Description
The Opata are an indigenous people in Mexico. Opata territory, the "Opatería" in Spanish, encompasses the mountainous northeast and central part of the state of Sonora, extending to near the border with the United States. Historically, they included several subtribes, including the Eudeve, Teguima, and Jova peoples. The Indians of Sonora numbered around 60,000 at the time of Conquest. The Opata were reduced to around 5,000 by 1750 because of epidemics and warfare with the Apache. It was estimated in 1959 that the Opata numbered between 500 and 600. The Opata rebelled against oppressive Spanish overlords in 1820 and were defeated. In 1825 they joined the Yaqui and Mayo in battles against the forces of the newly formed republic.
Language
The Opata language was a Uto-Aztecan language
Culture
Archaeological evidence has revealed that at the beginning of the sixteenth century the Opata lived in two types of houses: large circular or rectangular semisubterranean dwellings and rectangular adobe houses. At the time of first contact with the Spanish in the mid-16th century, the Opatería was a land of "statelets," a number of independent, agricultural towns scattered up and down the inland valleys of the Sonora River. The Opatas traded with other Indian nations to purchase turquoise in exchange for corn and cotton blankets. Animal skins and roots were acquired through trade with the Jano, Suma, Jumano, Jocome, and Manso. Other items were traded with Yaqui, Mayo, and Seri, with whom they shared some fishing and hunting areas.