This type of loom, along with the backstrap loom and domesticated cotton for yarn, diffused into the Southwest from Mexico in prehistoric times. By the late 17th century, if not earlier, the Navajo had acquired the techniques and materials for weaving from their Pueblo neighbors, and by the early 18th century, the Navajo were weaving with wool from the Spanish sheep they were acquiring in increasing numbers. Today, as in the past, a textile woven in the traditional manner will be made from wools that are handspun with a wooden spindle and whorl and dyed with natural vegetal colors. Navajo textiles have an interesting and colorful history that reflects the culture history of the Navajo people. Prior to the 1860s, Navajo women wove clothing primarily for their own families, including wearing blankets and items such as saddle blankets.
Blankets continue to be woven for both personal use and trade.
During the early 1900s the trade blankets were marketed as rugs through the United States by trading post operators, such as John Lorenzo Hubbell and J.B. Moore. Below are some examples of various styles of Navajo textiles. They soon began making colorful textiles with busy, complex designs of zigzags and diamond shapes with serrated edges. Ganados were first made in the area around the Hubbell Trading Post. Still made today, the Ganados usually have a red background with designs in grey, black, and white, and a black or dark border.