Apache Nation
Diet and Agriculture
The Apache did not farm. They lived on a variety of wild plants. The women gathered the plants, with favorites being the yucca and mescal plants. Yucca was harvested in the spring, and mescal, a large-leafed plant tasting like squash, was gathered in late spring. The women steamed plants in a deep pit filled with stones, with the yucca and mescal plants piled on hot stones, covered with wet grass, and left to steam for much of the day. Some of the steamed food was dried for the cold season. The Apache also ate arrowhead, wild onions, berries, and nuts like the pinion. The men spent most of their time hunting deer, antelope, elk, and sometimes buffalo. They also hunted prairie dogs, squirrels, and rabbits. However, the Apache avoided fish and any animal that lived in water. Before acquiring horses in the 1700s, the men hunted on foot.
Cultural Practices
The Apache believed that everything in nature had special power. Some animals, such as bears, owls, and coyotes, were thought to be possessed by evil spirits or ghosts, while the crow was a sign of good luck. The Apache believed in the Great Spirit, who sent mountain spirits called Ganhs to teach them how to live a good life. The Ganhs taught the Apache ceremonies and chants to overcome disease. However, after the Apache ignored the teachings, the spirits disappeared into the mountains. The Apache performed ceremonial dances, acting out the Ganhs, to bring them back. The dancers were believed to absorb illnesses in a wand and blow them away with the wind as they moved.
Apache on a High Rock Cliff
Tools, Weapons, and Utensils
The Apache used various tools and weapons for hunting and daily life. They crafted bows, arrows, spears, and knives for hunting and protection. They also made pottery and baskets to store food and other items.
Art and Craftsmanship
Apache women packed all their possessions in baskets, which could hold heavy loads each time they traveled to a new home. The baskets were made from different plants, reeds, and herbs, mainly using yucca leaves, willow reeds, or juniper bark. Plant flowers were used to make dyes for painting designs on the baskets. The Apache used the coiling and twining technique.
Student Craft Project of a Woven Basket