Zuni law: a field of values

Smith, Watson; Roberts, John M. (John Milton); Newman, Stanley

Book

Zuni law: a field of values

The Museum • 43 (1) • Published In 1954 • Pages: x, 175

By: Smith, Watson, Roberts, John M. (John Milton), Newman, Stanley.

Abstract
This monograph, one of the first published accounts dealing with problems of legal control in a Southwestern pueblo, will serve according to the authors as a preliminary study and working paper for future relevant research in Zuni. The stated goals in preparing a paper of this nature were first to advance the study of American Indian law, secondly to contribute empirical data to the study of values in Zuni society, thirdly to contribute to Zuni ethnography as a whole, and fourthly, to further related and collateral research. Particular attention is paid to the law-ways associated with the Tribal Council in comparatively recent years. The authors have made no attempt to reconstruct Zuni legal elements prior to 1870. The legal scope of this work is limited to a specific body of data comprising basically ninety-seven cases which date from a period slightly before 1870 up to 1952, and deals in content with modern legal concepts and procedures of the Zuni Indians, as exemplified by the activities of the Bow priesthood and the Tribal Council, the latter of which serves as a true judicial court. Since this Tribal Council lacks written records, and with the exception of a few scattered cases reported in the literature, information on the activities and history of the Council had to be investigated through oral traditions, primarily in the nature of informants' reports. It should be noted in passing that as a condition of their field work, the authors agreed with the Zuni people not to inquire into ceremonial or religious matters, and as a result the cases presented here deal almost exclusively with secular manifestations of law. Cases and related data are organized in this document in terms of judicial authority, substantive law and procedure. The authors complete their analysis of the material with an identification of Zuni values that find expression in the legal system. These value identifications occupy pp. 124-144 of the text and since they refer to judicial cases already sufficiently covered in the text, and indexed for various sanction categories, these categories have not been carried over to this particular section on values. The researcher may find these case references by browsing through until he or she finds the appropriate case, identified by number in both sections. Two appendices conclude the document, the first of which deals with various non-judicial subjects (primarily foreign relations and warfare), and the second, written by Stanley Newman, presents 'A Practical Zuni Orthography'.

Offenses and sanctions

HRAF PubDate

2009