Region
Northern Mexico and the US Southwest
32 nations of Northern Mexico and the US Southwest, each with its own name first and checked facts with sources.
32 nations
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A:shiwi
Also known as Zuni
Lands Pueblo of Zuni along the Zuni River in western New Mexico, US, with reservation land in Arizona
The Pueblo of Zuni counts about 18,692 people and holds about 463,287 acres of reservation land.
Source: Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Acoma
Also known as Haak’u
Lands Acoma Mesa and surrounding lands in west-central New Mexico, US
Since 2017 the Acoma Language Program has been building a Keres dictionary, with about 5,000 words and phrases being edited by fluent speakers.
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Akimel O’otham
Also known as Pima
Lands Gila River Indian Community, south of Phoenix, Arizona, US, shared with the Pee Posh (Maricopa)
The Akimel O’otham welcomed the Pee Posh (Maricopa) to the Gila River long ago, and the two peoples still share its lands and resources today.
Source: Gila River Indian Community (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Chiricahua Apache Nation
Lands Headquarters in Santa Clara, New Mexico, United States; this record describes this named community, not every Chiricahua Apache person or government
The Chiricahua Apache Nation lists its tribal headquarters in Santa Clara, New Mexico.
Source: Chiricahua Apache Nation (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Cocopah
Also known as Cucapá
Lands Lower Colorado River and delta: south of Yuma and near Somerton, Arizona, US, and the Mexicali valley of Baja California and San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora, Mexico
About 1,000 Cocopah tribal members live and work on or near their reservation south of Yuma, Arizona, which was established in 1917.
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Comcaac
Also known as Konkaak
Lands Desert coast of Sonora on the Gulf of California, Mexico, including Punta Chueca, El Desemboque and Tiburón Island
In 1975 Mexico declared the Canal del Infiernillo an exclusive Comcaac fishing zone and symbolically granted them Tiburón Island, a nature reserve, as communal land.
Source: Sistema de Información Cultural, Secretaría de Cultura (Mexico) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Diné
Also known as Navajo
Lands Diné Bikéyah (Navajoland) across Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, US
In World War II, Navajo Code Talkers used the Navajo language to create a military code that was never broken by the enemy.
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Havasu Baaja
Also known as Havasupai
Lands Havasu Canyon in the Grand Canyon, Arizona, US (village of Supai)
Supai is so remote that the US Postal Service carries all mail in and out of the canyon by mule train.
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Hopi
Also known as Hopi Tribe
Lands Hopitutskwa, northeastern Arizona, US (Navajo and Coconino counties)
Hopi farmers developed dry farming, using windbreaks to hold soil, snow and moisture so corn, beans and squash can grow in a dry land.
Source: Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Hualapai
Also known as Hualapai Tribe
Lands Northwestern Arizona, US, along the Grand Canyon and Colorado River (Peach Springs)
Hualapai River Runners is the only Indian-owned and operated river rafting company on the Colorado River.
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Jicarilla Apache
Also known as Jicarilla Apache Nation
Lands North-central New Mexico, US, along the Colorado line and across the Continental Divide (Dulce)
The Jicarilla Apache Nation reservation spans more than 879,917 acres in north-central New Mexico, and Dulce is its only community and tribal headquarters.
Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Kha’P’o
Also known as Santa Clara Pueblo
Lands From the eastern Jemez Mountains to the Rio Grande, northern New Mexico, US
People of Santa Clara Pueblo still speak the Tewa language today and carry on their customs and cultural activities.
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Kumeyaay
Also known as Kumiai
Lands San Diego and Imperial counties, California, US, and Tecate, Ensenada and Rosarito in Baja California, Mexico
North of the US and Mexico border there are 12 Kumeyaay Nation bands today, each original to Kumeyaay territory. Sycuan is one of them.
Source: Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Lipan Apache Tribe
Also known as Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas
Lands Texas, United States, with tribal administration in McAllen and historical homelands spanning Texas and northern Mexico
In 2021, the City and County of Presidio donated a Lipan cemetery parcel to the Lipan Apache Tribe.
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Mescalero Apache
Also known as Mescalero Apache Tribe
Lands South-central New Mexico, US (Mescalero Apache Reservation)
Today three peoples, the Mescalero, Lipan and Chiricahua Apache, together make up the Mescalero Apache Tribe on a 463,000 acre reservation.
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Nuche
Also known as Nuchu
Lands Southwestern Colorado (Ignacio, Towaoc), northeastern Utah (Uintah and Ouray) and nearby New Mexico and Utah lands, US
There are three Ute tribes today: the Southern Ute (Mouache and Capote bands), the Ute Mountain Ute (Weenuche band) and the Northern Ute in Utah.
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Ohkay Owingeh
Also known as San Juan Pueblo
Lands Where the Rio Grande and Rio Chama meet, northern New Mexico, US
Ohkay Owingeh is the headquarters of the Eight Northern Pueblo Tribal Council.
