Talk:Indigenous peoples of California

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This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Seaplant.

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Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article is or was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): NikNovikov.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 00:27, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Contradictory statements
From the opening paragraph: "...California has the second largest Native American population in the United States.[1]". Later, in the 21st Century section of History, it says "California has the largest population of Native Americans out of any state in the United States". Could someone with greater knowledge of this subject matter help clarify? Drake lazarus (talk) 15:08, 2 October 2020 (UTC)

Map is useless
The map doesn't seem to have a legend of any sort, so it's pretty much useless. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Pacman7654 (talk • contribs) 22:13, 18 April 2012 (UTC)

Useless is probably too strong a term. But the map seems odd to me as a California bay area native. Where is the Ohlone tribe? I have never heard of the Ramaytush tribe in the bay area.Robert.Harker (talk) 22:15, 1 June 2016 (UTC)

No list of tribes
I don't think there's a list of tribes that are native to California anywhere in the article. Language groups are mentioned, but there's no list of particular tribes: neither from the present, nor from any time period in the past. I think this book might be a relevant source: Heizer, Robert, Languages, Territories, and names of California Indian tribes, Berkeley, University of California Press, 1966. Anybody read it? NikNovikov (talk) 08:07, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

I came across this website: http://www.ncsl.org/research/state-tribal-institute/list-of-federal-and-state-recognized-tribes.aspx#ca The list of tribes that are currently federally recognized is pretty long (110 tribes). I think there's no point in trying to write about all of them, but a general paragraph about the tribes that are currently officially recognized is worth adding to the article. I'm going to draft something soon... NikNovikov (talk) 08:35, 5 March 2018 (UTC)


 * That definitely sounds important! There's some info here but it's not California-specific. I agree a full list isn't that important in this article, we can link to the List_of_federally_recognized_tribes_by_state for people that are interested. I'm looking forward to reading what you find! This will fit in well with what I  mentioned below about modern governance. Check out this dissertation, it has a big lit review of this whole topic and some specific case studies (let me know if you need access, I can send you a PDF):
 * — Carl (Seaplant (talk) 06:31, 6 March 2018 (UTC))
 * — Carl (Seaplant (talk) 06:31, 6 March 2018 (UTC))

If you don't mind sharing that PDF - it would be very helpful. Thank you, Carl! NikNovikov (talk) 17:53, 16 March 2018 (UTC)
 * You're welcome! Here it is. Seaplant (talk) 06:36, 17 March 2018 (UTC)

PBS Documentary on Genocide in 1870's
I saw a PBS documentary that stated in the 1870's there was a bounty for each indian head of 100 dollars, that was paid at the local county court house and reimbursed by the State. This genocide is covered up like the Chinese cover up Tiananmen Square. Questions remain, what powerful political family was behind pushing for this genocide, how exactly did this profit those who pushed for this genocide? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.104.231.71 (talk) 20:26, 28 March 2013 (UTC)

Possible source: Woolford, Andrew, Benvenuto, Jeff, Laban Hilton, Alexander, Colonial Genocide in Indigenous North America, Durham, Duke University Press, 2014, pg. 96 -118 Describes the Modoc War of 1872-1873 and other cases of genocide of the Native American tribes by the colonists. This book contains a lot of useful information! I'm considering writing a paragraph based on this quote: "The state tolerated or sanctioned and financed million anti-MOOC ca campaigns, all of which emphasized the massacre of civilians. Militiamen and soldiers also committed another genocidal crime that likely contributed to MOOC death by exposure, malnutrition, decreased fecundity, fetal death, and increased mortality rates" (pg. 118). Kalashnikov (talk) 08:56, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

Precontact: specification needed
"Because of the temperate climate and easy access to food sources, approximately one-third of all Native Americans in the United States were living in the area of California. [9]" - What year are we talking about approximately? Sentence has to be changed, it sounds like we could theoretically be talking about anytime in between 19,000 years ago and the 15th century. NikNovikov (talk) 08:12, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

