Kivas are rooms used for religious purposes by Pueblo and Hopi peoples, with some ancient tribes having underground kivas. Kivas were used for spiritual practice, but may have had other purposes. Kivas have benches, a sipapu hole, fire pit, and ventilation shaft. Later kivas became larger and more elaborate. Many kivas were burned due to strife, but ruins can still be seen in national parks.
A kiva is a room used for religious purposes by the Pueblo and Hopi peoples. Although most modern kivas are built above ground, ancient tribes in today’s American Southwest maintained some underground kivas. Most of these underground rooms were round, rather than square like their above-ground counterparts. It is believed that some of these spaces were used for common purposes as well as for sacred rites.
Many of the peoples who are known to have used kivas have participated in the katchina belief system. Historians have found that this belief system emerged in the American Southwest between 1300 AD and 1200 AD However, archaeologists have found kivas built before that time. Thus, kivas may have been designed for reasons other than spiritual practice, but were later employed for these purposes.
A kiva is inserted through a hole in the roof of the structure. Inside the structure there are benches built along the internal wall. Depending on a kiva’s placement and design, it may also include internal supports and beams. A very characteristic feature of kivas is a hole or depression in the floor. This hole is called a sipapu and is thought to symbolize an important event within the creation story of katchina. Followers of this spiritual path believe that the very first inhabitants of the world came out of the hole in the earth, from a lower world. A kiva is also likely to include a fire pit and a ventilation shaft.
As time went on and kivas were used by the peoples of the American Southwest for dozens of generations, the structure’s design became more elaborate. Also, while many early kivas were built to accommodate rather small groups of people, later kivas were much larger. It is clear that kivas have become popular for large groups, hence the change in their design and capabilities. This change in kivas may also mark a change in the way people worshipped.
The strife in the American Southwest and the strife between peoples is evident from the ruins of many kivas. Based on archaeological studies, it is known that many kivas were burned. The ruins of kivas can still be seen today in many national parks. The reconstructed kivas can be visited at Mesa Verde National Park and Bandelier National Monument. There are also ruins of a large kiva at Chaco Culture National Historic Park.
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