Chapter 2 Definitions

Question 1

American Indian Religious Freedom Act

Answer 1

The 1978 U.S. law to guarantee freedom of religious practice for native Americans.

Question 2

Axis Mundi

Answer 2

An academic term for the center of the world, which connects the earth with the heavens.

Question 3

Black Elk

Answer 3

Famous Lakota religious leader.

Question 4

Changing Woman

Answer 4

Mythic ancestor of the Navajo people who created the first humans.

Question 5

Chantway

Answer 5

The basis of Navajo ceremonial practice; includes chants, prayers, songs, and other ritual practices.

Question 6

Ghost Dance

Answer 6

Religous resistence movements in 1870 and 1890 that originated in Nevada among Paiute peoples.

Question 7

Hogan

Answer 7

A sacred structure of Pueblo people.

Question 8

Holy People

Answer 8

Ancestors of the Navajo people described in mythic naratives.

Question 9

Holy Wind

Answer 9

Navajo conception of a spiritual force that inhabits every element of creation.

Question 10

Jump Dance

Answer 10

Renewal dance of Yurok people/

Question 11

Kachina

Answer 11

Peublo spiritual being.

Question 12

Kinaalda

Answer 12

Rite of passage for young Navajo women.

Question 13

Mabel McKay

Answer 13

A pomo woman who was well known as a healer and basket weaver.

Question 14

Native American Church

Answer 14

A church founded in the 21st century based on the Peyote religion.

Question 15

Peyote

Answer 15

Hallucinogenic cactus used in many Native American religions.

Question 16

Popol Vuh

Answer 16

The Quiche Mayan book of creation.

Question 17

Quanah Parker

Answer 17

Comanche man who called for the embrace of peyote religion.

Question 18

Quetzalcoatl

Answer 18

Aztec god and important culture hero in Mexico.

Question 19

Rites of Passage

Answer 19

Rituals that mark the transition from one social stage to another.

Question 20

Rise of Renewal

Answer 20

Rituals that seek to enhance natural processes, like rain or fertility, or to strengthen the solidarity of a group.

Question 21

Sand Painting

Answer 21

A painting made with sand used by Navajo healers to treat ailments.

Question 22

Sun Dance

Answer 22

Midsummer ritual common to many Native American religions; details very across cultures.

Question 23

Sweat Lodge

Answer 23

A structure built for ritually cleansing and purifying the body.

Question 24

Tipi

Answer 24

A typical conical structure of the tribes of the reat Plains which is often constructed with a sacred blueprint.

Question 25

Two Spirit

Answer 25

An additional gender identity in many Native North american cultures; often thought to have special powers.

Question 26

Trickster

Answer 26

A common figure in North American mythologies; trickster tales often teach important moral lessons.

Question 27

Vision Quest

Answer 27

A ritual attempt by an individual to communicate with the spirit world.

Question 28

Wovoka

Answer 28

A Paiute man whose visions started the Ghost Dance of 1890.