To Bury the Ancestors: A View of Nagpra

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) became law on November 16, 1990. The law addresses the rights of lineal descendants and members of American Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian groups with respect to human remains and cultural items with which they are affiliated. NAGPRA is concerned with the human remains of Native American ancestors, material goods still associated with these bodies, material goods once associated with these bodies but now separated, objects of importance to ongoing religious practice, and objects of cultural patrimony. NAGPRA sets into motion a process of identification, consultation, and recommendation about these ancestors or ancestral materials.