COMPASS
Four Corners U.S.
COMPILED BY PAT HENDERSON
Gather up Gallup’s
Native American
heritage
30
March 2018
Nightly Indian Dances in Gallup
and Albuquerque, New Mexico, is home to a number
of native groups. During a visit, travelers can learn
more about how the Navajo/Diné, Apache, Zuni, Hopi
and others tribes blend hundreds of years of traditions
with everyday life.
“The unique Native American experiences offered
in Gallup are a great way to see how native culture is
alive and well,” she says. “Events such as the Gallup
Inter-tribal Indian Ceremonial or the Nightly Indian
Dances allow you to get up close and personal with
the native tribes and dancers. The tribes explain the
dances and traditions, and guests can ask questions
about regalia and the dances themselves, and can
often join in on the dances and take lots of pictures.”
The Inter-tribal Ceremonial, which marks its 97th
year in 2018, is the oldest Native American cultural
celebration in the U.S. Taking place this Aug. 3–12, the
event includes parades, a rodeo, a powwow, traditional
dancing, and an arts and crafts area featuring hun-
dreds of jewelry makers.
The Nightly Indian Dances are a series of free per-
formances held each evening from Memorial Day to
Labor Day. Guests gather in the heart of downtown at
Gallup’s historical courthouse to watch tribe members
demonstrate ceremonial dances.
“Additionally, we have the finest in Native American
arts, as over 70 percent of the world’s authentic Native
American jewelry comes from the Gallup region,”
Lazarz says. “The Gallup Native Arts Market allows
guests to shop authentic Native American art, and
[purchases] support over 1,000 people, as well as the
soft-goods arts economy that is the so important here.”
The Native Arts Market features more than 75