Natahéndé

Natahéndé, “people of the mescal,” is a name associated with Mescalero Apache groups of central New Mexico. Their country extended between the Rio Grande and Pecos River and toward the western edge of the Llano Estacado. The mescal plant was an important food, gathered and roasted in pits; hunting and other gathered foods supported families moving through mountains and plains.

During the eighteenth century these Apache communities faced changing alliances and growing pressure from Comanche expansion. Groups maintained connections with their Lipan neighbours, at times joining with them in response to shared enemies. Spanish colonists used several names for Apache communities, whose movements crossed the boundaries drawn by colonial authorities. Their history belongs to a broad region of mountain valleys and southern plains.