• NPAIHB

MORE ON THIS TOPIC

<< Back to All Questions

My boyfriend is native, but he’s fairly light skinned and his family separated from their tribe years ago. He isn’t confident in who he is and is always doubting his roots though we both know he is apache. How can I help him? What can we do to connect him

What a great friend and girlfriend you are. As Indigenous people, we have a very long and devastating history that has stolen so much of our culture, languages, and identity. But there’s no need for that anymore. With great allies like yourself and brave people like your boyfriend, we can…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Education, Identity, Non-Native Allies, Relationships

I want to enroll and find out more about my tribe. I know my grandfather was Lipan Apache and several of my relatives are enrolled, but how do I as an individual gather evidence to prove how I am related to my ancestors?

What an amazing gift that you have such a great lead. Keep asking questions of your family to see what else you can pull up, like names and location. This will be incredibly helpful in your next steps. Next thing is to check with your tribes enrollment department, as every…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Identity

I was raised mexican but grew up being told I was a couple drops of yaqui native. I did a DNA test and found out I’m a quarter but no ancestors were registered. What can I do?

What an amazing gift that you have such a great lead. Keep asking questions of your family to see what else you can pull up, like names and location. This will be incredibly helpful in your next steps. Next thing is to check with your tribes enrollment department, as every…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Identity, Non-Native Allies

My dad is native (Ojibwe) but he’s not on my birth certificate so I have no proof of my ancestry. How can I prove that I’m half Ojibwe and not just Irish?

What an amazing gift that you have such a great lead. Keep asking questions of your family to see what else you can pull up, like names and location. This will be helpful in your next steps. Next thing is to check with your tribes enrollment department, as every tribe…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Identity, Spirituality

hey auntie i have been wondering when im in a group circle sage gets passed and the women get told if we are on our periods just pass the sage so does that mean i cant use sage in general on my moon cycle or just the sage thats being passed

Hey Bianca! This is a great question. I had to reach out to some other Aunties for this answer. My tribe is not considered a ‘saging’ tribe. My Auntie’s have told me that we learned to sage from the Northern Pueblos. When you’re on your ‘moon cycle’ or ‘moon time’,…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Spirituality

I wanted to cleanse my house so, my daughter bought me white sage and an abalone shell, I did not have a feather but when I went out to my truck the next day or two, there was a feather laying on the ground by my truck. I have no idea what kind of feather

How cool! It might be easiest to get online and search for local birds in your area to identify which bird it came from. Feathers and the types of feathers used by tribes can have variations in their meanings from tribe to tribe. Generally speaking, feathers like eagle feathers are…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Identity, Spirituality

Looking at my Ancestry.com info it says that I have the deepest root in Northern Coahuila and San Antonio. The earliest tribe I found from SA is the Payaya but I am trying to find out which of the later tribes (Apache, Tonkawa, Comanche etc.) I am?

Identity and knowing who we are is one of the most important journeys we can walk. I applaud you for taking this path. With the information you’ve gathered from Ancestry.com, you’re off to a great start. Your next steps are going to take some digging. If you feel comfortable, start…
Answered by Auntie Manda
Topics: Culture and Language, Identity, Spirituality
Menu