Chumash Indian
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The Chumash are a Native American people of the central and southern coastal regions of
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, in portions of what is now San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura and
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
counties, extending from Morro Bay in the north to Malibu in the south. Their territory included three of the
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
: Santa Cruz,
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * Sa ...
, and San Miguel; the smaller island of Anacapa was likely inhabited seasonally due to the lack of a consistent water source. Modern place names with Chumash origins include Malibu, Nipomo, Lompoc, Ojai, Pismo Beach,
Point Mugu Point Mugu (, Chumash: ''Muwu'') is a cape or promontory within Point Mugu State Park on the Pacific Coast in Ventura County, near the city of Port Hueneme and the city of Oxnard. The name is believed to be derived from the Chumash Indian term ...
, Port Hueneme, Piru, Lake Castaic, Saticoy, Simi Valley and
Somis Somis (; Chumash: ''Śo Mís'') is an unincorporated community in Ventura County, California. It was established in 1892 by Thomas Bard and D.T. Perkins on a portion of the Rancho Las Posas Mexican land grant. Somis is in the Las Posas Valley< ...
.
Archaeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
research demonstrates that the Chumash people have deep roots in the Santa Barbara Channel area and lived along the southern California coast for millennia.


History


Prior to European contact (pre-1542)

Indigenous peoples have lived along the California coast for at least 11,000 years. Sites of the Millingstone Horizon date from 7000 to 4500 BC and show evidence of a subsistence system focused on the processing of seeds with ''metates'' and ''manos''. During that time, people used bipointed bone objects and line to catch fish and began making beads from shells of the marine olive snail (''
Olivella biplicata ''Callianax biplicata'', common names the "purple dwarf olive" "purple olive shell" or "purple olivella" is a species of small predatory sea snail, a Marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusc in the family (biology), family Olividae, the olives. ...
''). The name Chumash means "bead maker" or "seashell people" being that they originated near the Santa Barbara coast. The Chumash tribes near the coast benefited most with the "close juxtaposition of a variety or marine and terrestrial habitats, intensive upwelling in coastal waters, and intentional burning of the landscape made the Santa Barbara Channel region one of the most resource abundant places on the planet."(Newton 416). While droughts were not uncommon in the centuries of the first millennium AD, a population explosion occurred with the coming of the
medieval warm period The Medieval Warm Period (MWP), also known as the Medieval Climate Optimum or the Medieval Climatic Anomaly, was a time of warm climate in the North Atlantic region that lasted from to . Proxy (climate), Climate proxy records show peak warmth oc ...
. "Marine productivity soared between 950 and 1300 as natural upwelling intensified off the coast." Before the mission period, the Chumash lived in over 150 independent villages, speaking variations of the same language. Much of their culture consisted of basketry, bead manufacturing and trading, cuisine of local abalone and clam,
herbalism Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern reme ...
which consisted of using local herbs to produce teas and medical reliefs,
rock art In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...
, and the scorpion tree. The scorpion tree was significant to the Chumash as shown in its arborglyph: a carving depicting a six-legged creature with a headdress including a crown and two spheres. The shamans participated in the carving which was used in observations of the stars and in part of the Chumash calendar.(Newton 416). The Chumash resided between the Santa Ynez Mountains and the California coasts where a bounty of resources could be found. The tribe lived in an area of three environments: the interior, the coast, and the Northern Channel Islands. The interior is composed of the land outside the coast and spanning the wide plains, rivers, and mountains. The coast covers the cliffs, land close to the ocean, and the areas of the ocean from which the Chumash harvested. The Northern Channel Islands lie off the coast of the Chumash territory. All of the California coastal-interior has a
Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...
