The Kucadikadi are a band of Northern Paiute people who live near

Mono Lake Mono Lake ( ) is a saline soda lake in Mono County, California, formed at least 760,000 years ago as a terminal lake in an endorheic basin. The lack of an outlet causes high levels of salts to accumulate in the lake which make its water a ...

Mono County, California Mono County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,195, making it the fourth-least populous county in California. The county seat is Bridgeport. The coun ...

. They are the southernmost band of Northern Paiute.Fowler and Liljeblad 437Arkush, Brooke S
"Historic Northern Paiute Winter Houses in Mono Basin, California."
''Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology''. 9 (2) 1987 (retrieved August 31, 2010) The Kutzadika’a have resided in the Mono Lake–Yosemite region since time immemorial.(??)

Name

Mono, the Indians of Owens Valley are now recognized as the southernmost division of Northern Paiute. A definitive ethnography has been published by Steward (1933; see also Steward 1938). There were probably at least thirty permanent villages clustered into a lesser number of land-owning districts between Round Valley to the north and Owens LakeThe "Mono" lived on both sides of the Sierra Nevada and are divided into two regional tribal/dialect groups, roughly based on the Sierra crest: Eastern Mono live on the California-Nevada border on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada in the Owens Valley (Mono: Payahǖǖnadǖ/Payahuunadu - "place/land of flowing water") along the Owens River (Wakopee) and south to Owens Lake (Pacheta).The Yosemite-Mono Lake Paiute group trace the origins of the Ahwahnichi, the original inhabitants of the park, to Chief Tenaya’s group, which is the band documented in Bunnell’s accounts. Andrews said that Tenaya led a band of Paiutes that migrated from the Mono Lake area and settled in villages in Yosemite. Mono, the Indians of Owens Valley are now recognized as the southernmost division of Northern Paiute. A definitive ethnography has been published by Steward (1933; see also Steward 1938). There were probably at least thirty permanent villages clustered into a lesser number of land-owning districts between Round Valley to the north and Owens Lake They are also known as the "Owens Valley Paiute" Most mono lake paiute are and will be Owens Valley Paiute. they live on the reservation ,enrolled there. Western Mono on the west side in the south-central foothills of the Sierra Nevada, including the "Northfork Mono," as labeled by E.W. Gifford, an ethnographer studying people in the vicinity of the San Joaquin River in the 1910s. ucadikadi means "eaters of the

brine fly Ephydridae (shore fly, sometimes brine fly) is a family of insects in the order Diptera. Shore flies are tiny flies that can be found near seashores or at smaller inland waters, such as ponds. About 2,000 species have been described worldwide, in ...

pupae". They are also known as the Kutsavidökadö, Koza'bittukut'teh, Kotsa'va, Mono Lake Paiute, Mono Basin Paiute, and Kuzedika. Lamb gives the Mono language name as kwicathyhka', " larvae eaters", or Mono Lake Paviotso. The term "Mono Lake Paiute," a holdover from early

anthropological Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

, has proven problematic.

Culture and geography

The Kucadikadi's homeland surrounds Mono Lake in eastern

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, but they traditionally traveled to

Walker Lake, Nevada Walker Lake is an unincorporated town and census-designated place in Mineral County, Nevada, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population of Walker Lake was 275. Geography The Walker Lake CDP is located in western Mineral County, Nevada, ...

for seasonal subsistence activities. Mono Lake is a high piedmont area of the Sierra Nevada, the average elevation in the Mono Lake basin is around above sea level. The surrounding mountains range from in elevation. Mono Lake is extremely saline and is home to several waterfowl species and the brine fly, or '' Ephydra hians'' or '' Hydropyrus hians'', from which the band takes its name.Fowler and Liljeblad 437 ''

Pinus monophylla ''Pinus monophylla'', the single-leaf pinyon, (alternatively spelled piñon) is a pine in the pinyon pine group, native to North America. The range is in southernmost Idaho, western Utah, Arizona, southwest New Mexico, Nevada, eastern and souther ...

