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Western Museum Laboratories
Navaho Life of Yesterday and Today
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PREFACE

"Navaho Life of Yesterday and Today," written for the needs of the National Park Service, is a summary of some of the essential features of the prehistory, history and customs of the Navaho Indians of Arizona and New Mexico. Professional anthropologists will find little that is new to them in these pages, as the information was compiled from published and unpublished material relating to the Navaho and their neighbors.

My thanks go to those who kindly read the manuscript and offered information and suggestions. Dr. W.W. Hill of the University of New Mexico loaned me his unpublished manuscript on Navaho agriculture and hunting; Dr. Harry Hoijer of the University of Chicago contributed information on linguistics; and Mr. Ben Wetherill drew on his long experience and understanding of the tribe to give me data on customs and beliefs. Dr. Phileo Nash and Dr. F. R. Eggan of the University of Chicago; Father Berard Haile, O. F. M.; and John Provinse of the Soil Conservation Service have also read the manuscript and made suggestions. The staff of the Museum of Anthropology, University of California, graciously permitted the artist, Miss Elizabeth Ginno, to sketch the Navaho artifacts. In addition to these, I wish to thank the members of the staff of the National Park Service and the Works Progress Administration for their assistance.

Hazel Hunt Voth I wish to thank for her intelligent and conscientious editing, and the uncounted hours she spent in verifying and correcting references and preparing the manuscript for mimeographing I also owe thanks to Mr William Lippincott who was of much assistance to me at every step of the way in getting this manuscript ready.

In this paper, the references are included in the text in order to simplify the problem of mimeographing. A foreign term is underlined only the first time it is used.

Katharine Luomala
Berkeley, California


PLATE I.—SAND PAINTING OF THE WHIRLING GODS. Used in the Night Chant. (from Matthews, 1902).

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