Anasazi

noun

An·​a·​sa·​zi ˌä-nə-ˈsä-zē 

plural Anasazi

see usage paragraph below

: a member of a group of prehistoric Indigenous peoples of the canyons of northern Arizona and New Mexico and southwestern Colorado : ancestral puebloan

Usage of Anasazi, Ancestral Pueblo, and Ancestral Puebloan

The English word Anasazi comes from a Navajo word meaning "enemy ancestors." Due to this association, Anasazi is now often considered an inappropriate or disrespectful name for a member of these prehistoric peoples or (when used in the plural) for the peoples referred to as a group. The terms Ancestral Pueblo and Ancestral Puebloan are often used as alternative names for the peoples and for an individual member of these peoples, respectively.

Examples of Anasazi in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Visitors will not be faulted for following up their time at the International Folk Art Museum with a tequila or mezcal flight at the Anasazi Bar & Lounge inside the spectacular Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi hotel in Santa Fe to take the edge off. —Chadd Scott, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025

Book now at Half Moon Resort Earn a free night at this RCA-winning hotel in Santa Fe A 2024 Readers' Choice Awards winner, the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi is located in Santa Fe, New Mexico, just steps from the town’s historic plaza. —Paris Wilson, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Dec. 2024

Feel like a local: Check out the Red Pueblo Museum to see Anasazi artifacts. —Karen Cicero, Parents, 8 Oct. 2024

Interestingly, these events appear to coincide with the start of a major exodus, with the Anasazi people who had lived in the region abandoning their settlements and leaving the area. —Dan Falk, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 Mar. 2024

What adds an element of singularity to the Anasazi Bar and Lounge, however, is the city itself, which harbors strong ties to its Mexican heritage, notably Oaxaca and Jalisco. —Lauren Mowery, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024

For a stay that bridges past and present, rest your head at the 30-year-old Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi, or the 135-year-old Inn of the Turquoise Bear. —Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Dec. 2023

Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi The entrance to Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi. —Alexandra Malmed, Vogue, 8 Nov. 2023

The collapse of the Anasazi occurred in a single generation. —Wade Davis, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Navajo anaasází, literally, enemy ancestors

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Anasazi

• jazzy