Source: U.S. National Park Service (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Rarámuri
Also known as Ralámuli
Lands Sierra Tarahumara in Chihuahua, Mexico, with smaller communities in Durango, Sonora and Sinaloa
Rarámuri artisans make violins, drums, palm baskets, clay pots and wooden masks, and sell them in towns such as Guachochi, Creel and Batopilas.
Source: Sistema de Información Cultural, Secretaría de Cultura (Mexico) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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San Carlos Apache
Also known as San Carlos Apache Tribe
Lands Gila, Graham and Pinal counties, southeastern Arizona, US
The San Carlos Apache Reservation, set aside in 1871, covers 1,834,781 acres reaching from alpine meadows to desert in southeastern Arizona.
Source: Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Southern Paiute
Also known as Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah
Lands Southern Utah and northern Arizona, US, including Cedar City, Utah, and the Kaibab reservation near Fredonia, Arizona
The Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah shares The Paiute Language for Beginners, now in its second edition, which anyone can view and download.
Source: Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Southern Ute Indian Tribe
Also known as Southern Ute
Lands Southern Ute Reservation around Ignacio, southwestern Colorado, United States
The Southern Ute Indian Tribe is made up of the Mouache and Caputa bands and is headquartered in Ignacio, Colorado.
Source: Southern Ute Indian Tribe (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Taos Pueblo
Also known as Red Willow People
Lands Taos valley, northern New Mexico, US
Taos Pueblo, with its multistory adobe homes, gained World Heritage status in 1992 as one of the world's most significant cultural landmarks.
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Tohono O’odham
Also known as Pápago
Lands Sonoran Desert of southern Arizona, US (Sells is the capital), with O’odham communities across the border in Sonora, Mexico
Divided by the border since the 1850s, O’odham communities in Sonora, Mexico, and Arizona still share a common culture and sense of being one people.
Source: Sistema de Información Cultural, Secretaría de Cultura (Mexico) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Tonto Apache Tribe
Also known as Tonto Apache
Lands Payson, Gila County, Arizona, United States
The Tonto Apache Tribe is based beside Payson in northwestern Gila County, Arizona.
Source: Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Ute Indian Tribe
Also known as Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation
Lands Uintah and Ouray Reservation, northeastern Utah, with tribal government at Fort Duchesne, United States
In an April 2026 statement, the Ute Indian Tribe announced it would appeal a federal district court decision concerning split-estate reservation lands.
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Ute Mountain Ute Tribe
Also known as Weenuche
Lands Towaoc and reservation lands in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico; White Mesa, Utah, United States
The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe identifies itself as the Weenuche band of the Ute Nation, with its tribal offices in Towaoc, Colorado.
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Warihó and Macurawe
Also known as Guarijío
Lands Foothills of the Sierra Madre Occidental on the Chihuahua and Sonora border, Mexico
Warihó and Macurawe families weave baskets, mats and hats from palm and fiber and build harps, violins and guitars. Their craft work is family based and rests with women.
Source: Sistema de Información Cultural, Secretaría de Cultura (Mexico) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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White Mountain Apache
Also known as Ndee
Lands White Mountains of east-central Arizona, US (Fort Apache Indian Reservation, Whiteriver)
The White Mountain Apache own and run Sunrise, one of the largest ski resorts in the Southwest, and rare Apache trout swim in reservation streams.
Source: Inter Tribal Council of Arizona (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Wixárika
Also known as Wixaritari
Lands Sierra Madre Occidental in Jalisco and Nayarit, Mexico, with communities in Durango and Zacatecas
In July 2025 UNESCO added the Wixárika Route through sacred sites to Wirikuta, a 500 km corridor, to the World Heritage List after decades of Wixaritari requests.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH) (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Yavapai
Also known as Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation
Lands Central and western Arizona, US, including Fort McDowell near Phoenix and Prescott
In September 2026 the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, about 950 members, marked 123 years since its land was set aside in 1903.
Source: Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Yoeme
Also known as Yaqui
Lands Yaqui River valley in Sonora, Mexico, and Pascua Yaqui communities near Tucson, Arizona, US
Most Yoeme people today live in the Mexican states of Sonora and Sinaloa, and the federally recognized Pascua Yaqui Tribe is based in Tucson, Arizona.
Source: U.S. National Park Service (opens in a new tab) Checked
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Yoreme
Also known as Mayo
Lands Southern Sonora (Etchojoa, Huatabampo, Navojoa) and northern Sinaloa (Ahome, El Fuerte, Guasave), Mexico
Yoreme communities have traditional governors. In December 2025 they met Mexico’s federal agrarian office to set a path for continuing the Yoreme-Mayo Justice Plan.
Source: Quadratín México (republished Procuraduría Agraria bulletin) (opens in a new tab) Checked