Anasazi

noun

An·​a·​sa·​zi ˌä-nə-ˈsä-zē 

plural Anasazi

see usage paragraph below

: a member of a group of prehistoric Indigenous peoples of the canyons of northern Arizona and New Mexico and southwestern Colorado : ancestral puebloan

Usage of Anasazi, Ancestral Pueblo, and Ancestral Puebloan

The English word Anasazi comes from a Navajo word meaning "enemy ancestors." Due to this association, Anasazi is now often considered an inappropriate or disrespectful name for a member of these prehistoric peoples or (when used in the plural) for the peoples referred to as a group. The terms Ancestral Pueblo and Ancestral Puebloan are often used as alternative names for the peoples and for an individual member of these peoples, respectively.

Examples of Anasazi in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Interestingly, these events appear to coincide with the start of a major exodus, with the Anasazi people who had lived in the region abandoning their settlements and leaving the area. —Dan Falk, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024

What adds an element of singularity to the Anasazi Bar and Lounge, however, is the city itself, which harbors strong ties to its Mexican heritage, notably Oaxaca and Jalisco. —Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024

For a stay that bridges past and present, rest your head at the 30-year-old Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi, or the 135-year-old Inn of the Turquoise Bear. —Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Dec. 2023

Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi The entrance to Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi. —Alexandra Malmed, Vogue, 8 Nov. 2023

The collapse of the Anasazi occurred in a single generation. —Wade Davis, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2023

About an hour away in Santa Fe, stay at Bishop’s Lodge, Auberge Resorts Collection, Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi, or Inn of the Five Graces. —Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 29 June 2023

Stay at the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi, Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado, Santuario by La Fonda, or the Inn of the Five Graces for luxurious accommodations in Santa Fe. —Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 24 May 2023

What many visitors might not know is that Horseshoe Bend is just one part of a canyon where tribes — the Anasazi, the Paiute, and the Diné (Navajo) — once grew crops, hunted, and lived and died for centuries. —Jim Kristofic, Travel + Leisure, 13 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Navajo anaasází, literally, enemy ancestors

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above