---- Friday - May 9, 2008 - 2:22:37 PM - Navajo Nation Time ----

The Navajo Nation Seal was designed by John Claw Jr. of Many Farm, Arizona and adopted on January 18, 1952. Some elements of the seal's design were incorporated into the design of the Navajo Nation Flag which was adopted by the Navajo Nation on May 21, 1968.

The Navajo Nation Seal bears a ring of 50 arrowheads representing the states of the United States (the original seal had 48; two were added when Alaska and Hawaii became states) and reflects the Navajo Nation protected by the United States. Within this ring of outward-pointing arrowheads are three concentric circles of turquoise, yellow, and red, open at the top. They represent the rainbow and the Navajo hogan (hooghan); the opening shows that the Navajo Nation's sovereignty is never closed. Within the circles are two green corn plants, the sustainer of life for the Navajo, their tips yellow showing pollen, a substance used frequently in Navajo ceremonies. Within the corn are four sacred mountains surrounding a brown horse, red cow, and white sheep - for livestock, a source of wealth for the Navajo. The mountains are white, turquoise, yellow, and black (clockwise from the top). Above them a yellow sun shines, and arching over all is the "GREAT SEAL OF THE NAVAJO NATION" in black.

The orientation of the sacred mountains on the seal differs from the flag. The Navajo consider east (hááaah) to be where everything begins and signifies all things good and beautiful, it is the location of the white mountain. On the seal, east and the white mountain are at the top; on the flat they are to the right.

Within the Navajo Nation Seal are the four sacred mountains: black to the left, turquoise to the right, white above, and yellow below. These colors form a recurring theme in the legends of the Navajo, beginning with the Navajo creation story. In it the world began as a black island floating in the mist. Above it were four clouds, black, white, blue (meaning turquoise), and yellow. The story describes the colored clouds as successive worlds and narrates the themes of birth, propagation, flood, escape, and continuing life. The corn stalks and the three domestics animals (horse, cattle, and sheep) signify the Navajo economy.

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Dated Created:	11/17/2005
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Updated:	11/17/2005
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