page_title: Zia people (New Mexico)
section_title: Crops
hierarchical_section_title: Zia people (New Mexico) / Living and culture / Crops
caption_attribution_description: English: Cobs of corn
context_page_description: The Zia or Tsʾíiyʾamʾé are an indigenous tribe centered at Zia Pueblo, an Indian reservation in the U.S. state of New Mexico. The Zia are known for their pottery and use of the sun symbol. They are one of the Keres Pueblo peoples and speak the Eastern Keres language.
context_section_description: Zia farming produced a wide array of crops, but the most important of these were corn, beans, and squash, nicknamed the "three sisters". These crops were planted in shared or common ground, to which everyone contributed. They were the staple of Zia and Pueblo diets. Corn was the most important of all. While some was eaten fresh, most was stored away in pots and cellars for the winter and droughts. When some of the corn dried, it was turned into flour and bread by the women. They sat outside at grinding stones, singing religious songs while rubbing stones against the corn, producing flour. They sang, because they considered the corn to be sacred.
  Once the flour was done, it was mixed with water to make dough. The dough was widened to round, flat sheets and placed on hot rocks over a fire. When done baking, a tortilla was produced; it was the most important staple available to them.
  Other minor crops were grown in personal, individual gardens, such as peppers, onions, chiles, and tobacco. New Mexico is well known for its spicy chiles that originated among tribes like this.
caption: Maize, an important crop to the Zia
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