DNA confirmed a Pueblo tribe's ties to Chaco Canyon

Picuris Pueblo people have long told stories of their ancestors coming from the famed site



A member of New Mexico’s Picuris Pueblo Tribal Nation stands in front of a Round House used for rituals and meetings. A DNA study directed by Picuris officials now supports their oral histories describing ancestral ties to Chaco Canyon.

Oliver Gerhard/imageBROKER.com/Alamy Stock Photo

By Bruce Bower

18 minutes ago
Chaco Canyon was once the heart of a lost civilization. People began building grand structures there around A.D. 850, in what is now northwest New Mexico. Within 300 years or so, however, the site was abandoned. Today, many Native Americans hold the canyon grounds sacred. And more than two dozen Pueblo tribes consider the Chaco people their ancestors. Now, DNA has helped confirm ancestral ties to one Pueblo group.

An analysis genetically linked ancient people at Chaco Canyon to the modern Picuris Pueblo Tribal Nation. Picuris Pueblo today live some 275 kilometers (170 miles) east of the canyon. People in the tribe have long told stories about descending from ancient North Americans. Those oral histories described ties to Chaco Canyon.

The new findings back up what Picuris people — though not archaeologists — knew all along. The results also flesh out lost pieces of the tribe’s past. Picuris Pueblo tribe members and scientists teamed up for the new research. They shared their results in the June 5 Nature.

“Our elders knew we had always been here. But it was very moving and powerful to see it validated,” said Craig Quanchello. He is Picuris Pueblo’s lieutenant governor. He is also a member of the research team. He spoke at a press briefing on April 29.



Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Culture National Historic Park, New Mexico
This photo shows the ruins of Pueblo Bonito, once the largest great house in Chaco Canyon. The DNA of ancient Chaco Canyon residents analyzed in this study came from people buried in this house.

Sumiko Scott/Moment/Getty Images

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