Historical Marker

Old Acoma “Sky City”

Derived from the Keres word Haak’u, Acoma is known to its inhabitants as “a place prepared”. Archaeological evidence shows it has been occupied since at least the 12th century. Established on this mesa for defensive purposes, Acoma was settled by descendants of Chaco and Mesa Verde, according to pueblo oral history. Nearly destroyed by the Spanish in 1599, Acoma was quickly reestablished by ancestors of its present day occupants.