Chaco Canyon: Questions and Answers
What archaeologists know, and do not yet know, about Chaco’s buildings, kivas, timber, water and food, and people. This reading uses five of the page’s questions. It leaves out the questions about excavation, reconstruction, doorways, artifacts, fossils, and visiting the park.
This page is a simplified version of the original text (leveled toward 800L). Photos, maps, and other images are not on this page — use the original link above to see them.
Words with a dotted underline have a Word Help card pinned beside the paragraph.
What were the buildings used for?
There are many theories that try to answer this question. None are fully agreed upon. Our ideas about what the buildings were used for have changed over time. Today, many people believe the great houses were public buildings. They were centers for ceremonies, trading, and administrative activities. Others argue that the buildings were living spaces.
What are the round rooms?
The round rooms are kivas, or ceremonial rooms. The Chacoans built two types of kivas: great kivas and clan kivas. Great kivas, such as Casa Rinconada, usually had benches, niches, floor vaults, a fire hearth, and a doorway facing north. They may have been used for community or regional gatherings with hundreds of people. Smaller clan kivas may have been ceremonial rooms for separate clans or religious societies. Kivas were multi-purpose rooms. Men and women used them for different kinds of ceremonies. These included preparation, dance, prayer vigils, and other social events.
Where did the timbers come from?
Researchers at the University of Arizona recently tested the fir and spruce beams used for the roofs in some of the great houses. They used strontium testing. Plants take in the element strontium in relation to how much is in the soil. Researchers took samples from beams and matched them with soil samples. This showed that the beams in Chaco came mainly from the Chuska Mountains and the San Mateo Mountains. Both are about 60 to 70 miles away.
Where did the Chacoans get their water and food?
The Chacoans found and created many ways to get water. There are a few seeps and springs in the box canyons. It is also thought that they changed natural drainage areas into canals to send water into fields. They built many water control devices in the canyon, including catch basins and diversion dams. Some geologists believe the water table was only about three feet below the surface when Chaco culture flourished. So it is also possible that they dug wells in the wash area.
The Chacoans used native plants such as beeweed, pinon nuts, rice grass, and cactus fruit. They grew corn, beans, and squash in the canyon. Some archaeologists now believe that farm goods were also imported. Meat sources included turkeys, rabbits, and larger game such as antelopes and deer.
What happened to these people (where did they go)?
The Chacoan people did not suddenly vanish! We are not exactly sure why they left. Possible reasons include drought, running out of resources, social, religious, or political collapse, time to move on, or a combination of these. In the 13th century, there were migrations to the south, east, and west. Today, the nineteen Puebloan tribes in New Mexico, as well as the Hopi in Arizona, claim Chaco as their ancestral homeland. They are tied to this place through oral traditions and clan lineages. A number of Navajo clans are also connected to Chacoan sites through their traditional stories.