Sandia Pueblo

The Pueblo culture developed from 700–1100, characterized by its distinctive religious beliefs and practices and a large growth in population. The period from 1100 to 1300 CE is known as the Great Pueblo Period, and is marked by cooperation between the Pueblo peoples and the communal Great Kiva ritual. The Sandia Pueblo has resided in its current location since the 14th century, when they comprised over 20 pueblos. They were a thriving community, numbering 3,000 at the time of the arrival of Coronado in 1539 (in the Pueblo IV Era).[4]

Spanish conquistador Francisco Vásquez de Coronado "discovered" the Pueblo of Sandía in 1539 while on an expedition to discover the Seven Cities of Cíbola.

In 1610, Fray Esteban de Perea arrived. A descendant of a distinguished Spanish family, he was Guardian, Commissary, and Custodian of the friars in New Mexico, and was responsible for the implementation of the Inquisition in the territories under his authority.

In 1617 the area became home to the seat of the Mission of San Francisco. The Spanish exacted tribute and enslaved members of the Sandía Pueblo people for labor in the building of churches and in Mexican mines. As a result of the resentment against this abuse, the Sandía, who had already offered sanctuary for Zía and Jémez rebels, were one of the pueblos involved in the August 10, 1680 Popé-led Pueblo Revolt against Spanish rule that drove the Spanish from the region until its reconquest by Diego de Vargas in 1692. They did not find freedom, however, as Popé and his successor Luis Tupatú exacted as heavy a tribute as the Spanish and the raiding tribes had. By way of punishment for their insurrection, then governor of the territory, Antonio de Otermín, ordered the village, which by that time had been abandoned, burned on August 26. Having fled to neighboring Hopi lands, the rectory at Sandía was left unprotected and was looted.[5]

The Sandía returned after each Spanish attack, with the 441 surviving Sandía resettling permanently in November 1742. In 1762, Governor Tomás Cachupín ordered the rebuilding of Sandía Pueblo (although his concern was primarily the housing of the Hopi who had found refuge there) as a buffer between the settlement at Albuquerque and the raids of the semi-nomadic Navajo and Apache. As a result, Sandía was raided continuously, the most deadly of such events occurring in 1775 when a Comanche raid killed thirty. The Hopi suffered the brunt of the attack as a result of their segregation from the Sandía, which has minimized their influence in the Pueblo. As a result of wars with Spanish conquistadors and raids from neighboring indigenous nations, the Sandía Pueblo diminished, numbering 350 by 1748, and dwindling to 74 by 1900.

Sandia Pueblo Governor Victor Montoya (right) meeting with Congresswoman Heather Wilson

Rule of the territory passed to Mexican hands at the end of the Mexican War of Independence in 1820. It proved difficult to establish a new republic and govern outlying territories with a history of insubordination at the same time, and New Mexico enjoyed a brief semi-autonomous period resembling the salutary neglect of the American colonies. In American history, this period is often referred to as the "Wild West", in reference to relative absence of Mexican authority, which left the region open to incursion from and settlement by American pioneers.

With the end of the Mexican–American War in 1848, the territory of New Mexico was ceded to the United States. Zebulon Pike made note of the Sandia Mountains during his 19th century expedition, calling them the "San Dies".

When Indian schools were built in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, Sandía pupils were in attendance. Nonetheless, American culture did not have a strong effect on the tribe until World War II, when the tribe sacrificed eight of their young men to the national defense.

Tribal authorities have sometimes had conflicts with state and federal authorities. They have sought to assert their longstanding claim to the Sandia Mountains east of the ridge, and they strongly opposed the construction of the Sandia Peak Tramway in 1966.

The tribe opened a casino in 1994, and have since expanded and added a hotel to the facility. The casino's amphitheater hosts many acts passing through Albuquerque, and its proximity to the state's main urban center has made it a popular attraction among gamblers.

The Sandia Mountains, the sacred land of the Sandía people

The Sandía are a deeply religious people. Early reports discuss devotion to santos, or effigies of saints, a syncretic phenomenon common throughout the Southwest.

Though nominally Catholic, they preserve many of their pre-Catholic traditions. Their feast day, a tradition common to most Pueblo people, is celebrated yearly on June 13, the feast day of St. Anthony. This feast, or fiesta, as it is called, is open to the public. Music and dance are big parts of the ceremony, and it is considered an honor to participate.[7]

They use the mountain as their official symbol.

Today, English is the common language of the Pueblo, although it is sprinkled with Southern Tiwa and Spanish words and expressions. Older generations speak Southern Tiwa, Spanish, and English, but younger generations have reportedly not preserved linguistic traditions as well as their elders.

Many Spanish words incorporated into common usage, such as horno (Spanish for "oven") and bosque (Spanish for "woods"), are now pronounced with an "American" accent. (Horno, referring to the ceramic outdoor oven still in common use, is pronounced ['hor no] (cf. Spanish ['or no]), and bosque is pronounced ['bas ki] (cf. Spanish ['bos ke]).

At Sandía, Southern Tiwa is still used in music, ceremony, and daily life.