The Hopi 
 
This is Hopi since 1000 AD. The Hopis and their cousins, the 19 other Pueblo tribes, inhabit the Four Corners Region of New Mexico and Arizona.

Old Oraibi, which is in Third Mesa, Hopi, is the oldest continually dwelt settlement in all of North America. The Hopi people were NOT moved to this region by the U.S. government. The Hopi chose this land. According to their oral tradition, Masao, their god of death and underworld asked them, after they had traveled to four directions, where they would like to settle, the people of old told Masao, "here in the middle of the desert for this is where we can depend on you the most."

 
 
Hopi sits isolated in Northeast Arizona. The Hopi and Tewa people live on three high mesas.

There are twelve villages (11 Hopi and 1 Tewa) in Hopiland. The Tewa people were invited to come and live amongst the Hopi many years ago to ward off enemy tribes. Tewa people were considered to be warriors whereas the Hopis were more agrarian and peaceful. Since then, the two people groups have intermarried for many generations.

The Hopi tribe has permission from the U.S. government to be able to capture eaglets from their nests for ceremonies every year. You can see these maturing eagles on top of the roof of different Hopi homes at certain seasons of the year.

 
 
The Hopi reservation is about 40 miles square, inside the Navajo reservation. "Dine (also called Navajo) people moved into this region about three to five hundred years ago and surrounded the Hopi nation. The Dine people gave the name, " the Anazasis" to the Hopi and the other pueblo tribes which means the "ancient ones."

 
 
The Hopis are an agrarian people who plant corn, beans and melons etc. in the sandy soil. They do not irrigate, therefore, they have yearly cycles of dances and ceremonies to pray for the rain. Almost on any given weekend, they have Buffalo, Deer, flute, Katchina, snake and many other dances throughout the year. Most of the dances are open to visitors, and friends are welcome to eat in many of the Hopi homes on the days of these dances. When we, YWAM, and other Christian ministers arrived ten years ago the area was in a spiritual decline and severe drought. We have hoped and prayed that as the people began calling on Jesus that the drought would break. These past couple years we are increasingly being revived by His good Spirit and by more rain. Please join us in prayer for these needs.

One interesting fact: There are ancient springs where sweet water flows out of the rocks, on top of every mesa, where almost a thousand years ago, the Hopi villages formed. This is how the Hopi people were able to live on these high dry desert lands for hundreds of years, because the Lord provided them with these spring waters.

 
 
Many of the Hopi men carve kachina dolls and some of these kachinas are found in different museums around the world for their skillful artwork. Some others make silver bracelets, earrings and necklaces with distinctive Hopi designs. The Hopis are also known for their baskets and pottery with many beautiful patterns. They also have their own tribal government, schools and law enforcement, who hire many teachers, tribal workers, police and rangers.

 
The Hopi nation is very much a mix of Hopi and American. That which is modern and very ancient. Most people now speak English but many still converse in Hopi.

Several Native American Christian key leaders have come and they would say to the Hopi, "You are the ancient tribe. We're all looking to see which way you will go. And the rest of us will follow."