due to the incoming ocean winds. The mild temperatures, save for winter, made gathering easy; during the cold months, the Chumash harvested what they could and supplemented their diets with stored foods. What villagers gathered and traded during the seasons changed depending on where they resided. With coasts populated by masses of species of fish and land densely covered by trees and animals, the Chumash had a diverse array of food. Abundant resources and a winter rarely harsh enough to cause concern meant the tribe lived a sedentary lifestyle in addition to a subsistence existence. Villages in the three aforementioned areas contained remains of sea mammals, indicating that trade networks existed for moving materials throughout the Chumash territory. The closer a village was to the ocean, the greater its reliance on maritime resources. Due to advanced canoe designs, coastal and island people could procure fish and aquatic mammals from farther out. Shellfish were a good source of nutrition: relatively easy to find and abundant. Many of the favored varieties grew in tidal zones. Shellfish grew in abundance during winter to early spring; their proximity to shore made collection easier. Some of the consumed species included mussels, abalone, and a wide array of clams. Haliotis rufescens (red abalone) was harvested along the Central California coast in the pre-contact era. The Chumash and other
California Indians The indigenous peoples of California (known as Native Californians) are the indigenous inhabitants who have lived or currently live in the geographic area within the current boundaries of California before and after the arrival of Europeans. ...
also used red
abalone Abalone ( or ; via Spanish , from Rumsen ''aulón'') is a common name for any of a group of small to very large marine gastropod molluscs in the family (biology), family Haliotidae. Other common name In biology, a common name of a taxon o ...
shells to make a variety of fishhooks, beads, ornaments, and other artifacts. Ocean animals such as otters and seals were thought to be the primary meal of coastal tribes people, but recent evidence shows the aforementioned trade networks exchanged oceanic animals for terrestrial foods from the interior. Any village could acquire fish, but the coastal and island communities specialized in catching not just smaller fish, but also the massive catches such as swordfish.(Gamble 156). This feat, difficult even for today's technology, was made possible by the tomol plank canoe. Its design allowed for the capture of deepwater fish, and it facilitated trade routes between villages. Some researchers believe that the Chumash may have been visited by
Polynesia Polynesia () "many" and νῆσος () "island"), to, Polinisia; mi, Porinihia; haw, Polenekia; fj, Polinisia; sm, Polenisia; rar, Porinetia; ty, Pōrīnetia; tvl, Polenisia; tkl, Polenihia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania, made up of ...
ns between AD 400 and 800, nearly 1,000 years before
Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...
reached the
Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...
. The Chumash advanced sewn-plank canoe design, used throughout the Polynesian Islands but unknown in North America except by those two tribes, is cited as the chief evidence for contact.
Comparative linguistics Comparative linguistics, or comparative-historical linguistics (formerly comparative philology) is a branch of historical linguistics that is concerned with comparing languages to establish their historical relatedness. Genetic relatedness ...
may provide evidence as the Chumash word for "sewn-plank canoe", '' tomolo'o'', may have been derived from ''kumula'au'', the Polynesian word for the
redwood Sequoioideae, popularly known as redwoods, is a subfamily of coniferous trees within the family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affini ...
logs used in that construction. However, the language comparison is generally considered tentative. Furthermore, the development of the Chumash plank canoe is fairly well represented in the archaeological record and spans several centuries. The concept is rejected by most archaeologists who work with the Chumash culture, and there is no evidence of a genetic legacy. Before contact with Europeans, coastal Chumash relied less on terrestrial resources than they did on maritime; vice versa for interior Chumash.(Gamble 164). Regardless, they consumed similar land resources. Like many other tribes, deer were the most important land mammal the Chumash pursued; deer were consumed in varying amounts across all regions, which cannot be said for other terrestrial animals. Interior Chumash placed greater value on the deer, to the extent that they had unique hunting practices for them. They dressed as deer and grazed alongside the animals until the hunters were in range to use their arrows. Even Chumash close to the ocean pursued deer, though in understandably fewer numbers, and what more meat the villages needed they acquired from smaller animals such as rabbits and birds. Plant foods composed the rest of Chumash diet, especially acorns, which were the staple food despite the work needed to remove their inherent toxins. They could be ground into a paste that was easy to eat and store for years. Coast live oak provided the best acorns; their mush would be served usually unseasoned with meat and/or fish.


Spanish contact and the mission period (1542–1834)

