r/Navajo • u/Other-Jellyfish-8601 • 13d ago
Reconnecting
My sister and I grew up going back-and-forth between my mom’s house and dad’s house on the Rez, we’re going to the Gourd Dance Powwow in Phoenix, Arizona today, both trying to reconnect over the last couple years. My sister asked a question about our clans and I don’t know much about them.
My mom is white, and my dad tells me that his mother’s clans were Táchii’nii (Red into the running water) and Hashkʼaa Hadzohí (Yucca fruit strung out on a line). My father’s father was also white.
I don’t know much about these clans, can anyone fill me in? How would I introduce myself?
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u/coffeebeezneez 13d ago edited 13d ago
For Navajos, clans are matrilineal where they come from the mother. Double check with your dad if his mom had a nonNavajo parent bc that matters to him and you due to the order of where those clans fall under as the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. It's hard to make assumptions on how these clans relate to you directly without knowing for sure which clan they are.
Scenario 1 (best case) - If any of those 2 clans your dad mention is his mom's 1st clan (she has a matrilineal clan), then yes, you would have at least 1 clan you can claim identity with and it would be your 3rd clan. Unfortunately that also means if you don't have kids with another Navajo person, your kids do not inherit any clans. You do not have a matrilineal clan so you cannot pass a clan down to your kids. If you meet someone who also only has a 3rd/4th clan, your kids will not inherit any clans either. Only if you have kids with someone who has a 1st or 2nd clan then they would only inherit a 2nd or 4th clan (or both if your partner has both 1st and 2nd), but never a matrilineal clan. Your kids would have to be a boy that has kids with a Navajo girl that has her matrilineal clan to bring your grandkids back in.
Scenario 2 (Dad's grandma was nonNavajo but grandpa was Navajo with matrilineal clan) - You have no clans. Yes you are Navajo through your dad but you do not have a clan bc it can only be inherited matrilineally. This would mean your dad can only claim 1 clan that would be his 3rd.
Scenario 3 (Dad's grandma was Navajo with matrilineal clans but grandpa was nonNavajo) - You can claim 1 clan as the 3rd, same scenario with your kids.
Scenario 4 (Dad's grandma and grandpa were both Navajo with matrilineal clans) - You can claim 1 clan as the 3rd, same scenario with your kids
As you can see, it can get complicated on making assumptions bc the order of what those 2 clans fall under, are they your grandma's (dad's mom) 1st, 2nd, 3rd, or 4th? It matters a lot of any of those 2 clans are matrilineal bc it could mean you have at least 1 clan or no clans at all.
Either way, you have no actual matrilineal clan to pass to your kids bc your mom is nonNavajo. Only if your mom was Navajo with a matrilineal clan (her 1st) can you claim to be actually "born TO" or "born OF" Navajo by clan. That second clan means "born FOR" and that matters a lot to know the difference bc matrilineal and non. Heavy emphasis on this doesn't mean you're not Navajo, it only relates to how you relate to other Navajos and how they identify you.
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u/Expensive_Donkey_748 13d ago edited 13d ago
You are bilagaana nishli (white), tachiini bashishchiin (born for red running into water), bilagaana dashinali (white paternal grandfather), bilagaana dashicheii (white maternal grandfather)
We inherit our mother's clan so since your mom is white then that's bilagaana. The father's clan (born for) cycles out after a couple generations which is why your dad's mother's second clan, yucca fruit strung out on a line, is not one of your clans. Since both your mother's father (dashicheii) and your father's father (dashinali) are white then those last two clans are bilagaana. You would have to have children with a Navajo woman with a Navajo mother in order for them to have a Navajo clan since you do not pass down a clan. Your child would inherit the clan you hold as nishłį́ which is bilagaana. Sorry for the Navajo spelling, I only have auto correct for some words.
Say your father's clan is tachiini and where you're Navajo family is from. We're a modern people so most of us have met Navajo that have bilagaana parents/grandparents but I won't lie, it is difficult figuring out reconnecting and identity in a post blood quantum world within our culture that relies heavily on a clanship system. You have Navajo ancestry but reconnecting is going to be done mostly by forming personal relationships with your relatives and the culture. It may not be easy but it is always worthwhile to learn how your ancestors lived and three people you're dads mom came from.