FAQ Credits and Forward
Copyright ©1997, 1998 Calumet Consulting, All Rights Reserved
It is illegal to use these questions in printed form without written permission or license from the author.
Most recent revision January 27, 1998
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Note: FAQ's or Frequently Asked Questions abound on the Internet. FAQ's provide a resource where the un-informed may find answers to common questions and leave the webmasters time to address the truly unique questions that continue to come along. This set of FAQ's were started in 1996 for foreign exchange students. There were severe cases of "culture shock" for some students. They arrived in Chinle at night, after a long journey from their home country. The following morning when they awoke and looked around them in the light of day, "Where am I?" was a common reaction. Some adapted, others never reconciled their expectations of ending up in a city or suburbia. While America is a large county, many only know it from televison. To them it is the land of Bay Watch, the Partridge Family, Grease, E.R. and N.Y.P.D. Blue. Once the questions were on the Web, students coming to Chinle were better prepared for what they found, but the culture shock was never completely eliminated.
The original collection of questions has been supplimented with common queries asked of others and by questions I receive over the Internet. Both questions and answers are based on my personal experiences and those of co-workers, friends and individuals serving the tourist trade. Some answers come from the Navajo Tribe's publications, still others are from interviews and observations, and from community members who edited the collection, or from fieldwork. If you see ways which we can improve the accuracy and/or general readability, please bring it to my attention. You may leave us a message using the E-Mail link on the main page. This purpose behind this document is to provide an accurate resource about the community and region. If anything is not right, we need to fix it! Hopefully, using this common collaborative approach, the final product will be better than what any one of us could produce alone. This will, in turn, benefit us all. There are almost two-hundred questions, with another twenty in progress. They require over sixty-five pages (depending on font size) to print, not including the index. A reader should bypass any questions that don't interest you. This document does not readily lend itself into being broken down into categories of questions, since it is in the form of an interview, but we are working on an index. The best way to find out about something you are looking for is to use your browser's "FIND" command in each of the three sections.
I have deliberately avoided some questions dealing with culture, or ceremonies. Although I have lived here for over fifteen years - working and raising a family - there remain topics best addressed by Navajo people. There are individuals who cater to visitors who seek to learn more than just looking at the scenery, by developing an understanding of a way of life. There are also topics I have avoided because they are not considered proper topics for discussion. What can be discussed openly about some aspects of culture, is governed by the seasons. Everything in its time. Some other authors include them. I choose not to.
I caution you: Learn to listen. In many ways, this world is the same as the one that you are familiar with, but at the same time, the solutions used here are often much different than what you may be used to using. "Shut your mouth, Open your Mind" is equally good advice. For the duration of your tour, make no judgements. Be willing to see a different world. Rather than just noting values may be different, ask yourself why they are different,
Recognition is given to:
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Willy Jim, Peter Thomas, Associate Superintendent Dottie Hobson, and others at the Dean C. Jackson Center for Navajo Studies, in Chinle.
- They reviewed these questions and contributed to their accuracy - especially in areas where I may have lacked adequate firsthand knowledge.
- Initial text editing was done by Margot MacDonald and Joan Scott, which has enhanced the readability.
- Wilson Hunter and other National Park Service staff
- Leonora Begay at the Thunderbird Lodge Gift Shop, and tour drivers for Thunderbird Lodge,
- Ernest and Liz Tsosie and Family
- Ms. Joy Manus, Director of Staff Development for the Chinle Unified School District. Joy was kind enough to review an early draft. Her recommendations that I make minor changes in my choices of words and phrases, in consideration of whom I wrote about, improved the document's "political correctness", and reduced the chance my blunt writing style might unnecessaily offend some readers.
- Many more in the community reviewed and provided additions and enhancements to subsequent drafts, or reviewed the text on the Internet. Because of this collaborative effort, this document reflects our community.
- Will B. Tsosie, Jr. of Tsaile is acknowledged for his role in teaching me about people in general and the Dine' in particular.
- Bessie Yellowhair and Annie Johnson helped me in a few specific items where I had no firsthand knowledge - primarily women's traditional clothing.
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"Grandma" Marjorie Thomas provided me much insight into Navajo language,
- My children have been favored in being able to count Marjorie as a true grandmother.
- Material was gleaned from the Tribe's "Close-Up Program's" textbook.
- Joe Begay, Lucille and Harry Claw and Family as well as
- Rosemarie Guy, Doris Tsinniginnie and Nancy Draper who were my teachers as co-workers when I first arrived in Chinle.
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Special Thanks is given to Mrs.Ida Bradley of Fruitland, NM who caught some induced errors that resulted from errors in editing.
Unfortunately there is not room to list all of those who have directly, or indirectly, made this document possible, but many are owed a debt of gratitude. This document reflects them as much as I who assembled the information in one place.
If you want to learn more about the Navajo People, some individuals providing cultural consultation include:
- Coyote Pass Hospitality - Will B. Tsosie, Jr. Telephone E-Mail - .
- Tseyii Guides Association- c/o Ernest & Liz Tsosie
E-Mail
- De Chelly Tours - Diane and Daniel Staley
Telephone .
- Chester Hubbard, Guide Chester serves Amtrak Visitors and is recommended by the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial Association. He was raised near Ganado and knows his way around Navajo Land.
Telephone .
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