I also found this map of the pre-contact tribal territories: http://www.kstrom.net/isk/maps/ca/calprecontact.gif I think I'm going to add it in "Precontact" NikNovikov (talk) 08:42, 5 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Sadly it looks like that's copyrighted and the creator seems pretty adamant here: http://www.kstrom.net/isk/maps/mapmenu.html. But it looks like he | got it from the NCIDC, so you might be able to get permission to use | thier version. There is the map on the top of the page already, too, which is CC-BY-SA licensced. — Carl (Seaplant (talk) 05:52, 6 March 2018 (UTC))

Right. What about this image? I'm not sure what time period it refers to (possibly it's modern). I found it on Wikimedia Commons: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/California_tribes.png NikNovikov (talk) 17:38, 16 March 2018 (UTC)

Citation
"Tribes on the coast of northwest California, like the Miwok, Yurok, and Yokut, had contact with Russian explorers and seafarers in the late 18th century.[citation needed]"

Possible source: Hudson, Travis, et al., Treasures From Native California : The Legacy of Russian Exploration, Walnut Creek, California : Left Coast Press, Inc., 2014, page 10

Mentions Visits of Ferdinand Wrangell (1833) and Il'ya Voznesenskii (1840–1841) to California. A lot of their ethnographic observations are described in the book. NikNovikov (talk) 08:15, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

19th Century
''I just wrote this paragraph regarding Wrangell's encounter with the local tribe north from SF in 1835. Any comments / suggestions? Thank you!''

In early 19th Century, Russian exploration of California and contacts with local population were associated with the activity of the Russian-American Company. A Russian explorer, Baron Ferdinand von Wrangell, has visited California in 1818, 1833, and 1835. Looking for a potential site for a new outpost of the company in California, Wrangell’s expedition has encountered the Indians north of San Francisco Bay and visited their village. In his notes Wrangell remarked that local women, used to physical labor, seemed to be of stronger constitution than men, whose main activity was hunting. Local provision consisted primarily of fish and products made of seeds and grains: usually ground acorns and wild rye. Wrangell surmised his impressions of the California Indians as a people with a natural propensity for independence, inventive spirit, and a unique sense of the beautiful. NikNovikov (talk) 10:31, 9 April 2018 (UTC)

Ideas retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Native_American_peoples_of_Oregon
Add paragraphs about: Assimilation, Treaties, Wars, Native Peoples of California Today. If anyone has any sources in mind - please share! NikNovikov (talk) 08:50, 5 March 2018 (UTC)

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What is Pritzker reference?
There is a reference to:

Pritzker 114

Does anyone know what this reference refers to? I did a quick search of:

Pritzker California history

and nothing relent came up. Robert.Harker (talk) 22:10, 1 June 2016 (UTC)

My guess is "Pritzker, Barry M. "California." In Native Americans: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Peoples, 148-219. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 1998.," the source cited right before lists that as its 6th reference. — Seaplant (talk) 02:12, 4 March 2018 (UTC)

External links modified
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Propose splitting #21st Century into 'Demographics' and 'Governance'
I'm not sure if this was intended to be a sub-heading under History, but the content is so far just current demographics, so that seems like a more descriptive title. I'd also like to add information on governance and the relationships between Federal, State, and Tribal authorities. So far I have some information about Tribal TANF and CalWORKs (see my sandbox), but there's a lot more to discuss here than just welfare programs. — Carl (Seaplant (talk) 05:53, 4 March 2018 (UTC))

Propose creating a subheading for Relationship with CA government and CA Tribes

 * I want to create a subsection about the relationship between the Californian government and the Native Californian peoples. This section can go through the history between these two groups and any past conflicts or cooperations. This could bring the article up to present day where I could write about any current conflicts or cooperations that are relevant and important to today.
 * The hard part will be discussing the power relations between the two without discussing power relations in theoretical and academic terms. This is tricky because this is a frame and understanding that can sometimes be difficult to prove, because the system is built to hide how the powerful may oppress the more weak. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Graceharrison14 (talk • contribs) 06:09, 7 March 2018 (UTC)


 * Are you planning to add much for this? I have a bit that's relevant about TANF and CalWORKs in my sandbox, but this article is more related to your P.E. so if you have a plan for how to structure this go for it, feel free to use any of what's in my sandbox or not. I might work most of it into the TANF and CalWORKs articles and just put a reference to those in this article, but if you think part of it should go in here too I can work it in. — Carl (Seaplant (talk) 21:43, 26 April 2018 (UTC))