The Spaniard Juan Cabrillo was the first European to make contact with the coastal Alta Californian tribes in the year 1542. Cabrillo died and was buried on San Miguel Island, but his men brought back a diary that contained the names and population counts for many Chumash villages, such as
Mikiw Mikiw was a Native American village of the Chumash people located in the modern-day county of Santa Barbara, California in the United States. In 1602, the Sebastián Vizcaíno expedition stopped by the Goleta Valley and the nearby Chumash villa ...
. Spain claimed what is now California from that time forward, but did not return to settle until 1769, when the first Spanish soldiers and missionaries arrived with the double purpose of
Christianizing Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
the Native Americans and facilitating Spanish colonization. By the end of 1770, missions and military presidios had been founded at
San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
to the south of Chumash lands and Monterey to their north. With the arrival of the Europeans "came a series of unprecedented blows to the Chumash and their traditional lifeways. Anthropologists, historians, and other scholars have long been interested in documenting the collision of cultures that accompanied the European exploration and colonization of the Americas." Spain settled on the territory of the Chumash in 1770. They founded colonies, bringing in missionaries to begin evangelizing Native Americans in the region by forcing Chumash villages into numerous missions springing up along the coast. The Chumash people moved from their villages to the Franciscan missions between 1772 and 1817. Mission San Luis Obispo, established in 1772, was the first mission in Chumash-speaking lands, as well as the northernmost of the five missions ever constructed in those lands. Next established, in 1782, was
Mission San Buenaventura Mission San Buenaventura ( es, Misión San Buenaventura), formally known as the Mission Basilica of San Buenaventura, is a Catholic parish and basilica in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The parish church in the city of Ventura, California, Unite ...
on the Pacific Coast near the mouth of the Santa Clara River. Mission Santa Barbara, also on the coast, and facing out to the Channel Islands, was established in 1786.
Mission La Purisima Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...
Concepción was founded along the inland route from Santa Barbara north to San Luis Obispo in 1789. The final Franciscan mission to be constructed in native Chumash territory was Santa Ynez, founded in 1804 on the Santa Ynez River with a seed population of Chumash people from Missions La Purisima and Santa Barbara. To the southeast, Mission San Fernando, founded in 1798 in the land of Takic Shoshonean speakers, also took in large numbers of Chumash speakers from the middle Santa Clara River valley. While most of the Chumash people joined one mission or another between 1772 and 1806, a significant portion of the native inhabitants of the Channel Islands did not move to the mainland missions until 1816.


Mexican era (1834–1848)

Mexico seized control of the missions in 1834. Tribespeople either fled into the interior, attempted farming for themselves and were driven off the land, or were enslaved by the new administrators. Many found highly exploitative work on large Mexican ranches. After 1849 most Chumash land was lost due to theft by Americans and a declining population, due to the effects of violence and disease. The remaining Chumash began to lose their cohesive identity. In 1855, a small piece of land (120 acres) was set aside for just over 100 remaining Chumash Indians near Santa Ynez mission. This land ultimately became the only Chumash reservation, although Chumash individuals and families also continued to live throughout their former territory in southern California. Today, the Santa Ynez band lives at and near Santa Ynez. The Chumash population was between roughly 10,000 and 18,000 in the late 18th century. In 1990, 213 Indians lived on the Santa Ynez Reservation.


American era (1848–present)

The Chumash reservation, established in 1901, encompasses 127 acres. No native Chumash speak their own language since Mary Yee, the last Barbareño speaker, died in 1965. Today, the Chumash are estimated to have a population of 5,000 members. Many current members can trace their ancestors to the five islands of Channel Islands National Park. Beginning in the 1970s, neo-Chumash arose, tracing their lineage nearly completely from the descendants of Spanish colonists to the domain of the initial Chumash people. They promote traditions of the Chumash, and are recognized locally. Their cultural assumption has been criticized by some, but is supported by others. The first modern '' tomol'' was built and launched in 1976 as a result of a joint venture between Quabajai Chumash of the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. Its name is ''Helek/Xelex'', the Chumash word for falcon. The Brotherhood of the Tomol was revived and her crew paddled and circumnavigated around the
Santa Barbara Channel Islands The Channel Islands () are an eight-island archipelago located within the Southern California Bight in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California. The four Northern Channel Islands are part of the Transverse Ranges geologic province, and ...
on a 10-day journey, stopping on three of the islands. The second ''tomol'', the ''Elye'wun'' ("
swordfish Swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as broadbills in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfis ...
"), was launched in 1997. On September 9, 2001, the first "crossing" in the Chumash tomol, from the mainland to Channel Islands, was sponsored by the Chumash Maritime Association and the Barbareño Chumash Council. Several Chumash bands and descendants gathered on the island of Limuw (the Chumash name for Santa Cruz Island) to witness the ''Elye'wun'' being paddled from the mainland to Santa Cruz Island. Their journey was documented in the short film "Return to Limuw" produced by the Ocean Channel for the Chumash Maritime Association, Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, and the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum. The channel crossings have become a yearly event hosted by the Barbareño Chumash Council. The
Santa Ynez Band of Chumash The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians is a federally recognized tribe of Chumash, an indigenous people of California, in Santa Barbara.Pritzker 122 Their name for themselves is Samala. The locality of Santa Ynez is referred to as '' ...
is a federally recognized Chumash tribe. They have the Santa Ynez Reservation located in Santa Barbara County, near Santa Ynez. Chumash people are also enrolled in the Tejon Indian Tribe of California. In addition to the Santa Ynez Band, the Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation and the Barbareño/Ventureño Band of Mission Indians are attempting to gain federal recognition. Other Chumash tribal groups include the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, descendants from the San Luis Obispo area, and the Barbareño Chumash Council, descendants from the greater Santa Barbara area. The publication of the first Chumash dictionary took place in April 2008. Six hundred pages long and containing 4,000 entries, the ''Samala-English Dictionary'' includes more than 2,000 illustrations. The documentary film ''6 Generations: A Chumash Family History'' features Mary Yee, the last speaker of the Barbareño Chumash language.


