Huérfano Mountain ( Navajo: ''Dził Náʼoodiłii'', "People Encircling the Mountain"), also known as Huerfano Mesa and El Huerfano, is one of the six sacred mountains in the mythology of the Navajo people. Located in

San Juan County, New Mexico San Juan County is located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 121,661 making it the fifth-most populous county in New Mexico. Its county seat is Aztec. The county was created in 1887. San Juan Count ...

, the mountain is believed in Navajo culture to be the home of Yódí Atʼééd (Soft Goods Girl) and Yódí Ashkii (Soft Goods Boy). It is also thought to be the original home of ''Áłtsé Hastiin'' (First Man) and ''Áłtsé Asdzą́ą́'' (First Woman). Located at the center of the Navajo's ancestral homeland, the '' Dinetah'', Huérfano Mountain is composed of

Eocene The Eocene ( ) Epoch is a geological epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (mya). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''ēṓs'', " ...

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

, and is considered one of two sacred "inner mountains". An

Ancestral Puebloan The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, an ...

long-distance communication system that utilized smoke and mirrors existed in the region, and direct lines of sight have been established between Huérfano Mountain, Chimney Rock Pueblo, and the Chacoan

great house A great house is a large house or mansion with luxurious appointments and great retinues of indoor and outdoor staff. The term is used mainly historically, especially of properties at the turn of the 20th century, i.e., the late Victorian or ...

Pueblo Alto. Messages could have been relayed between the three points within minutes.

References

Citations Bibliography * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Huerfano Mountain Mountains of New Mexico Navajo Nation Archaeological sites in New Mexico Colorado Plateau Ancestral Puebloans San Juan County, New Mexico Mountains of San Juan County, New Mexico