Glossary of Terms used in this Website
GLOSSARY
Arroyo—a deep gully. Usually dry.
Atlatl—a spear thrower used before the bow and arrow.
Band—a family or group of families that inhabit a rock shelter. Usually 12 to 25 people.
Blackbrush—a desert plant with spiny twigs. Cat's-claw—a thorny desert shrub.
Dart point—a chipped stone projectile mounted on a dart or spear shaft. Larger and thicker than an arrowhead.
Dart shaft—a thin, tapered piece of wood with a dart point that is pressed into the end of a dart or spear shaft.
Digging stick—a long piece of wood tapered at both ends and used primarily by women for digging up root bulbs, removing small animals from holes, and sometimes in self-defense.
Fire drill—a split sotol base and a hardwood shaft used for making fires.
Lechuguilla—a desert plant of the agave family whose fiber was used to weave baskets, sleeping mats, and articles of clothing.
Mano—a hand-held stone used for grinding grain on a metate.
Metate—a large, flat or indented stone on which grain was ground.
Midden—the accumulated loose dirt and refuge on the floor of a rock shelter.
Ocotillo—a desert plant with numerous tall, thorny stalks growing from a single base.
Prickly pear—a type of cactus used for food and whose paddles were used to make carrying pouches.
Rabbit stick—a slender, piece of wood carved in such a way that it resembles a boomerang. Used primarily by male hunters to kill rabbits. Also used for raking coals and pushing aside brush while traveling through thick undergrowth.
Rock shelter—a protected area carved into the side of a canyon wall by either wind or water. Used as homes or as ceremonial sites since prehistoric times.
Shaman—a holy man or medicine man with access to the spirit world. Also believed to possess the ability to assume the form of wild animals such as panthers, deer, or birds. The subject of numerous rock shelter paintings.
Sotol—a desert plant of the yucca family.
Sotol knife—a large, oval knapped flint blade mounted in a split sotol stalk and used for cutting plants and butchering animals.
Trance—an altered state of consciousness during which a shaman makes a magical flight of the soul to the spirit world.
Tumpline—a braided sling formed into a strap that rested against the forehead for carrying baskets on the back, leaving the hands free.
Tuna—an edible fruit of the prickly pear cactus.
Twill—a woven material used in making baskets and articles of clothing.
Vision—something seen in a trance or a dream, often a special insight or knowledge given by the Great Spirit.
Copyright 2008