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The patrilineal extended family was the basic social unit of the O'odham.
Settlements were mostly patrilocal, although flexibility existed. Above the family level were patrilineal clans organized into moieties.
Within the village, there was minimal political structure. Each group had a headman who received nominal respect and power, though he lacked the ability to compel others. Rather, his job was to open discussions and to cajole others into agreement. No wealth differentials existed between the the headman and others.Most groups also had at least one shaman who provided spells and who called upon his spirit helpers to cure illnesses.
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The O'odham followed a ceremonial calendar with established annual rites. The most important of these was the Rain Ceremony, which marked the beginning of their new year. The hallmark of the Rain Ceremony, which took place in summer after the saguaro fruit had been collected, was the drinking of fermented saguaro wine. In this ceremony the people filled their bodies with the saguaro liquid to signify their hope that the rains would come and similarly fill the earth. Soon after the completion of the Rain Ceremony the crops were planted.
The Naming Ceremony was another important rite, though it was not necessarily an annual event. The purpose of the Naming Ceremony was to redistribute food from a village that had plenty to one that was suffering from scarcity. The decision to perform this ceremony was made by the villagers who were experiencing the food shortage. The suffering villagers would visit a settlement that had experienced a bountiful harvest, and sing a song that incorporated the names of the men in that settlement. As a man's name was called, his wife or daughter would jump up and run, only to be chased by the visitors. Once caught, the woman would lead her "captors" to her husband or father, who would "ransom" her by giving foodstuffs to her captors.This enabled villagers who had experienced a poor harvest to obtain food, but etiquette required that they repay the later that season or the following year.
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Tohono O'odham family near their home, 1894
Source - http://sirismm.si.edu/naa/baegn/gn_027870d.jpg
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Evening Light on Signal Hill Petroglyph
Source - http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-130357172/stock-photo-evening-light-on-signal-hill-petroglyph.html?src=szBKAsGQP4JezISCYfT9ZQ-1-4
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