Mogollon culture

Quick Facts: Who was Mogollon culture?

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Mogollon culture

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Prehistoric archaeological culture of the American Southwest, spanning from c. 200 CE to 1450/1540 CE.

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2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

The Mogollon culture ( moh-gə-YOHN) is a pre-historic archaeological culture of Native American peoples from Southern New Mexico and Arizona, Northern Sonora and Chihuahua, and Western Texas. The northern part of this region is Oasisamerica, while the southern span of the Mogollon culture is known as Aridoamerica. The Mogollon culture is one of the most well known prehistoric Southwestern cultural divisions of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. The culture flourished from the archaic period, c. 200 CE, to either 1450 or 1540 CE, when the Spanish arrived. The name Mogollon comes from the Mogollon Mountains, which were named after Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón, Spanish Governor of New Spain (including what is now New Mexico) from 1712 to 1715.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The name was chosen and defined in 1936 by archaeologist Emil W. Haury. The distinct facets of Mogollon culture were recorded by Emil Haury, based on his excavations in 1931, 1933, and 1934 at the Harris Village in Mimbres, New Mexico, and the Mogollon Village on the upper San Francisco River in New Mexico Haury recognized differences between architecture and artifacts from these sites as compared with sites in the Hohokam archaeological culture area and the Ancestral Pueblo archaeological culture area. Key differences included brown-paste, coil-and-scrape pottery, deeply excavated semi-subterranean pit-houses and different ceremonial architecture. Eight decades of subsequent research have confirmed Haury's initial findings. Today, the distinctiveness of the Mogollon pottery manufacture, architectural construction, ground-stone tool design, habits and customs of residence location, and mortuary treatment is generally recognized.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The earliest Mogollon pithouses were deep and either circular or oval-shaped. Over time, Mogollon people built pit houses that were not as deep and were rectangular with rounded corners. Their villages also had round, semi-subterranean ceremonial structures called kivas. Mogollon origins remain a matter of speculation. One theory is that the Mogollon emerged from a Desert Archaic tradition linked to the first prehistoric human occupations of the area during the late Pleistocene, around 9000 BC.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1450: 1450 Milestone — 200 CE, to either 1450 or 1540 CE, when the Spanish arrived.
2. 1712: 1712 Milestone — The name Mogollon comes from the Mogollon Mountains, which were named after Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón, Spanish Governor of New Spain (including what is now New Mexico) from 1712 to 1715.
3. 1931: 1931 Milestone — The distinct facets of Mogollon culture were recorded by Emil Haury, based on his excavations in 1931, 1933, and 1934 at the Harris Village in Mimbres, New Mexico, and the Mogollon Village on the upper San Francisco River in New Mexico Haury recognized differences between architecture and artifacts from these sites as compared with sites in the Hohokam archaeological culture area and the Ancestral Pueblo archaeological culture area.
4. 1936: 1936 Milestone — The name was chosen and defined in 1936 by archaeologist Emil W.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Mogollon culture

True or False: “The Mogollon culture's name was derived from the local geography of the Mogollon Mountains.”

Answer (TRUE ⭕): The mountains were named after Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón, a Spanish Governor who governed New Spain between 1712 and 1715.

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