'' or piñon pine has been an important source of food, as were jackrabbits, deer, mountain sheep, and the coloradia Pandora moth. The extended family formed the band's basic social units, which moved together as a group. They traded with

Owens Valley Paiute The Mono ( ) are a Native American people who traditionally live in the central Sierra Nevada, the Eastern Sierra (generally south of Bridgeport), the Mono Basin, and adjacent areas of the Great Basin. The Eastern mono is often grouped under ...

and

Western Mono The Mono ( ) are a Native American people who traditionally live in the central Sierra Nevada, the Eastern Sierra (generally south of Bridgeport), the Mono Basin, and adjacent areas of the Great Basin. The Eastern mono is often grouped under t ...

. Three late 19th-century winter houses belonging to the tribe have been excavated by archaeologists. They are conical houses constructed with posts of Utah juniper or ''

Juniperus osteosperma ''Juniperus osteosperma'' (Utah juniper; syn. ''J. utahensis'') is a shrub or small tree native to the southwestern United States. Description The plant reaches , rarely to 9 m, tall. The shoots are fairly thick compared to most junipers, in ...

''. Winter houses of this type, called ''

tomogani A wigwam, wickiup, wetu (Wampanoag), or wiigiwaam (Ojibwe, in syllabics: ) is a semi-permanent domed dwelling formerly used by certain Native American tribes and First Nations people and still used for ceremonial events. The term ''wickiup'' ...

'', were built by the band up to 1920.

Language

The Kucadikadi speak the

Northern Paiute language Northern Paiute , endonym Numu, also known as Paviotso, is a Western Numic language of the Uto-Aztecan family, which according to Marianne Mithun had around 500 fluent speakers in 1994. ''Ethnologue'' reported the number of speakers in 1999 as 1 ...

, which is in the

Numic Numic is a branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family. It includes seven languages spoken by Native American peoples traditionally living in the Great Basin, Colorado River basin, Snake River basin, and southern Great Plains. The word Numic com ...

branch of the

Uto-Aztecan language Uto-Aztecan, Uto-Aztekan or (rarely in English) Uto-Nahuatl is a family of indigenous languages of the Americas, consisting of over thirty languages. Uto-Aztecan languages are found almost entirely in the Western United States and Mexico. The n ...

family. The Numu (Northern Paiute) language is spoken by a wide number of different tribes, residing across the western United States, from Mono Lake in eastern California, and extending into Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho. Numu is most firmly identified with the Owens Valley Paiute and

Mono people The Mono ( ) are a Native American people who traditionally live in the central Sierra Nevada, the Eastern Sierra (generally south of Bridgeport), the Mono Basin, and adjacent areas of the Great Basin. The Eastern mono is often grouped under t ...

. Extending further in the United States of America, the Northern Paiute language is connected to the language of the Shoshoni, who live in Death Valley, and east and north California, as well as that of the

Kawaiisu The Kawaiisu (pronounced: ″ka-wai-ah-soo″) are a Native Californian ethnic group in the United States who live in the Tehachapi Valley and to the north across the Tehachapi Pass in the southern Sierra Nevada, toward Lake Isabella and Walker P ...

and

Ute people Ute () are the Indigenous people of the Ute tribe and culture among the Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. They had lived in sovereignty in the regions of present-day Utah and Colorado in the Southwestern United States for many centuries un ...

, who live in southern California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.

Basketry

The band is well known for its basketry, they wove coiled baskets as well as twined baskets.

Bracken fern Bracken (''Pteridium'') is a genus of large, coarse ferns in the family (biology), family Dennstaedtiaceae. Ferns (Pteridophyta) are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produ ...

and

redbud ''Cercis'' is a genus of about 10 species in the subfamily Cercidoideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to warm temperate regions. It contains small deciduous trees or large shrubs commonly known as redbuds. They are characterised by si ...

provide color for designs on coiled baskets.Dalrymple 35 In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, encroachment of non-Natives in their territory disrupted traditional hunting and gathering lifestyles, so members of the tribe relied on the tourist trade. Selling elaborate baskets to non-Indian tourists became a viable way of making a living. Glass beads were introduced by non-Indians, and Kucadikadi women began incorporating the seed beads into their baskets by 1908.

