The Dark Wind (1982)

Also spelled Bacobi and Bakabi, Bacavi is a village located on the east side of Third Mesa, within the larger network and community of the Hopi people spread out across the three mesas within Black Mesa in Arizona. The other villages on Third Mesa include Oraibi; New Oraibi (also known as Kyakotsmovi); Hotevilla; and Upper Moenkopi and Lower Moenkopi, both located a little bit outside of Third Mesa. Bacavi was founded in 1907, after a disagreement between factions of the Hopi people living in Oraibi, and is considered the newest of all the Hopi villages.

The area of all three mesas makes up the Hopi reservation. Each of the mesas has its own cultural and spiritual significance to the Hopi people, and similarly, each village maintains its own traditions and rituals even while there is overlap among them.

In meteorology, thunder is the by-product of the movement of lightning through the atmosphere. As lightning snaps through the air, it instantaneously superheats the air around it, causing the air to expand in an explosive fashion, creating a shock wave that sounds like a giant clap.

In the Navajo tradition, Thunder can be a protective force and is considered to be one of the Holy People. In Navajo culture, the Holy People are immortal beings that can take the outer form of landscape elements, animals, plants, and celestial bodies. Conversely, Thunder can be personified as an evil and destructive force, which means that when dealing with such a powerful entity, one must be cautious.

Also known as sandpaintings or dry paintings, sand paintings (or iikááh in Navajo) are created by a medicine man (or Hataałii in Navajo) for ceremonial purposes. Sand paintings are created by pouring colored sands, crushed dried plants, crushed stone, or other powdered pigments onto the ground. Sand paintings are generally symbolic representations of different stories in Navajo mythology and are created in conjunction with the performance of certain chants. Navajo sand paintings began as an integral part of religious and healing ceremonies rather than as art for art’s sake. However, many Navajo artists currently produce sand paintings for the commercial art market. Sand paintings created as art generally contain important errors so that it is not an exact replica of a sacred ceremonial sand painting.

The sun retains a significant position in most cosmologies, often taking on anthropomorphic features. From Ra, Apollo, Buddha, and the Christ figure, to indigenous appreciations of the creative power and potential of the solar disc, the figure of the Sun God is assigned an importance and range of powers pertinent to the specific needs and value systems of each group. For example, Sun-Father is a Navajo Holy Person, husband of Changing Woman, while in the Kiowa tradition, Sun Boy is the originator of the sacred tribal items.

Often the term "Sun God" is used inappropriately, generally as a blanket term to signify dominant male figures in non Judeo-Christian religions, specifically those of Native American tribes.

Walpi is one of three villages located on First Mesa within the larger network and community of the Hopi people spread out across the three mesas within Black Mesa, Arizona. In Hopi, the name means "place of the gap," which refers to a notch in the nearby mesa. It is the southernmost pueblo village on First Mesa, which also includes the villages of Sichomovi and Hano (or Tewa). The area of all three mesas makes up the Hopi reservation. Each of the mesas has its own cultural and spiritual significance to the Hopi people, and similarly, each village maintains its own traditions and rituals even while there is overlap among them.

Walpi was established in approximately 900 AD as the original, founding Hopi village. The inhabitants of the village still maintain traditional practices, for example living without electricity and running water. Following a 1680 revolt, the two other villages on First Mesa were established. Tourists can currently take walking tours of Walpi, since the Hopi have opened up their villages for visitors, after many years of resisting tourism.

Also spelled Sipaulovi, Shipaulovi is one of three villages located on Second Mesa within the larger network and community of the Hopi people who are spread out across the three mesas within Black Mesa, Arizona. The area of all three mesas makes up the Hopi reservation. Each of the mesas has its own cultural and spiritual significance to the Hopi people, and similarly, each village maintains its own traditions and rituals even while there is overlap among them.

Shipaulovi is the northern most village on Second Mesa, which also includes the villages of Shongopovi and Mishongovi. Shipaulovi houses the Sipaulovi Hopi Information Center, which provides tours of the surrounding area. Otellie Pasivyaya Loloma, a famous Hopi potter, was born in this village.

Located in northern Arizona, this county’s seat is in Flagstaff. The county encompasses Grand Canyon National Park as well as several Native reservations including parts of the Navajo Nation, the Hopi Nation, and the Hualapai Nation. The name Coconino comes from the Hopi word Cohonino, which refers to the Havasupai tribe.

There is evidence that thousands of years ago, nomadic peoples travelled up the Little Colorado River from the Great Plains into the Colorado Plateau area, which now makes up a large part of Coconino County. Currently, about 30% of the county's population is of Native American descent.

Extrusion is a process in which a tough or difficult to work with material, often metal, is pushed through a mold or die to become a particular shape. More generally, it refers to the process of forcing something out or to reshaping an object by moving it through another element, such as a hole.

The water table is the line between groundwater and unsaturated ground. Beneath the water table the soil, rock, and sediment are saturated with water, whereas above it, they are not, this is called the zone of aeration. The water table fluctuates based on the seasons, rain levels, droughts, and other environmental factors as well as from man-made ones such as the over-use of well water.

The most noticeable geologic formation in Black Mesa, Arizona. This mountain, called Dził Ntsaaí in the Navajo language, translates to "Extensive Mountain" in English. Big Mountain is a sacred Navajo site that appears in many stories, prayers, ceremonies, and has long been a place for gathering natural materials used for medicine and healing. According to tradition, Navajos believe that their creator and creation story placed them specifically in their land, which is located near Big Mountain.

In more recent history, Big Mountain has become a site of dispute, as it was the dividing line between the Hopi and Navajo Joint Use Area. Many Navajos have been displaced and relocated from this land that they consider sacred.