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Native American Tribes of Utah


Did you know the state of Utah is named after an American Indian tribe? It is named after the Ute tribe, and is probably a corruption of their tribal name Nuutsiu (or Nunt'zi,) which means "the people." The Utes were not the only tribe to live in Utah, however.


The original inhabitants of the area that is now Utah included:

*The Bannock tribe
*The Goshute tribe
*The Navajo tribe
*The Paiute tribe
*The Shoshone tribe
*The Ute tribe

See also our new Navajo, Shoshoni, and Ute Facts for Kids pages!

There are six federally recognized Indian tribes in Utah today.

The Navajo Nation, the largest Indian tribe in the United States, has its headquarters in what is today Arizona, but their reservation extends into New Mexico and Utah as well.

*Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation:
PO Box 6104
Ibapah, UT 84034

*Navajo Nation:
P.O. Box 9000
Window Rock, AZ 86515
http://www.navajo.org/

*Uintah and Ouray Tribe (Northern Ute):
PO Box 190
Fort Duchesne, UT 84026

*Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah:
440 N. Paiute Drive
Cedar City, UT 84720

*Skull Valley Indian Community (Goshute):
PO Box 150
Grantsville, UT 84029

*Northwestern Band of the Shoshoni Nation:
862 South Main St, Suite 6
Brigham City, UT 84302

Other resources about American Indian history, culture and society in Utah state:

*Utah State Office of Indian Affairs :
     News, history, and maps of Utah's Native American tribes.
*History of Native Americans in Utah:
     Article on Utah Indian cultures from prehistory to the present.

Recommended books about Utah Native Americans:

*Utah Indian Dictionary: Introducing Utah's Native American history and culture to kids.
*A History of Utah's American Indians: Excellent, thorough book on Utah's Native American tribes by a Ute author.
*Termination's Legacy: The Discarded Indians of Utah: Compelling history book on the dispossession of Utah Indians during the 1950's.
*The Ute Indians of Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico: A good ethnography of the Ute tribe.



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