Navajo

noun

Na·​va·​jo ˈna-və-ˌhō  ˈnä- 

variants or less commonly Navaho

1

plural Navajo or Navajos also Navaho or Navahos : a member of an Indigenous people of northern New Mexico and Arizona and southern Utah

2

: the language of the Navajo people

Examples of Navajo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Voting continued slowly, but the issue left some voters on the Navajo Nation waiting in line for hours. —Sasha Hupka, The Arizona Republic, 6 Nov. 2024

The spacious property located in the 700 block of Navajo Way in Fremont was sold on Aug. 6, 2024. —Bay Area Home Report, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024

Arizona Four polling locations in Navajo County, Arizona, received unsubstantiated bomb threats that Secretary of State Adrian Fontes says his office has reason to believe are from Russia, but that hasn't been confirmed. —Luke Barr, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2024

With the impending departure of Navajo State Senator Affie Ellis (R-Cheyenne), a loss from Posey, who has both Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho ancestry, would mean no Indigenous representation in the Wyoming legislature. —Cy Neff, USA TODAY, 5 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Spanish (Apache de) Navajó, literally, Apache of Navajó, from Navajó, area occupied by Navajos, probably from Tewa (Pueblo Indian language of northern New Mexico) navahu·, literally, arroyo with planted fields

First Known Use

1808, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

Navajo

noun

Na·​va·​jo

variants also Navaho

ˈnav-ə-ˌhō  ˈnäv- 

plural Navajo or Navajos also Navaho or Navahos

: a member of an Indigenous people of northern New Mexico and Arizona