Honoring Native American Heritage Month: A Time to Reflect, Respect & Celebrate
Each November, we observe Native American Heritage Month: a time to recognize the histories, cultures, and ongoing contributions of Indigenous peoples across the United States. At Evans Fish & Chips, located in the heart of Flagstaff, we also want to honor the deep and living connections Native nations have to the land we share.
The National Story
The roots of Native American Heritage Month stretch back more than a century. The movement for a national observance began taking shape in the early 20th century, when Indigenous advocates and their allies called for greater recognition of Native peoples and their contributions to American life. An annual American Indian Day was first observed in New York in 1916.
The modern federal observance developed much later. In 1986, Congress authorized and requested that the president proclaim American Indian Week, beginning a series of annual congressional resolutions recognizing Native American heritage. In 1990, Congress passed legislation authorizing the president to proclaim November as National American Indian Heritage Month. President George H. W. Bush issued the first proclamation that November.
Since then, presidents have continued to issue annual proclamations recognizing November as a time to honor Native American and Alaska Native history, cultures, and contributions.
Today, the month serves as more than a commemoration; it's an invitation to learn, reflect, and celebrate. Indigenous peoples have shaped every region of this country, contributing agricultural knowledge, environmental knowledge, systems of governance, artistic traditions, languages, and countless other contributions that continue to influence American life.
It's also a time to listen to Indigenous voices, celebrate languages and traditions that have endured for generations, and recognize the resilience of communities that continue to thrive today.
Across the country, schools, museums, libraries, and community organizations host exhibits, storytelling events, and cultural programs throughout November. The diversity of Indigenous America is enormous: each Tribal Nation has its own history, traditions, language, culture, and government.
Our Local Roots: Northern Arizona & Flagstaff
While our kitchen serves up fish, chips, and community spirit today, the story of this region stretches back thousands of years.
The Flagstaff area is connected to the homelands and histories of numerous Indigenous peoples. The National Park Service recognizes thirteen federally recognized tribes as traditionally associated with the Flagstaff Area National Monuments, including the Hopi, Havasupai, Hualapai, Navajo Nation, several Apache, Paiute, and Yavapai communities, and the Zuni Tribe.
People have lived in this region for thousands of years. The archaeological record at places such as Wupatki, Walnut Canyon, and Sunset Crater tells the story of communities who farmed, traded, traveled, and built complex societies here long before the establishment of modern Flagstaff. The Wupatki area has been home to Native people for more than 13,000 years.
The Sinagua tradition is also an important part of the archaeological history of the Flagstaff area, with sites such as Elden Pueblo providing evidence of the communities who lived here centuries ago.
And towering over Flagstaff are the San Francisco Peaks, known as Dook'o'oosłííd to the Diné. The Peaks and surrounding landscape remain places of profound cultural and spiritual significance to Indigenous peoples today.
At Evans, we're proud to be part of this community—a community with a history that stretches far beyond the buildings and businesses we see today. Recognizing Native American Heritage Month isn't simply symbolic; it's an opportunity to acknowledge the peoples who have lived, cared for, and maintained connections to this land for generations.
Ways to Celebrate Native American Heritage Month
Native American Heritage Month offers many opportunities to learn more about the cultures and histories that continue to shape our region. Here are a few meaningful ways to participate:
Visit places like Walnut Canyon National Monument or Wupatki National Monument and learn about the Indigenous histories connected to Northern Arizona.
Support Indigenous-owned businesses, artists, and cultural organizations whenever possible.
Attend local events throughout November, including cultural festivals, storytelling programs, museum exhibits, and art shows.
Continue learning. Native American Heritage Month is a reminder that Indigenous history isn't only about the past; it's part of the living story of our communities today.
Final Thoughts
As we serve longtime locals, travelers passing through, and neighbors from every walk of life, we're reminded that Flagstaff's story is inseparable from the Indigenous nations connected to this region.
Native American Heritage Month offers an opportunity to learn, reflect, and celebrate the cultures that continue to shape our community today.
From all of us at Evans Fish & Chips, thank you to the Indigenous peoples of Northern Arizona. We're grateful to live, work, and share meals in a place with such a deep and continuing history, and we wish everyone a meaningful Native American Heritage Month.
Sources & Further Reading
Library of Congress — Native American Heritage Month https://guides.loc.gov/national-american-indian-heritage-month/history-and-overview
National Archives — Native American Heritage Month https://www.archives.gov/news/topics/native-american-heritage-month
Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian https://americanindian.si.edu/
National Park Service — Traditionally Associated Tribes, Wupatki National Monument https://www.nps.gov/wupa/learn/historyculture/associated-tribes.htm
National Park Service — People, Wupatki National Monument https://home.nps.gov/wupa/learn/historyculture/people.htm
National Park Service — People, Walnut Canyon National Monument https://www.nps.gov/waca/learn/historyculture/people.htm
Arizona State Museum — Native Nations of Arizona https://statemuseum.arizona.edu/native-nations-arizona
Museum of Northern Arizona https://musnaz.orgrg/
Flagstaff Convention & Visitors Bureau — Learn About Native American Culture in Flagstaff https://www.flagstaffarizona.org/things-to-do/untraveled-flagstaff/learn-about-native-american-culture-in-flagstaff-arizona/
Northern Arizona University — Center for Native American & Indigenous Futures https://legacy.nau.edu/indigenous/center-native-american-indigenous-futures/
Comments