Produce initiative

In December 2010, the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County was the recipient of a $10,000 grant from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Foundation to support expansion of the Produce Initiative. The Produce Initiative puts an emphasis on supplying fruits and vegetables to 264 local nonprofits and food programs. The foodbank distributes produce free of charge to member agencies to encourage healthy eating. Expanding produce accessibility to children is important to the foodbank and the newly operating Kids’ Farmers' Market program, an extension of the Produce Initiative, achieves that goal. The program trains volunteers to teach kids in after-school programs nutrition education and hands-on cooking instructions. This program currently operates at 12 sites countywide, including in the Santa Ynez Valley. After the children cook and eat a healthy meal, they get to take home a bag full of fresh produce, where they can help feed and cook for the whole family. Obesity in children is a major health problem prevalent among Native Americans. To promote sustainable agriculture and healthy diets, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Environmental Office and Education Departments' after-school program planted a community garden, which provided vegetables to the Elder's Council, beginning in 2013. The Santa Ynez Valley Fruit and Vegetable Rescue, also known as Veggie Rescue, is another effort to improve food sourcing for the Santa Ynez.


Worldview

Chumash worldview is centered on the belief "that considers all things to be, in varying measure, alive, intelligent, dangerous, and sacred." According to Thomas Blackburn in ''December's Child: A Book of Chumash Oral Narratives'' published in 1980, the Chumash do not have a creation story like
Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . Some descendants of the people prefer Kizh as an endonym that, they argue, is more historically ...
,
Acjachemen The Acjachemen (, alternate spelling: Acagchemem) are an Indigenous people of California. They historically lived south of what is known as Aliso Creek and north of the Las Pulgas Canyon in what are now the southern areas of Orange County and t ...
, Quechnajuichom, and other
Takic The Takic languages are a putative group of Uto-Aztecan languages historically spoken by a number of Indigenous peoples of California, Indigenous peoples of Southern California. Takic is grouped with the Tübatulabal language, Tubatulabal, Hopi la ...
-speaking peoples. Rather, as summarized by Susan Suntree, "they assume that the universe with its three, or in some version five, layers has always been here. Human beings occupy the middle region, which rests upon two giant snakes. Chronological time is unimportant, though the past is divided into two sections: the universal flood that caused the First People to become the natural world and, thereafter the creation of human beings, the arrival of the Europeans, and the devastating consequences that followed." The middle region (sometimes referred to as ''antap''), where humans and spirits of this world live and where
shamans Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...
could travel in vision quests, is interconnected with the lower world (''C'oyinahsup'') through the springs and marsh areas and is connected to the upper world through the mountains. In the lower world live snakes, frogs, salamanders. The world trembles or has earthquakes when the snakes which support the world writhe. Water creatures are also in contact with the powers of the lower world and "were often depicted in rock art perhaps to bring more water to the Chumash or to appease underworld spirits' at times of hunger or disease." ''Itiashap'' is the home of the First People. ''Alapay'' is the upper world in Chumash
cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount (lexicographer), Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in ...
where the "sky people" lived, who play an important role in the health of the people. Principle figures of the sky world include the Sun, the Moon, Lizard, Sky Coyote, and Eagle. The Sun is the source of life and is also "a source of disease and death."


