American Indian Culture and Research Journal

The temporal markers of the Navajo universe not only divide and organize time but also serve as a guide to human life through their association with specific patterns of behavior and thought. In this paper, which is based on fieldwork and ethnohistoric sources, I will discuss the concept of order in Navajo Creation, identify the sets of markers for the division of time, document their visual depiction in sandpaintings, examine their symbolic representation in the hooghan, and explore how these temporal markers have the capacity to influence human thought and conduct. The Concept of Order in Navajo Creation The concept of dynamic order is of tremendous importance to Navajo philosophy. Creation occurred nizhónígo, or "in an orderly and proper way." The enclitic "-go" at the end of the word nizhónígo means "in that way" and denotes an on-going, continuing process. Thus, rather than being a static quality, orderliness must be continuously recreated through time. Each of the successive lower worlds was more ordered than the world(s) before it. The First World was inhabited by insects and was the most chaotic of all. This red world was characterized by confusion, uncertainty, and error. Each subsequent upward migration toward emergence onto the Earth's surface led to greater stability, order, and knowledge. Thus, we see a progression toward a more orderly way of life.

The Ojibwa have a tradition of unique forms of dress which have served as a medium of communication and as an expression of cultural values. How has this dress changed over the years, and when did change occur? The goal of this study was to identify changes in Ojibwa dress occurring within seven time periods encompassing the years 1820-1980. It focused on the modal type of dress worn by the Ojibwa, that is, the garments which are most often worn together by a majority of people within a particular time period. Historical Background and Indigenous Ojibwa Dress Little, if any, written information exists concerning the Ojibwa before 1640, although the societal make-up and some information about dress can be partially reconstructed from early written accounts of missionaries and traders, archaeological evidence, and oral traditions. In 1640, French missionaries reported that Ojibwa villages were located around the waterway that connects Lake Superior and Lake Huron-Sault Ste. Marie. Because the region was sparsely populated, it could support the Ojibwas' hunting and gathering society. Beginning in the 1690s, some Ojibwa moved out from the Sault Ste. Marie area and by the onset of the nineteenth century could be distinguished as separate cultural group. Hickerson classified the Ojibwa into four main groups: the Bungee or Plains Ojibwa of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, the Saulteur or northern Ojibwa of the Laurentian upland region north of the Great Lakes, the Southeastern Ojibwa of Ontario and the lower peninsula of Michigan, and the Southwestern Ojibwa of northern Wisconsin and Minnesota. This discussion addresses the last of these groups.

Trade can be considered a mechanism of social change from many perspectives. It serves to spread cultural elements from one society to another (diffusion). It encourages societies and areas within societies to specialize production within the national and international economies according to available resources (comparative advantage). Yet nowhere is the role of trade as an effective agent of change more striking or pivotal than in areas where traditional economic activities and relations are confronted by capitalistic ones-a situation typical of reservations. In this situation, the nature, scope, and operating practices of trade greatly affect production, determining to a large extent the economic options and well-being of the resident population. Consequently, an historical analysis of trade is crucial in understanding the dynamics of reservation economies. This analysis of the Navajo economy focuses on the middleman activities of the traders in relation to the Navajo crafts industry. Supplementing the previously established wool trade, this industry was at the cutting edge in the expansion of market relations on the Reservation. Composed primarily of blankets and silver jewelry, craft production grew constantly until it peaked in the 1920’s before collapsing with the failure of the national economy into the Great Depression. However, far from being a static industry-save for the increase in output-this industry proved to be highly dynamic as forces from within and without the Reservation wrought changes in the design, production, and distribution of these crafts.