Gila Wilderness is the Gila Apache Homeland

The Gila Wilderness is Gila Apache Homeland

by Ruben Leyva, Chíhéne Ndé (Gila Apache)

Elizabeth Hightower Allen’s Introduction to First & Wildest: The Gila Wilderness at 100 illuminates that “in 1924, the Forest Service officially created the Gila Wilderness.” The term ‘Gila,’ however, has a history that extends far beyond this official recognition. It’s a common misconception that the name originates from Spanish or is linked to the ancestral Pueblo people who once inhabited the region. The name Gila is deeply embedded in Apache history. The Gila Apache, also known as the Chihene Nde, were a nomadic tribe known for their resilience and adaptability in the harsh desert environment of the Gila Wilderness. As we celebrate the Centennial of the Gila Wilderness, it’s crucial to recognize and express gratitude to the Gila Apache for the name that has become synonymous with the Gila National Forest and Wilderness Area.

When you search for the term Gila on Google, translations such as “crazy or wild” appear. However, the name ‘Gila’ originally ‘Xila’ was first phonetically pronounced around 1626 when the Franciscan missionary Fray Alonso de Benavides encountered the Apaches de Xila, a unique nation of Indians. Captain Sanaba, the leader of the Gila Apaches, first interacted with Fray Benavides while the latter was converting Piro Indians to Christianity at the Pueblo of Senecú. Sanaba converted as well. Their relationship was characterized by mutual respect and cultural exchange, as demonstrated by the gifts they exchanged. Sanaba presented Benavides with tanned deer skin painted by the Apache, which included a cross, symbolizing their acceptance of the new faith. In return, Benavides likely gifted Sanaba with cascabel-style ‘hawk bells,’ tiny jingle bells like those worn today on Gila Apaches ceremonial regalia, signifying the blending of cultures.  Karl Laumbach, an archaeologist, historian, author, and a team of researchers, located one of these bells from the Cañada Alamosa Project site. In 1628, Benavides also sent a priest to “Xila,” who ministered to the Apache for a year.

Sanaba’s home is now known as Cañada Alamosa, New Mexico. Karl Laumbach has a relationship with modern Gila Apaches, who identify as the Chíhéne. Laumbach has dedicated 25 years to studying the Cañada Alamosa. Ruben Leyva, a Chíhéne, is a Ph.D. student of Native American Studies at the University of New Mexico.  Ruben asserts, “Gila (Xila) originates from the Apachean word Chi’laa.” Tribal elder and Apachean language speaker Pablo Martinez explains, “‘Chi’ is the red ceremonial clay found at Cañada Alamosa, and the suffix ‘laa’ denotes “the hand or reach of the people – our territory.” From Chi’laa, we get Gila, the Land of the Red Paint People. Laumbach adds, “The Red Paint Canyon near Cañada Alamosa is a large mineral deposit of clay and hematite sourced by Indians who lived in the area.” Laumbach’s research revealed a 1746 map listing the nearby Alamosa Creek as ‘Gila de Pequeña,’ which translates to the Small Gila River, indicating a larger river of the same name existed. This evidence connects Sanaba’s descendants with The Gila River, the headwaters of which begin in the Black Range.

Ruben Leyva’s tribe, the Chihene Nde Nation of New Mexico, seeks federal acknowledgment as a historical American Indian tribe. The Chihene Nde Nation have directly descended from the Gila Apaches, who made treaties with Spain, Mexico, and three with the U.S. in 1852, 1853, and 1855 under the name the Mimbres Bands of Gila Apache. Author Paul Conrad states in his book The Apache Diaspora, “The Chihene Nde Nation, meanwhile, which includes the descendants of Apaches who eluded the forced removals of the late nineteenth century, continues to seek recognition from both state and federal officials.” This recognition is a matter of historical justice and a crucial step in preserving their cultural heritage and securing their rights as a domestic-dependent nation.

Leyva’s direct ancestors were signers and are politically distinct from the leaders whose families are on modern Apache reservations. On this 100 Anniversary of the Gila Wilderness, Leyva and his tribe have sought to educate the world about their forgotten existence, which the Cowboy and Indian accounts of Apache war leader Geronimo and others have overshadowed. This anniversary is a celebration of the Gila Wilderness and a platform for the Chihene Nde Nation to assert their historical and cultural identity and demand recognition and respect from the wider society.

Ruben Leyva’s Zoom lecture was recorded in February 2024 on the history of his Chíhéne family in the Gila, entitled “Apache Homelands – Gila Wilderness,” available on YouTube. Leyva’s talk highlights his people’s engagement with three nation-states and the tribe’s desire to acquire a seat at the table in the spirit of co-stewarding the Gila National Forest and Wilderness. The tribe filed a petition for federal acknowledgment in January 2024 as an act of self-determination to restore their Indigenous identity in the region and their place among the Indian Tribes administered through the Department of the Interior (DOI).  The DOI’s Office of Federal Acknowledgment (OFA) has determined through a preliminary screening that the tribe has provided sufficient evidence for evaluation. The OFA will publish the tribe’s petition on its website on April 16, 2024.

The tribe has provided evidence based on archival research, primary and secondary source materials, and ethnographic interviews with supporting documented genealogies. The tribe’s identity challenges linear narratives that all Apaches in the region were rounded up and exiled or taken to reservations. The anniversary of the Gila Wilderness gives all of us an opportunity to rethink this situation. Who were the  Spanish-speaking natives in the Gila and Mimbres region who worked as farmers, miners, and railway workers? And why are they positioning themselves to be recognized after being removed from the Indian Tribes list in the 1940s without consent? Tribal elders have directed the next generation to petition to preserve an ongoing culture with the support of the United States, who promised them a reservation in the Gila and instead returned the land to the public domain after holding it in reserve for two decades.

RESOURCES: 

Ruben Leyva article by UNM – https://news.unm.edu/news/before-and-beyond-celebrating-the-gila-wilderness-centennial-6899715

Chihene Nde Nation of New Mexico – https://www.chihenendenationofnewmexico.org/

Zoom Lecture – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cudUntkvpD4&t=60s

Gila Ancestral Homelands Series – https://laii.unm.edu/news/ancestral-gila-homelands-series.html.