Chumash bands

One Chumash band, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians of the Santa Ynez Reservation is a
federally recognized tribe This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States of America. There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes. , 574 Indian tribes were legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the United ...
, and other Chumash people are enrolled in the federally-recognized Tejon Indian Tribe of California. There are 14 bands of Chumash Indians. * Barbareño Chumash, affiliated with the Taynayan missions and the Kashwa reservations. * Coastal Band of the Chumash Nation, their historical territory, north of Los Angeles, includes parts of the coastal counties of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Kern, and Ventura. The Coastal band of the Chumash Nation applied for recognition in 1981. * Cuyama Chumash, from the Cuyama Valley. * Island Chumash, from the
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
. * Kagismuwas Chumash, from the southwesternmost region of the ancestral Chumash land. Their historical lands are now part of Vandenberg Air Force Base. * Los Angeles Chumash, formed when members of the traditional Malibu, Tejon, and Ventura bands were relocated in the 19th century. * Malibu Chumash, from the coast of Malibu. Descendants of this band can now be found among the Ventura, Coastal, Tejon, and San Fernando Valley bands. * Monterey Chumash, from the Monterey Peninsula. * Samala, or Santa Ynez Chumash. The Santa Ynez Chumash people in 2012 went to federal court to regain more land. The Bureau of Indian Affairs approved the request; the land was to go toward tribal housing and a Chumash Museum and Cultural Center. Protesters and anti-tribal groups have spent approximately $2 million to disrupt or stop the land acquisition. * San Fernando Valley Chumash, once laborers at the Mission San Fernando Rey de España. They intermarried other tribes who also worked at the mission. * Yak Tityu Tityu Yak Tilhini Northern Chumash, homelands from coastal
Avila Beach Avila Beach (Spanish: ''Ávila'') is an unincorporated community in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States, located on San Luis Obispo Bay about 160 miles (257 km) northwest of Los Angeles, and about south of San Francisco. The ...
to Morro Bay. They are the northwesternmost Chumash people, located in San Luis Obispo County. * Tecuya Chumash, most of this band of Chumash tribe were probably Kagismuwas. This band was established as an anti-colonial group, who took residence in the Tecuya Canyon along with the Tejon Chumash. * Tejon Chumash, part of the Kern County Chumash Council. ''Tejon'' is the Spanish word for "badger", and its name was given to the Tejon Rancheria. * Ventura Chumash, lives in the traditional Chumash domain of the Owl Clan.


Population

Estimates for the precontact populations of most native groups in California have varied substantially. The anthropologist Alfred L. Kroeber thought the 1770 population of the Chumash might have been about 10,000. Alan K. Brown concluded that the population was about 15,000.
Sherburne F. Cook Sherburne Friend Cook (1896-1974) was an American physiologist, who served as professor and chairman of the department of physiology at the University of California, Berkeley. He was notable as a pioneer in population studies of the native peopl ...
, at various times, estimated the aboriginal Chumash as 8,000, 13,650, 20,400, or 18,500. Some scholars have suggested the Chumash population may have declined substantially during a "protohistoric" period (1542–1769), when intermittent contacts with the crews of Spanish ships, including those of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo's expedition, who wintered in the Santa Barbara Channel in AD 1542–43, brought disease and death. The Chumash appear to have been thriving in the late 18th century, when Spaniards first began actively colonizing the California coast. Whether the deaths began earlier with the contacts with ships' crews or later with the construction of several Spanish missions at Ventura, Santa Barbara, Lompoc, Santa Ynez, and San Luis Obispo, the Chumash were eventually devastated by the California Genocide carried out when the United States took over the territory. By 1900, their numbers had declined to just 200, while current estimates of Chumash people today range from 2,000 to 5,000. The demographics of traditional Chumash society are quite complex. One aspect of interest is the 'Aqi gender of the Chumash. 'Aqi was a third Chumash gender defined by biological males that performed work and wore clothing traditionally of women. The 'aqi gender appears to also be closely tied to non-procreative sexual activity, such as homosexuality.


Languages

Several related languages under the name " Chumash" (from ''čʰumaš'' , meaning "Santa Cruz Islander") were spoken. No native speakers remain, although the dialects are well documented in the unpublished fieldnotes of linguist
John Peabody Harrington John Peabody Harrington (April 29, 1884 – October 21, 1961) was an American linguist and ethnologist and a specialist in the indigenous peoples of California. Harrington is noted for the massive volume of his documentary output, most of which h ...
. Especially well documented are the Barbareño,
Ineseño The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians is a federally recognized tribe of Chumash, an indigenous people of California, in Santa Barbara.Pritzker 122 Their name for themselves is Samala. The locality of Santa Ynez is referred to as '' ...
, and Ventureño dialects. In 2010, the Šmuwič Chumash Language School was established at Wishtoyo's Chumash Village. The language reclamation program in 2010 was initially run by Elder Johnny Moreno and his niece Deborah Sanchez. The language classes were revitalized in 2016 and Sanchez is the sole instructor. The traditional name for Chumash in Ineseño is ''s'amala'' and the Chumash name for the Barbareño people is Šmuwič.


