachinas. In addition to these standard features, cradle dolls sometimes have red paint spots on the breast representing nipples. This may reflect the association of cradle dolls with babies, but it also may be connected to a ceremony in which the Kachina Mother pretends to nurse a puppet of the Feathered Serpent (Paalölöqangw).

Cradle dolls are of particular interest in that they appear to represent an early stage in the development of the kachina doll, as the first unquestionable kachina dolls from the mid-1800s are similar in shape and painted in the same way. Further evidence of their primitive nature is the presence of a markedly similar necklace design on figures with other kachina-like features in murals painted on the walls of Anasazi kivas and in petroglyphs dating to the 1300-1400s. A red stripe pattern similar to that of contemporary cradle kachinas also appears in an Anasazi cave painting (pictograph) discovered in Salt Creek Canyon, Utah, and dubbed the "All-American Man" because of the resemblance of the stripes to those of the American flag.

Selected References

Adams, L. Charles. 1991. The origin and development of the Pueblo kachina cult. Univ. of Arizona Press, Tucson, Arizona.

Bassman, Theda. 1991. Hopi kachina dolls and their carvers. Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Branson, Oscar T. 1992. Hopi Indian kachina dolls. Treasure Chest Publ., Tucson, Arizona.

Bromberg, Erik. 1986. The Hopi approach to the art of kachina doll carving. Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., West Chester, Pennsylvania.

Colton, Harold S. 1959. Hopi kachina dolls with a key to their identification. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Day, Jonathon S. 2000. Traditional Hopi kachinas. Northland Publishing Co., Flagstaff, Arizona.

Dockstader, Frederick J. 1985. The kachina and the white man. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Erickson, Jon T. 1977. Kachinas. An evolving art form? Heard Museum, Phoenix, Arizona.

Fewkes, J. Walter. 1903. Hopi kachinas drawn by native artists. 21st Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology, Washington, DC. (reprinted: 1991. Dover Publications, New York, New York).

Frigout, Arlette. 1979. Hopi ceremonial organization. Pp. 564-580 in Handbook of North American indians. Vol. 9. (Alfonso Ortiz, editor). Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

McManis, Kent. 2000. A guide to Hopi katsina dolls. Rio Nuevo Publishers, Tucson, Arizona.

Museum of Northern Arizona. 1977. An introduction to Hopi kachinas. The Museum, Flagstaff, Arizona.

Neil, David. 1993. Kachinas, spirit beings of the Hopi. Avanyu Publishing, Inc., Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Riley, Carroll L. 1999. The kachina and the cross: Indians and Spaniards in the early Southwest. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Schaafsma, Polly, editor. 1994. Kachinas in the Pueblo world. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Stephen, Alexander M. (Elsie Crews Parsons, editor) 1936. Hopi journal. Columbia University Contributions to Anthropolgy no. 23. Columbia University Press, New York, N.Y.

Teiwes, Helga. 1991. Kachina dolls: The art of Hopi carvers. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, Arizona.

Wright, Barton, with paintings by Cliff Bahnimptewa. 1973. Kachinas: A Hopi artists documentary. Northland Press, Flagstaff, Arizona.

Wright Barton. 1977. Hopi kachinas: The complete guide to collecting kachina dolls. Northland Press, Flagstaff Arizona.

Wright, Barton. 1994. Clowns of the Hopi. Northland Publ., Flagstaff, Arizona.