Navajo National Monument

Navajo National Monument preserves three of the largest and best-preserved cliff dwellings of the Ancestors of the Puebloan People. The Ancestral Puebloan people farmed the canyons, enabling them to flourish in this high desert environment. They hunted wild game and grew corn, beans, and squash. In particular, descendants of the Hopi people who built these places are called Hisatsinom. Zuni, also pueblo builders, know that several of their clans began in this area. Later, San Juan Southern Paiute, famous for their baskets, moved into this area and lived near the cliff dwellings. Today, the park is surrounded by the Navajo Nation, as it has been for hundreds of years.