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Apache Rites of Passage: The Coming of Age Traditions
A public-level overview of Apache coming-of-age traditions for girls and boys, how they differ between nations, and why private details are not shared.
Spirituality and Stories
Ceremonial Life
Coming-of-age ceremonies, healing knowledge, music and dance, described with restraint.
Apache Music and Dance: Preserving the Tribe's Cultural Heritage
How Apache nations keep songs and dances alive through youth groups, recordings, classes and community events, and why communities control what is shared.
Apache People: Their Contributions to American Music and Dance
A careful look at Apache musicians and dancers in wider American music, from the Apache fiddle and its makers to performers on public stages today.
Apache Rites of Passage: Understanding the Tribe's Coming-of-Age Traditions
The girls' Sunrise Ceremony as a public community event: family obligations, costs, the role of sponsors and what visitors should know, without ceremonial detail.
Apache Sweat Lodge Ceremonies: Purification and Renewal
What is publicly documented about the Apache sweat bath, mostly a men's practice for cleansing and prayer, and how it differs from Plains sweat lodges.
Apache Traditional Medicine: The Importance of Herbalism and Natural Remedies
A general look at documented Apache medicinal plant use, who holds the knowledge, why details stay private, and why readers should not self-treat.
Apache Traditional Medicine: The Use of Herbs and Natural Remedies
How Apache communities may combine traditional healing with Indian Health Service and tribal clinics today, in general terms and without medical advice.
Apache Tribe Traditions: The Significance of the Apache Corn Ceremony
There is no widely documented single Apache Corn Ceremony. This article covers corn farming among the Western Apache and Jicarilla and corn's role in food and pollen use.
The Apache Sun Dance: A Sacred Ceremony
The Sun Dance belongs to Plains nations, with limited Plains Apache participation; most Apache nations' central ceremony is the Sunrise Ceremony, explained here.
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Spiritual Leaders Medicine people and ceremonial leadership, described with restraint. Ceremonies and Sacred Life Ceremony, regalia and honoring the dead, at a public level only. Legends and Oral Tradition Apache stories, holy beings and the values they teach. Spiritual Beliefs Public, general overviews of Apache belief and its ties to the land. Oral Tradition Storytelling as history, teaching and living tradition. Ceremonies and Dances Examined What is and is not part of Apache ceremonial life, including common mix-ups with other nations’ dances. Rites of Passage Coming of age and life transitions among Apache peoples, at a public level.