Ancestral Pueblo Culture and Architecture

The transcript describes the structure and cultural significance of ancestral Pueblo villages. These villages were built around a central plaza used by all inhabitants. Special underground rooms called kivas, often located near the plaza's center, were used for important ceremonies. A small hole in the kiva floor, known as the sipapu, symbolized a passage from the spiritual world. The Pueblo people believed their ancestors emerged into the world through the sipapu and that spirits could return to the spiritual realm through it.

What was the central feature around which ancestral Pueblo villages were built?

• A river

• A mountain

• A plaza

• A forest

What were the special underground rooms in Pueblo villages called?

• Kivas

• Basements

• Caves

• Tunnels

Where were kivas typically located in the Pueblo villages?

• At the edge of the village

• Near the center of the plaza

• In the mountains

• Next to the river

What was the small hole in the floor of a kiva called?

• Sipapu

• Trapdoor

• Well

• Chimney

What did the ancestral Pueblo people believe about the sipapu?

• It was a place to cook food

• It was a storage area

• It was a passage from the spirit world

• It was a source of water