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Britannica Sources used in this answer

Where did the Tohono O’odham traditionally live?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Map showing the distribution of Indigenous peoples and their lands in the American Southwest, with labeled areas for groups such as the Navajo, Hopi, Zuni, Apache, Pima, Yuma, Mojave, and others, along with major rivers and reservation boundaries.
Indigenous peoples of the American Southwest

The Tohono O’odham traditionally inhabited the desert regions of present-day Arizona, U.S., and northern Sonora, Mexico.12

Because their territory was arid and lacked permanent water sources, they practiced a seasonal, shifting residential pattern rather than living in large, permanent villages. Their settlement strategy involved moving between two types of locations:13
* Summer "field villages": These were established near alluvial fans at the mouths of washes to take advantage of flash-flood farming during the monsoon season.13
* Winter "well villages": These were located at higher elevations where fresh water and game were more readily available during the dry season.13

This reliance on ephemeral water sources meant that, unlike groups living along permanently flowing rivers, the Tohono O’odham relied more extensively on gathering wild foods to supplement their agricultural efforts.3