Yavapai

The Yavapai are a Native American people of the southwestern United States. Their traditional territory covered parts of central and northern Arizona, including the Verde Valley and the Prescott area, with the Mogollon Rim forming a significant portion of their homeland. They are conventionally divided into Western Yavapai and Eastern Yavapai, with several subgroups.

Linguistically, the Yavapai spoke languages in the Yuman language family. Traditional lifeways combined farming in river valleys with gathering, hunting, and trade with neighboring groups. Cultural practices varied among communities, with distinctive crafts such as basketry and beadwork playing important roles in everyday life and ceremonial occasions.

In the 19th century, European-American settlement and U.S. government policies led to displacement and relocation of many Yavapai to reservations. Today, two federally recognized Yavapai groups are based in Arizona: the Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe, located near Prescott, and the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, situated near the Phoenix metropolitan area. Other Yavapai people contribute to the region’s cultural heritage through language programs, cultural events, and continued traditional practices.

Yavapai County in north-central Arizona is named after the Yavapai people, with Prescott as its county seat. Yavapai College, a public community college in Prescott, bears the name and serves as an educational institution for the region. The term Yavapai also appears in various place names and institutions across the area, reflecting the historical and ongoing presence of the Yavapai in central Arizona.