A kiva is a (often) subterranean room used by Pueblo Indians for religious rituals and meetings, though these rooms may have originally functioned as bedrooms and living quarters in the past. Kivas are commonly found among native ruins in the Southwest, including those of not only the ancestral Puebloans, but also Mogollon, and Hohokam cultures Though such rooms are round in the Pueblo traditions, more western groups such as the Hopi have historically created square kivas.
Though kiva is the generally used term for these ceremonial structures, they are named differently according to the language group of the various tribes. Ki is the Hopi word for “house,” but it seems the full origin of the word is lost to history. The distinction between square and round kivas crosses linguistic lines however, and is based on geography alone. Besides the Hopi, other western pueblos like the Zuni, Acoma and Laguna all use square kivas, while the pueblos around the RIo Grande to the east use round ones.
While the ancients primarily built their kivas underground, only the the Hopi and the Taos pueblo in the east follow this tradition, with all other groups building their kivas above ground. Still, these are entered from the roof, perhaps to simulate an underground edifice. Despite such differences, all kivas maintain certain similarities, such as fire pits and entrances via ladder. At most pueblos women are strictly forbidden from entering the kivas at all, however the Hopi women’s societies are sometimes permitted to perform ceremonies in them. Though ancient people may have used the structures as residential spaces, this practice has not survived to modern times.
