Tanoan

[ tah-noh-uhn ]

noun

1. an American Indian language family of which the three surviving languages are spoken in several pueblos, including Taos, in northern New Mexico near the Rio Grande.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Tanoan¹

Coined by J.W. Powell in 1891 as Tañoan, based on American Spanish Tagno ( -an ); gn misinterpreted as equivalent to Spanish ñ, variant of Tano, ethnic name of Southern Tewa subgroup of Tanoans, from Southern Tewa tʰá·nu

Example Sentences

Among important increments in modern times may be mentioned several clans of Tanoan ancestry, as the Asa, Honani, and the like.

From Project Gutenberg

Among the most recent arrivals in Tusayan was another group of Tanoan clans which will be considered in this article.

From Project Gutenberg

There is good documentary evidence that Sandia was settled by Tanoan people from Tusayan.

From Project Gutenberg

Among these arrivals were Tanoan warriors and their families, part of whom were ancestors of the present inhabitants of Hano.

From Project Gutenberg

The large collections of so-called modern Hopi pottery in our museums is modified Tanoan ware, made in Tusayan.

From Project Gutenberg