Luci Tapahonso
Encyclopedia
Luci Tapahonso is a Navajo
(Diné
) poet
and lecturer in Native American
Studies.
, to Eugene Tapahonso , and Lucille Tapahonso, , Luci Tapahonso was raised in a traditional way along with 11 siblings. English
was not spoken on the family farm, and Tapahonso learned it as a second tongue after her native Navajo
. Following schooling at Navajo Methodist School in Farmington, New Mexico
, and Shiprock High School
, she began studies at the University of New Mexico
. There she first met the novelist and poet Leslie Marmon Silko
, who was a faculty member and who proved to be an important influence on Tapahonso's early writing. In 1982, Tapahonso gained her MA
, and she has gone on to teach, first at New Mexico and later at the University of Kansas
and now at the University of Arizona
.
and places much importance on the idea of the feminine as a source of power and balance in the world. She also frequently uses her family and childhood friends in her poetry. Several more collections followed, as well as many individual poems which have been anthologised
in others' collections, activist literature, and writing in magazines.
Her 1993 collection Saánii Dahataal (the women are singing), written in Navajo and English, was the first to gain her an international reputation, a reputation then cemented by 1997's blue horses rush in.
Tapahonso's writing, unlike that of most Native American writers, is a translation from original work she has created in her tribe's native tongue. Her Navajo work includes original songs and chants designed for performance. For this reason, her English work is strongly rhythmic and uses syntactical structures unusual in English language poetry.
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
(Diné
Dine
-People named Dine:* Jim Dine , an American pop artist* S. S. Van Dine, an art critic and author* Tom Dine, an American government worker-Other meanings:* Beit ed-Dine, a town in Lebanon* Diné, name for the Navajo Nation in the Navajo language...
) poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and lecturer in Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
Studies.
Early life
Born on the Navajo reservationIndian reservation
An American Indian reservation is an area of land managed by a Native American tribe under the United States Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs...
, to Eugene Tapahonso , and Lucille Tapahonso, , Luci Tapahonso was raised in a traditional way along with 11 siblings. English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
was not spoken on the family farm, and Tapahonso learned it as a second tongue after her native Navajo
Navajo language
Navajo or Navaho is an Athabaskan language spoken in the southwestern United States. It is geographically and linguistically one of the Southern Athabaskan languages .Navajo has more speakers than any other Native American language north of the...
. Following schooling at Navajo Methodist School in Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington is a city in San Juan County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 U.S. Census the city had a total population of 45,877 people. Farmington makes up one of the four Metropolitan Statistical Areas in New Mexico. The U.S...
, and Shiprock High School
Shiprock High School
Shiprock High School is a public high school in Shiprock, New Mexico . Shiprock High is a part of the Central Consolidated School District along with Kirtland Central High School and Newcomb High School. The school colors are Maroon, Silver, and Turquoise and the mascot is the...
, she began studies at the University of New Mexico
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico at Albuquerque is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. It is the state's flagship research institution...
. There she first met the novelist and poet Leslie Marmon Silko
Leslie Marmon Silko
Leslie Marmon Silko is a Native American writer of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, and one of the key figures in the second wave of what Kenneth Lincoln has called the Native American Renaissance...
, who was a faculty member and who proved to be an important influence on Tapahonso's early writing. In 1982, Tapahonso gained her MA
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
, and she has gone on to teach, first at New Mexico and later at the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
and now at the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
.
Writings
Her first collection of poetry, assembled when she was still an undergraduate, was published in 1981, but did not make much impact. Following Silko's lead, Tapahonso's early work is often mysticalMysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
and places much importance on the idea of the feminine as a source of power and balance in the world. She also frequently uses her family and childhood friends in her poetry. Several more collections followed, as well as many individual poems which have been anthologised
Anthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
in others' collections, activist literature, and writing in magazines.
Her 1993 collection Saánii Dahataal (the women are singing), written in Navajo and English, was the first to gain her an international reputation, a reputation then cemented by 1997's blue horses rush in.
Tapahonso's writing, unlike that of most Native American writers, is a translation from original work she has created in her tribe's native tongue. Her Navajo work includes original songs and chants designed for performance. For this reason, her English work is strongly rhythmic and uses syntactical structures unusual in English language poetry.
Awards
- Lifetime Achievement Award, Native Writers' Circle of the AmericasNative Writers' Circle of the AmericasThe Native Writers' Circle of the Americas is an organization of Native American writers, most notable for its literary awards, presented annually to Native American writers in three categories: First Book of Poetry, First Book of Prose, and Lifetime Achievement...
, 2006 - Wordcraft Circle Storyteller of the Year (Readings/Performance) Award, 1999
- Award for Best Poetry from the Mountains and Plain's Booksellers Association, 1998
- New Mexico Eminent Scholar award, New Mexico Commission of Higher Education, 1989
- Excellent Instructor Award, U. of New Mexico, 1985
- Southwestern Association of Indian Affairs Literature Fellowship, 1981
External links
- Official Luci Tapahonso site
- Voices from the Gaps - includes bio, further links
- Internet Public Library - Native American Authors Project
See also
- List of writers from peoples indigenous to the Americas
- Native American StudiesNative American StudiesNative American Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the history, culture, politics, issues and contemporary experience of Native peoples in North America, or, taking a hemispheric approach, the Americas...