Shelter+EFGH

By: Austin and Jonathan Do you know who built Navajo homes? Would you also like to learn some spacial details about the house? The families built the Navajo hogans.The hogans were scattered far from each other.The roof was covered with mud to keep in the heat.They had special places to sit in the hogans.The visitors had to sit on the western side [facing the door],men sat on the south side of the hogan,and women sat on the north side of the hogan.

The inside of the hogans were scarce. In the middle,on the ground there was a nice,hot fireplace.There was also a smoke hole in the roof to let out the smoke from the fire,which kept them warm at night. Families slept on sheep skins around the fireplace to get warm. Incredibly there was no furniture. But they did keep earthen pots inside to store food.

The Dine kept a fire stick by the door to scare away evil spirits. There was also a door made of blankets. The inside of hogan were quite simple. The area outside the hogan must have been an interesting sight.There were corrals filled with sheep,which were the most important animals for the Navajos. Goats and horses could also be found nearby. In the warm months,women did there weaving outside,so there would be a loom set up near the door. The Dine planted peach orchards. Some of the crops they grew were pumpkins,corn,and squash. Sometimes they also had a vegetable garden with other vegetables.