Culture

The Chumash were
hunter-gatherer A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...
s and were adept at
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
at the time of Spanish colonization. They are one of the relatively few
New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
peoples who regularly navigated the ocean (another was the
Tongva The Tongva ( ) are an Indigenous people of California from the Los Angeles Basin and the Southern Channel Islands, an area covering approximately . Some descendants of the people prefer Kizh as an endonym that, they argue, is more historically ...
, a neighboring tribe to the south). Some settlements built a plank boat (''tomol''), which facilitated the distribution of goods and could be used for whaling.


Basketry

Anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...
s have long collected Chumash baskets. Two of the largest collections are at the
Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
in
Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, and the Musée de l'Homme (Museum of Mankind) in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History is believed to have the largest collection of Chumash baskets.


Bead manufacture and trading

The Chumash of the Northern Channel Islands were at the center of an intense regional trade network. Beads made from ''Olivella'' shells were manufactured on the Channel Islands and used as a form of currency by the Chumash.Arnold 2001 These shell beads were traded to neighboring groups and have been found throughout Alta California. Over the course of late prehistory, millions of shell beads were manufactured and traded from Santa Cruz Island. It has been suggested that exclusive control over stone quarries used to manufacture the drills needed in bead production could have played a role in the development of social complexity in Chumash society.


Cuisine

Foods historically consumed by the Chumash include several marine species, such as
black abalone ''Haliotis cracherodii'', the black abalone, is a species of large edible sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Haliotidae, the abalones. This species is relatively small compared with most of the other abalone species from the ...
, the Pacific littleneck clam,
red abalone ''Haliotis rufescens'' (red abalone) is a species of very large edible sea snail in the family Haliotidae, the abalones, ormer shells or paua.Rosenberg, G. (2014)''Haliotis rufescens'' Swainson, 1822.Accessed through: World Register of Marine ...
, the
bent-nosed clam ''Macoma nasuta'', commonly known as the bent-nosed clam, is a species of bivalve found along the Pacific Ocean coast of North America. It is about long. It is often found buried in sands of in depth. This rounded clam has no radial ribs. Archa ...
, ostrea lurida oysters, angular unicorn snails, and the butternut clam. Acorns served as an important plant food, which were ground up and cooked into a soup. They also made flour from the dried fruits of the
laurel sumac ''Malosma'' is a plant genus which contains only a single species, ''Malosma laurina'', with the common names laurel sumac and lentisco (Spanish).Integrated Taxonomic Information System (2007)''Malosma'' retrieved June 10, 2007. ''Malosma laurin ...
.


Herbalism

Herbs used in traditional Chumash medicine include thick-leaved yerba santa, used to keep airways open for proper breathing;
laurel sumac ''Malosma'' is a plant genus which contains only a single species, ''Malosma laurina'', with the common names laurel sumac and lentisco (Spanish).Integrated Taxonomic Information System (2007)''Malosma'' retrieved June 10, 2007. ''Malosma laurin ...
, the root bark of which was used to make a herbal tea for treating
dysentery Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications ...
; and black sage, the leaves and stems were made into a strong
sun tea Iced tea (or ice tea) is a form of cold tea. Though it is usually served in a glass with ice, it can refer to any tea that has been chilled or cooled. It may be sweetened with sugar or syrup. Iced tea is also a popular packaged drink that can be ...
. This was rubbed on the painful area or used to soak one's feet. The plant contains diterpenoids, such as aethiopinone and ursolic acid, which are known pain relievers. The Chumash formerly practiced an initiation rite involving the use of '' sacred datura'' (''moymoy'' in their language). When a boy was 8 years old, his mother would give him a preparation of it to drink. This was supposed to be a spiritual challenge to help him develop the spiritual wellbeing required to become a man. Not all of the boys survived the poison.


Rock art

Remains of a developed Chumash culture, including rock paintings apparently depicting the Chumash cosmology, such as
Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park is a unit in the state park system of California, preserving a small sandstone cave adorned with rock art attributed to the Chumash people. Adjoining the small community of Painted Cave, the site is l ...
, can still be seen.


Scorpion tree

A centuries-old
oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...
tree in California is considered to have a Chumash arborglyph, a carving of a six-legged creature with a head-dress including a crown and two spheres. Previously thought to have been carved by cowboys, it was visited in 2007 by
paleontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...
Rex Saint Onge, who identified the three-foot carving as being of Chumash origin and related to other Chumash cave paintings in California. Further studies have led Saint Onge to believe these are not simply the work of Chumash, but by Chumash
shamans Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritu ...
who were conscious observers of the stars, and used these carvings to calibrate the Chumash calendar.


