Wetherill knew and worked with Navajos, and understood what the word meant. The name was further embedded in archaeological circles when it was adopted by Alfred V. Kidder, the acknowledged dean of Southwestern Archaeology, who felt it was easier to use than creating a more technical term.
Therefore, how can we, as a universal collective, honor our past people with dignity and respect? Now is the time to take back control of how to accurately describe our ancestral people. In pursuit of accuracy and respect, the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and Indian Pueblo Store are dedicated to changing all mentions of Anasazi to Ancestral Pueblo or Ancestral Puebloan, and helping to educate others on the reason the term is no longer acceptable.
It will only appear on our sites when part of a product or other official name, and in those cases a link to this information will be included. I was a teacher, years ago, and the text that was part of our social studies curriculum, called the people the Anasazi, and said it meant ancient enemy.
Who else would called others by that term? I have tremendous respect for Native Americans. Thank you very much for the accurate historical explanation of the name Anasazi! I hope you will continue to tell the story of the original name as well as changing it to the more respectful term.
We began implementing the change in early after discovering the term used in older content on our website, and thought it would be best to explain the change instead of just quietly making it as we do with other random updates. Thank you for enlightening the public about the words discarded and the words used. The truth in history can only be known when perspective is understood.
