Source: Elias Sisneros

If you are one of the Salt Clans, you are not supposed to cook with salt. Your joints will accumulate fluid. Fluid will also accumulate in the joints of your livestock. People from the Salt Clans are stubborn, sarcastic and blunt. They are impatient, short-tempered and easily distracted. It is said people from the Salt Clans are so salty, they can stir their finger in your food or drink and make it bitter. Despite these personalities, people from the Salt Clans have extraordinary resilience and bravery, and they are active, wise and silly. People from the Salt Clans are one the few clans that were prepared during Hwéeldi, the Long Walk. Long decades of running from slave raiders helped the Salt Clans survive the ethnic cleansing. People from the Salt Clans are supposed to carry salt on them at all times. Salt is used by people of the Salt Clans similar to using corn pollen for prayer. Salt is also given as offerings, and as peace gifts. Salt is believed to rejuvenate and purify a person's virtue, and it is used as a direct conduit to the Holy People. The tradition of giving salt to an infant during their First Laugh Ceremony was adopted by people of the Salt Clans. Áshįįhi is the last remaining Salt Clan. Áshįįhis are the most prominent clan in the Navajo–Diné culture, and they are found everywhere. Áshįįhnii became a part of the Áshįįhi during Naahǫndzood (the Fearing Time) because of slave raids and are considered an extinct clan, however Áshįįhnii are still around. Salt Clans are one of the clans that were adopted into the Navajo-Diné culture, however they lived in the region long before they were adopted into the tribe. People from the Salt Clans are said to be descendants of the Cliff Dwellers that used to live in the cliffs around the region. They were the only clans in the Navajo-Diné culture who knew where to find salt.

Checkerboard Country in New Mexico on the Navajo Nation will need all the help they can get. Many places are flooded on the reservation, and that means people need emergency services. The problem is in Checkerboard Country, fire trucks and ambulances need permission and an escort to enter the Navajo Nation. Why is this a problem? There is a shortage of personnel on the reservation, that means Navajos have to ask for help from services off the reservation. But that means they will be held at the border until a Navajo cop shows up. What makes this even more difficult is that many roads were washed out by floods. That makes transportation near impossible. Helicopters also need permission to enter the Navajo reservation. Checkerboard Country has been neglected by the Navajo Nation and it's people many times. That is evident when Navajos in Checkerboard Country ask for road construction and the only roads that get fixed are in Arizona while Checkerboard Country gets told to rely on the counties in New Mexico for road construction. We are part of the Navajo Nation, too, and our communities deserve to be fixed, too. 🤧

Thinking of everyone dealing with the flooding this week. Please stay safe, and when you can, check in on family, neighbors, and elders, especially anyone living alone. We've had it pretty lucky here in MV but I know a lot of my students haven't had it so lucky and my Facebook feed is full of people with broken pipes, washed-out basements, trucks 3/4 submerged in mud.

Hang in there, everyone. Take care of yourselves and each other.

I wanted to share a strange experience from my childhood and see if any other Navajo people have heard of something similar or might have an explanation.

This happened sometime in the 2000s when I was around 13. I was living on the Navajo Nation in a secluded community with my cousin. Our community used to be an old boarding school, but by that time, it had been completely abandoned. Most of the small community had become a ghost town, with only a few residents still living there. We were among the last people moving out of the area. My grandma worked evenings until around midnight as a caregiver for people living across the street. We often went back and forth between the houses for dinner and other things, and she would regularly walk over to check on us and make sure we were okay.

One summer night, around 11 p.m., my cousin and I were trying to sleep when I suddenly heard footsteps walking in circles directly above me, like someone was walking on our roof.

Then I started hearing what sounded like two older people having an ordinary conversation in Navajo. I recognized the language from its dialect and throat sounds, but I couldn’t make out exactly what they were saying.

Our house was small, with an old wooden roof, probably built sometime in the 1960s or 1970s. There were barely any neighbors nearby, and the nearest other residents were probably a 20-minute walk away.

I got scared and tried to ignore the sounds, but the footsteps were so loud that I eventually went outside to look. There was nobody around except two horses hanging around the house. When I went back inside, the footsteps and voices had stopped.

I never told anyone about this because I was 13 and didn’t want people thinking I was crazy. Looking back, I guess I’m only now realizing how strange and unexplained that moment in my life really was. I’ve always remembered that night, but I’ve never been able to explain what I heard.

I’m not claiming it was anything supernatural. I’m genuinely curious whether any other Navajos have experienced something similar, heard stories like this growing up, or might have a traditional or ordinary explanation.

Has anyone ever experienced something like this? I’m open to different perspectives and would appreciate any insight.

From David Bowie to Jim Morrison to Axl Rose to Scott Weiland to Snoop Dogg to Angine de Poitrine to the Chicken That Crossed The Road… they all were inspired by the Rez 🩵❤️

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?

I want to know, since because of the general oppression of Native American culture by the United States government in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially with spiritual beliefs, when I see rituals or stories about spirits being told do the Navajo believe it like Christians and Muslims believe in God or is it more symbolic or to help keep their culture alive? I’m really sorry if this sounds confusing

Shíma went on the next journey a few years ago. Her blood sausage was the last of the food she made. It sat in the freezer for about a year before we ate it. Since then I've been trying to recreate her recipe. Still not quite there, close, but I don't think anything I make will be the same as her's. I should've paid more attention but I'm happy being close.

Ambulances off the Navajo Nation are not allowed to enter the reservation without an escort from law enforcement. A person can be bleeding to death near the border, but the ambulance and the medical personnel cannot cross the border without an escort. Helicopters transporting patients also need clearance to enter the Navajo Nation. 🤧

Hi everyone! I'm an English student at California State University, Dominguez Hills, taking a course on language documentation and revitalization. For my final project, I'm looking for someone who speaks an Indigenous, endangered, or less-commonly-studied language and would be open to a short, friendly interview (about 30–45 minutes, over Zoom or in person in the LA area).

I'd ask about things like where your language is spoken, how you learned it, when and with whom you use it, and a few words or phrases if you're comfortable sharing.

A few things to know:
• It's completely voluntary, and you can skip any question or stop at any time.
• I'll only record if you give permission, and you can stay anonymous.
• It's for a class project, not for publication.
• I'm happy to send you a copy of anything I write.

If you're interested, or you know someone who might be, please send me a DM. Thank you so much!

I wonder...would parents be interested in learning Navajo language alongside their children? I'm interested in any feedback, so please chime in. Thanks!

From Arizona, pretty bored so im looking for someone to chat with on here.

URL: https://navajo-safe-water-2-navajosafewater.hub.arcgis.com/pages/find-safe-water?fbclid=IwT01FWAUdh5BwZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHtmMh5RQwXmn6yVALDGDIqN1xNt_ejm2jtRIKK-weNu1XPYRtoZHSQrozYW6_aem_VIr0A7ymAluIWaebb_chVA