American Sign Language
Native American symbols and design elements are truly captivating when you consider their variety, the number of tribes and aesthetic appeal. Symbols on jewelry, weavings, baskets and pottery can be so intricate and carefully designed that it's impossible to imagine that they don't have deeper cultural meaning.
Every culture has it's own cultural interpretations of symbols. In the case of the Native Americans, with forced migrations and forced communal living, some Native American symbols have merged. And, over the years, symbols and designs have been subject to interpretation and translation by non-Indian dealers and traders.
Every culture has it's own cultural interpretations of symbols. In the case of the Native Americans, with forced migrations and forced communal living, some Native American symbols have merged. And, over the years, symbols and designs have been subject to interpretation and translation by non-Indian dealers and traders.
- · Arrowhead - Alertness.
- · Arrow Pointing Right - Protection.
- · Arrow Pointing Left - Warding of Evil.
- · Bear Track/Paw - Good omen.
- · Broken Arrow - Peace.
- · Buffalo Horns - Success.
- · Cactus Flower - Romance and courtship
- · Corn - Symbol of Life. It is the mainstay for many tribes.
- · Corn Maiden - Gave the corn of her own body to feed her family so they would not have to hunt the beloved animals. After she passed on she was reborn in the corn stalks and provided the seeds which continued to provide food for all.
- · Corn Pollen/Cornmeal - Blessing for protection, understanding and forgiveness.
- · Cross - Paths crossing.
- · Crossed Arrows - friendship.
- · Eagle Feather - Chief.
- · Enclosure - Ceremonial dance
- · Feather - Sacred universal symbol of flight within the spirit world and serving as messenger to Great Spirit.
- · Feathers Fanned into a Circle - Related to the Sun and The Creator.
- · Fence - Guarding good luck.
- · Fetish - Spirit and power
- · Flowers - Symbolize a relationship to the sun.
- · Handprint - Symbol of a human's life, achievements and legacy, the creative spirit, channeled energy.
- · Headdress - Dance.
- · Hogan - Permanent home.
- · Kachina - A Kachina can be a force of nature such as life, death, fire, flood, or the spirit of a revered ancestor, and the dancer at a ceremony.
- · Kokopelli - Flute player.
- · Lasso - Symbol of Captivity.
- · Leaf - Wealth.
- · Lightning Arrow - Swiftness.
- · Male Child - Father's pride.
- · Man - Life.
- · Man in the Maze - Tohono O'odham symbol of life cycles and choice, and eternal motion with the goal of achieving harmony. The man is named "U'ki'ut'l".
- · Mask - Symbol of a human's animal spirit and prayer to sacred deities.
- · Medicine Bag - Vessel containing herbs, remedies, and or stones necessary for healing and protection.
- · Medicine Man's Eye - Wisdom.
- · Moon - Earth Protector and Guardian in Night
- · Morning Star - Honored as Kachina by most Pueblo tribes, sign of courage and purity of spirit.
- · Mountain - Great abundance, plenty.
- · Music - Ritual of communication with the Great Spirit with the Singer's Life Breath (during a method of settling disputes between tribes).
- · Oak Twig - Summon the holy
- · Path - crossed paths.
- · Paths Crossing - Life's Journey.
- · Pipe - Used in negotiations of peace and war, to offer sacred tobacco smoke to the four directions, and in religious ceremony.
- · Plants and Herbs - Survival including food, tools, basketry and healing.
- · Prayer Stick - Carved and painted cottonwood or cedar sticks decorated with feathers and images for a specific prayer, planted at sacred sites to send prayers to The Creator or to The Kachinas.
- · Rain - Plentiful, good crop.
- · Rain Cloud - Symbol of change, renewal, and fertility.
- · Rain Drop - Good luck.
- · Rattle - Ceremonial songs are accompanied with rattles which are often used to represent the characteristic sounds of animals and nature.
- · Rattlesnake's Jaw - Strength.
- · Sacrifice - Offerings of food, tobacco, cornmeal, pollen, feathers, shells, beads, herbs, and such given to Spirit and Deities in blessing and prayer.
- · Saddle Bag - Represents a journey.
- · Shaman's Eye - Medicine.
- · Sky Band / Rainbow - Leading to happiness.
- · Shell - Served as Wampum (money) in trade. Used in decoration of traditional dress and jewelry, as essential utensils of cooking, gathering water, and digging.