hogan
1 Americannoun
noun
noun
noun
Etymology
Origin of hogan
An Americanism dating back to 1870–75; from Navajo hooghan “hogan, home”
Explanation
A hogan is a Navajo dwelling made of bark, logs, and earth. These traditional structures were once commonly used as homes, though newly built hogans are more often used for ceremonial purposes. Many Navajo families still live in older hogans, and, regardless of what type of structure the family lives in, it's considered important to have a family hogan for ceremonies. The very oldest of these structures were cone-shaped and insulated with packed mud that kept them cool in the summer and warm in the winter. The door commonly faced east, for easy viewing of the sunrise, which symbolized good fortune. The Navajo root is hoghan, "dwelling."
Vocabulary lists containing hogan
Code Talker
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Native American History - Introductory
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Native American History - Middle School and High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Born in 1932 in a traditional Navajo hogan without running water or electricity, Laughter was 16 when Native Americans got the right to vote in Arizona.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 29, 2021
I live alone in a hogan, a traditional octagonal log house, in Chi Chil Tah, meaning “Where the Oaks Grow,” after the Gambel oaks indigenous to this region.
From Scientific American • Jul. 8, 2020
Home was a hogan, a rounded structure made of logs plastered with adobe.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 29, 2014
On this date in 1960, a Navajo forked pole hogan was tree ring dated to 1387, the earliest date on record.
From Washington Times • Jul. 9, 2014
“Heads up, buddy,” Uncle Jet said from inside the hogan, tossing out a large trash bag.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