Notable people

This is a list of notable Chumash people: *
Lorna Dee Cervantes Lorna Dee Cervantes (born August 6, 1954) is an American poet and activist, who is considered one of the greatest figures in Chicano poetry. She has been described by Alurista, as "probably the best Chicana poet active today." Early life Cer ...
(born 1954), an award-winning feminist, activist, poet and
Chicana Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American iden ...
of Chumash descent *
Deborah A. Miranda Deborah A. Miranda is a Native American writer, poet, and professor of English at Washington and Lee University. Her father, Alfred Edward Robles Miranda is from the Esselen and Chumash people, native to the Santa Barbara/Santa Ynez/Monterey, Ca ...
(born 1961), a writer and poet of Chumash-
Esselen The Esselen are a Native American people belonging to a linguistic group in the hypothetical Hokan language family, who are indigenous to the Santa Lucia Mountains of a region south of the Big Sur River in Big Sur, Monterey County, Californi ...
-
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
descent * John Olguin (1921–2011), former director Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, founder of the Cabrillo Whalewatch, and founding member of the
American Cetacean Society Founded in 1967, the American Cetacean Society (ACS) was the first whale conservation group in the world. ACS is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with an office in San Pedro, California and chapters in Los Angeles, Orange County, Puget Sound (Sea ...
*
Rafael Solares Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ''R ...
(1822–1890), a Samala chief, captain of Soxtonoxmu, capital village in the Santa Ynez Valley who shared cultural knowledge with anthropologists in the 1800s * Mary Joachina Yee (1897–1965), linguist and last known speaker of the Barbareño language * Ernestine Ygnacio-De Soto, Chumash activist and historian, working on reviving the Barbareño language. *Semu Huaute (1908–2004), medicine man, actor, and alleged last full-blooded Chumash


Places of significance

Places of significant archaeological and historical value. * Albinger Archaeological Museum in Ventura – Chumash artifacts and history * Burro Flats Painted Cave in Simi Valley – Chumash pictographs * Carpinteria State Beach in Carpinteria – cave paintings depicting Chumash life * Carpinteria Valley Museum of History and Historical Society in Carpinteria – Chumash artifacts and history * Chumash Indian Museum in Thousand Oaks – exhibitions of artifacts and recreation of Chumash houses * Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park in Santa Barbara – cave paintings * Hollister Adobe Museum in San Luis Obispo – Chumash artifacts and exhibits * La Purísima Mission State Historic Park in Lompoc – displays of mission life in reconstructed buildings * Lompoc Museum in Lompoc – Chumash artifacts and history * Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History in Los Angeles – anthropology and guided tours for Chumash natural history * Mission San Luis Obispo Museum – Chumash artifacts and exhibits * Morro Bay Museum of Natural History – docent presentations and Chumash exhibits * Museum of Ventura County – exhibits on Chumash history * Ojai Valley Museum and Historical Society in Ojai. Inland Chumash history. * Painted Rock (San Luis Obispo County, California), Painted Rock, Carrizo Plain Natural Heritage Reserve in San Luis Obispo County – cave paintings * Port Hueneme Historical Society Museum in Port Hueneme - Chumash speakers (Distinguished Speaker Series) exhibit on Chumash history and artifacts * San Buenaventura Mission Museum in Ventura – exhibits on Chumash history * San Luis Obispo County Historical Museum – Chumash artifacts and exhibits. * Santa Barbara Historical Society in Santa Barbara. Guided tours. * Santa Barbara Mission in Santa Barbara. Local Chumash history and guided tours. * Santa Barbara Mission Archive-Library. Records of all California mission Indians. < https://web.archive.org/web/20191127055954/https://www.sbmal.org/> * Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History – exhibits on Chumash Indians and natural history of Native Americans * Santa Barbara Presidio – historical exhibits * Santa Cruz Island – cave paintings in Olsen's Cave: More than 300,000 Chumash objects have been collected in the Channel Islands of California, Channel Islands, which was home to 10 villages and more than 1200 Chumash residents. * San Luis Obispo County Historical Museum – Chumash artifacts and exhibits * Mission Santa Inés in Solvang – site of an early Spanish mission * Santa Maria Valley Historical Society Museum – Chumash artifacts and exhibits * Santa Rosa Island, California, Santa Rosa Island – cave paintings in Jones Cave. Thousands of artifacts of the island, which has been populated by the Chumash for more than 13,000 years, have been found. * Santa Ynez Indian Reservation (Samala) – the only Chumash Indian Indian reservation, reservation * Satwiwa – ancient Chumash village and now museum in Newbury Park, CA * Southwest Museum in Highland Park * Shalawa Meadow, California, Shalawa Meadow – a former Chumash burial ground