Today

Many members of the Kucadikadi band are enrolled in federally recognized BISHOP PAIUTE TRIBE> some in

Paiute Paiute (; also Piute) refers to three non-contiguous groups of indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. Although their languages are related within the Numic group of Uto-Aztecan languages, these three groups do not form a single set. The term "Paiu ...

, Washoe,

Yokuts The Yokuts (previously known as MariposasPowell, 1891:90–91.) are an ethnic group of Native Americans native to central California. Before European contact, the Yokuts consisted of up to 60 tribes speaking several related languages. ''Yokuts ...

Miwok The Miwok (also spelled Miwuk, Mi-Wuk, or Me-Wuk) are members of four linguistically related Native American groups indigenous to what is now Northern California, who traditionally spoke one of the Miwok languages in the Utian family. The word ...

, and

tribes. Others are seeking recognition as the Sierra Southern Miwuk . but the true mono lake paiute are EASTERN MONOEastern Mono live on the California-Nevada border on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada in the Owens Valley (Mono: Payahǖǖnadǖ/Payahuunadu - "place/land of flowing water") along the Owens River (Wakopee) and south to Owens Lake (Pacheta).The Yosemite-Mono Lake Paiute group trace the origins of the Ahwahnichi, the original inhabitants of the park, to Chief Tenaya’s group, which is the band documented in Bunnell’s accounts. Andrews said that Tenaya led a band of Paiutes that migrated from the Mono Lake area and settled in villages in Yosemite. Mono, the Indians of Owens Valley are now recognized as the southernmost division of Northern Paiute. A definitive ethnography has been published by Steward (1933; see also Steward 1938). There were probably at least thirty permanent villages clustered into a lesser number of land-owning districts between Round Valley to the north and Owens Lake They are also known as the "Owens Valley Paiute" Most mono lake paiute are and will be Owens Valley Paiute. they live on the reservation ,enrolled there. and the Mono Lake Indian Community, headquartered in

Lee Vining, California Lee Vining (formerly Leevining, Poverty Flat, and Lakeview) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mono County, California, Mono County, California, United States. It is located south-southeast of Bridgeport, Californ ...

."California Indians and Their Reservations."
''SDSU Library and Information Access.'' retrieved September 1, 2010

Notable Kucadikadi

Carrie Bethel Carrie McGowan Bethel (18981974) was a Mono Lake Paiute – Kucadikadi (Northern Paiute) basketmaker associated with Yosemite National Park. She was born Carrie McGowan in Lee Vining, California, and began making baskets at age tw ...

(1898–1974), basket weaver *

Nellie Charlie Nellie Charlie (1867–1965) was a Mono Lake Paiute - Kucadikadi basketmaker associated with Yosemite National Park. She was born in Lee Vining, California, the daughter of tribal headman Pete Jim, and his wife Patsy, also a basket maker. She ...

(1867–1965), basket weaver * Tina Charlie (1869-1962), basket weaver * Lucy Telles (ca. 1870/1885–1955/6), basket weaver

Notes

References

* Fowler, Catherine S. and Sven Liljeblad. "Northern Paiute". ''Handbook of North American Indians: Great Basin, Volume 11''. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1986. . *Kelly, Isabel T. and Catherine S. Fowler. "Southern Paiute". ''Handbook of North American Indians: Great Basin, Volume 11''. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution, 1986: 368-397. . * Pritzker, Barry M. ''A Native American Encyclopedia: History, Culture, and Peoples''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000.

External links

"Native American Story of Mono Lake Paiute"
Reznet News video {{authority control Native American tribes in California History of Mono County, California Mono County, California Paiute