Hualapai

The Hualapai are a Native American tribe with about 2,300 members. Most of them live on the Hualapai Reservation in northern Arizona, which covers parts of three counties: Coconino, Yavapai, and Mohave.

Their name means "people of the tall pines" and comes from their word for the ponderosa pine. The Hualapai have lived for a long time along the southern side of the Grand Canyon and near the Colorado River. The main town of their reservation is Peach Springs, with other communities such as Valentine and Grand Canyon West.

Government

The Hualapai tribe is its own sovereign nation. It has an executive and judicial branch, as well as a tribal council. The tribe offers many services to its members, including social, cultural, educational, and economic support.

The Hualapai Nation Police Department helps keep the community safe for both tribe members and visitors.

Language

The Hualapai language belongs to the Pai group of the Yuman–Cochimí languages. It is also used by the nearby Havasupai people and, to a lesser extent, by the Yavapai people. Many Hualapai people over the age of 30 still speak this language, and it is also taught to younger students. The Peach Springs School District has a good program that helps all local children, Hualapai and non-Hualapai alike, learn the language through special classes and camps.

Reservation

The Hualapai Reservation covers 1,142 square miles (2,960 km²) and was created by a presidential order in 1883. It is located in Coconino and Mohave counties, with its main community in Peach Springs.

History and culture

The Hualapai have many important traditions. They celebrate ceremonies like the "Maturity" ceremony and the "Mourning" ceremony, and today they also hold a Sobriety Festival in June.

The Hualapai believe that after people pass away, their spirits travel to a beautiful land in the northwest where there are plenty of crops.

In the past, Hualapai people wore clothing made from deerskin and rabbit skin. Their homes were cone-shaped buildings made from cedar branches, called a Wikiup.

The Hualapai Reservation was created in 1883 by a leader's order. It includes lands that only some Hualapai bands called home. Other bands, like the Havasupai, lived far away.

The Hualapai War happened from 1865 to 1870. It began because more people were traveling through their area, causing trouble. There were fights between the Hualapai and others. Leaders worked to make peace, but it was hard. The war ended in 1870 when many Hualapai were sick and could not continue fighting.

Hualapai bands and villages

The Hualapai people are made up of three main groups, called subtribes. These are the Middle Mountain People in the northwest, the Plateau People in the east, and the Yavapai Fighter in the south. Each of these subtribes has several bands, which are smaller groups. These bands lived in small villages, often near springs or water sources.

The Plateau People lived in the east, mostly in areas with plateaus and canyons. The Middle Mountain People lived to the west of the Plateau People, mostly north of the modern city of Kingman. The Yavapai Fighters were the largest group and lived in the southern part of Hualapai country.

Education

The Hualapai Reservation has parts in three school districts. In Mohave County, students go to the Peach Springs Unified School District and the Hackberry School District. Some students also go to the Valentine Elementary School District outside the reservation. Since the high school in Peach Springs closed in 2008, students can attend high school in the Kingman Unified School District or the Seligman Unified School District.

In Coconino County, the reservation is in an area without its own high school. In Yavapai County, students go to the Seligman school district.