See also

* Burro Flats Painted Cave * Chumash Painted Cave State Historic Park, California * Chumash traditional narratives * Polynesian navigation * Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact * Shalawa Meadow, California


Notes


References

* Arnold, Jeanne E. (ed.) 2001. ''The Origins of a Pacific Coast Chiefdom: The Chumash of the Channel Islands''. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. * * * * Cook, Sherburne F. 1976. ''The Conflict between the California Indian and White Civilization''. University of California Press, Berkeley. * Cook, Sherburne F. 1976. ''The Population of the California Indians, 1769–1970''. University of California Press, Berkeley. * *Cordero R. The Ancestors Are Dreaming Us. News From Native California [serial online]. Spring2012 2012;25(3):4–27. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 22, 2014. * * * *Gamble, L. H., & Enki Library eBook. (2008). The chumash world at European contact (1st ed.). Us: University of California Press. Retrieved from http://sjpl.enkilibrary.org/EcontentRecord/11197 * Glassow, Michael A., Lynn H. Gamble, Jennifer E. Perry, and Glenn S. Russell. 2007. Prehistory of the Northern California Bight and the Adjacent Transverse Ranges. In ''California Prehistory: Colonization, Culture, and Complexity''. Terry L. Jones and Kathryn A. Klar, editors. New York and Plymouth UK: Altamira Press. * Hogan, C. Michael. 2008
''Morro Creek''.
Ed. A. Burnham. * * King, Chester D. 1991. ''Evolution of Chumash Society: A Comparative Study of Artifacts Used for Social System Maintenance in the Santa Barbara Channel Region before A.D. 1804''. New York and London, Garland Press. * Kroeber, A. L. 1925. ''Handbook of the Indians of California''. Bureau of American Ethnology Bulletin No. 78. Washington, D.C. * McLendon, Sally and John R. Johnson. 1999. ''Cultural Affiliation and Lineal Descent of Chumash Peoples in the Channel Islands and the Santa Monica Mountains''. 2 volumes. Prepared for the Archeology and Ethnography Program, National Park Service by Hunter College, City University of New York and the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. * Mithun, Marianne. (1999). ''The Languages of Native North America''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. . * Pritzker, Barry M. ''A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. . * Pritzker, Barry M. (2014). Chumash. In The American Mosaic: The American Indian Experience. Retrieved February 25, 2014, from http://americanindian2.abc-clio.com.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/ Sandos J. Christianization among the Chumash: an ethnohistoric perspective. American Indian Quarterly [serial online]. Winter91 1991;15:65–89. Available from: OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson), Ipswich, MA. Accessed March 22, 2014. *''Santa Barbara Independent''. (2010, December 15)
Chumash foundation $10,000 grant helps food bank serve healthy meals.
*
Chumash Tribe sued over casino expansion


Further reading

* Black Gold Library System, 1997, ''Native Americans of the Central Coast'' (historic photographs). Ventura, CA, Black Gold Libraries * Hudson, D. Travis and Thomas C. Blackburn. 1982–7. ''The Material Culture of the Chumash Interaction Sphere Volumes I–V''. Anthropological Papers No. 25-31. Menlo Park, CA: Ballena Press. * Hudson, D. Travis, Thomas Blackburn, Rosario Curletti and Janice Timbrook. 1977. ''The Eye of the Flute: Chumash Traditional History and Ritual as Told by Fernando Librado Kitsepawit to John P. Harrington''. Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. * Hudson, D. Travis, Janice Timbrook, and Melissa Rempe. 1977. ''Tomol: Chumash Watercraft as Described in the Ethnographic Notes of John P. Harrington''. Anthropological Papers No. 9, edited by Lowell J. Bean and Thomas C. Blackburn. Socorro, NM: Ballena Press.


External links


Santa Ynez Band of Chumash IndiansInezeño Chumash Language TutorialCoastal Band of the Chumash NationAntelope Valley Indian Museum
at California Department of Parks and Recreation
Native Cultures and the Maritime Heritage Program
NOAA
Barbareno Chumash CouncilNorthern Chumash Tribal CouncilChumash Painted Cave State Historic Park

Chumash Indian Museum, Thousand Oaks, CA
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chumash People Chumash people, Chumash, California Mission Indians Native American tribes in California History of San Luis Obispo County, California History of Santa Barbara County, California History of Ventura County, California