The Hopi Native American tribe occupies northeastern Arizona, which is and was its original location. Currently, the Hopi Reservation is entirely surrounded by the Navajo Reservation. Hopi societies consist of unnamed phratries which are then divided into individual named clans and subdivided into households. Additionally, the Hopi religion includes cosmology and mythology. The Hopi people also rely on supernatural forces called kachinas that are essential for manipulating and controlling the elements (“Cultural Summary,” p. 1-5). This article will discuss the Hopi social organization, from the largest to the smallest unit, and their religious ideology. In Hopi social organization, exogamous phratries constitute the largest social unit. Within the phratry, there are many matrilineal clans and kinship is shared among all members of the phratry. Each clan has a distinct position within the phratry as well as a set of expected behaviors and responsibilities that are dictated by the main clan (Connelly, p. 542-543). Additionally, each Hopi clan shares three inherent characteristics that make them synonymous with one another. First, each clan is believed to be descended from a single female ancestor who founded the clan. For this reason, each member of the clan is considered a kin and appropriate kinship terminology is used for all members. Second, each clan has its own distinctive name and its own clan house where all of the clan's individual sacred items are stored. Finally, all principal properties, which include houses and farms, are held in the name of the clan (Bradfield, p. 8). The smallest unit of social organization within Hopi society is the household. Typically a household consists of a mother and father, many married adults...... middle of paper ...... represents. Kachina dolls represent this individualization and are given as gifts to young girls. The Kachina doll is given to the child by his father, in which he solicits another member of the tribe to dress and represent the same Kachina as the doll ("Fathers, Daughters and Kachina Dolls", p. 7) . The dolls are then taken home and used as aids to teach girls the names and distinct characteristics of all the Kachinas (Colton, p. 5). The Hopi society is a proud Native American tribe that has existed for hundreds of years. Over the years, Hopi villages declined in size, Christianity emerged, subsistence practices changed, and commercial activities became another source of income. However, members of the Hopi tribe still participate in kachina ceremonies today and operate the same social organizations as before..