User:Mnoble13/Southern Paiute people

Link to article: Southern Paiute people

Organization of the Southern Paiute people[edit] - Section from actual article that I will add my information after
''One important aspect of gathering food was the social aspect, often families would come together for foraging and games and then depart and go their different ways. The Southern Paiutes weren't actually split up into tribes, oftentimes their groups were made up of small family units that would occasionally come together with others to socialize. You would have about 10-50 people in each group, and in each group everyone was related to each other. Family ties were really important to these groups—it would often determine where they would go and who would support each other—so marriages were very important to the Southern Paiutes. The leader of the group was called a Headman, and he would be old enough to know a lot about the land, but young enough to still participate in the tribes activities, and he usually had several different family ties within the group. His job was to wake early in the morning, and using his knowledge he would make specific suggestions of what he thought the tribe should do that day, and if people thought his observations were astute the'' ''y would follow him, if not then they wouldn't. His suggestions would be based on the weather, season, and abundance of food. If over time they stopped following his ideas and instead turned to another, then the Headman leader title would move onto that person. The Headman also was supposed to settle any disputes that came up. Oftentimes different sub-units of the Southern Paiutes would be classified by the settlers coming in from Europe based on what they ate. So you had those who ate waada seeds, those who ate trout, those who ate cattails, etc. While the Southern Paiute people are categorized as one group, there were subgroups within the whole that were differentiated based on location and dialect.''

Lead
The Southern Paiute People consist of several subgroups that are each unique in language, location, practices, lifestyle, and tradition. In the following sections, three Southern Paiute People subgroups are discussed: the Owens Valley Paiute, Kaibab Paiute, and Chemeheuvi Paiute. The Owens Valley Paiute reside in Owens Valley, CA and rely on water and irrigation in their society. The Kaibab Paiute occupied northern Arizona and southern Utah, organizing around permanent water sources; however, the remaining Kaibab Paiute are located in the Kaibab Indian Reservation. The Chemeheuvi, located in the Great Basin and Southwest United States, intertwine water and land ownership in songs that are considered contractually obliging in the community. Water management is seen as an important role within Chemeheuvi communities and is held in high regard.

Owens Valley Paiute
While the Owens Valley Paiute are categorized as one unified group, multiple, distinct Paiute districts formed throughout the region, each varying in complexity and organization. Each district developed through own political and housing systems, and established hunting and seed rights. Historical documents estimate that Owens Valley Paiute subgroup populations totaled to maintain approximately 1,000 members.

Diet & Fishing Practices
Owens Valley Paiute people relied on seasonal fishing and hunting, native vegetation and early agricultural yields, seeds, and nuts to compose their diet. They utilized complex cooking and storage processes to prolong and prepare their harvests and kills. Fishing regulations in the Owens Valley Paiute region depended upon the agreed upon rights within each district. Owens Valley Paiute people utilized an early form of water and property rights by districts declaring ownership of certain stretches of river where they would prohibit outsiders from fishing unless permitted otherwise. Fishing expeditions could be individual or communal activities. Some districts would equally distribute fish catches throughout the district, while others respected that individuals who caught fish got to keep it. Owens Valley Paiute people employed multiple methods in order to catch fish. More traditional practices included using wooden arrows to pierce fish, baskets and nets to trap and collect fish, and utilizing materials to construct early fishing poles. Owens Valley Paiute people created hooks using bone (preferably from deer or wildcats) and used grasshoppers or worms as bait. Natives also built two-pronged spears composed of either obsidian or wood to catch fish. These tools were typically used when people fished at night where fires were lit along rivers to attract fish to the shores for easy catching. Stranding was a technique that required people to remove water from a separated body of water from the river, allowing them to collect fish who failed to escape. They also used a method, titled stupefying, involved natives adding and diffusing slim solomon into water systems which would disorient fish and allowed them to collect the fish easily.

Irrigation
Owens Valley Paiute people's knowledge and use of agricultural practices were limited, but early forms of irrigation were heavily utilized. Dams and ditches were constructed by Owens Valley Paiutes to control and direct natural river water toward wild seed plots which ultimately increased their natural yields. These chosen seed plots were selected based on their soil's drainage ability and yield production observed throughout Owens Valley Paiute history. Dams were constructed using natural materials such as sticks, stone, mud, and debris. Irrigation practices were most developed in the pitana patü district within the Owens Valley Paiute region, while other districts built similar structures at a smaller scale. A district would elect one individual to be responsible for irrigation management called tuvaijü (meaning "to irrigate"). To be awarded this position was a high honor in the community. After the tuvaijü was elected, they led dam construction efforts and were assisted by other tribal members to complete the labor-intensive builds. Once the dam or ditch was complete, the tuvaijü monitored and controlled all irrigation flow within their district.

Kaibab Paiute
The Kaibab Paiute were a semi-sedentary group who resided in modern-day northern Arizona and southern Utah. Their diet relied on the abundant natural flora and fauna found within their territory: cacti, berries, trees, fruits, roots, rodents, big cats, reptiles, insects, and other herbivores. Kaibab Paiute people utilized their permanent water sources for garden irrigation. They grew maize, beans, and squash using water from the Kanab creek - a major perennial stream - and artesian springs along the Vermillion Cliffs. In the 1960s, Mormon settlers usurped all of the Kaibab Paiute's permanent water sources in order to continue their development. This contributed to a significant population decline of the Kaibab Paiute people. After the arrival of Mormon settlers, approximately 82% of Kaibab Paiutes died, most from starvation. In 1909, the Kaibab Indian Reservation was established and it currently houses 76 Kaibab Paiute people.

Chemeheuvi
The Chemeheuvi are a tribal group who are spiritually connected with the land, plants, animals, and water of California, the Great Basin, and the Southwest. They believe that the Earth and all of its inhabitants were created by Hutsipamamauu (meaning "Ocean Woman"). Chemeheuvi elders believe water covered all of Earth's surface until a small worm fell from the sky and transformed into Hutsipamamauu. She created land by using her skin and dirt from her reproductive regions, mud from the ocean floor, and natural oils from her body. Hutsipamamauu extended the land mass by laying down and stretching her body. The Chemeheuvi accredit her for creating all geologic and aquatic features - including all water sources - that we know and see today.

Songs are an important feature of Chemeheuvi society and range in subject matter. Individuals owned songs and, therefore, owned the subjects and land discussed in the songs. Whoever owned a song about a particular area of land owned all of the plants, animals, and water sources within the region. Songs were the Chemeheuvi's version of contractual land ownership agreements and were passed down through generations.

The Chemeheuvi established permanent villages near water sources and springs. Village leaders sang about water sources located in their region and, therefore, claimed ownership of the land and all its features. Though water sources were owned by village leaders, other people could drink from the sources, but couldn't permanently use it in the same capacity as the leader. Springs provided abundant and active plant life of yucca, willow, cottonwood, mesquite, and other flora. Songs not only proclaim land and water ownership, but they were also used as directions to water sources, particularly in desert regions. The Chemeheuvi innovated canteens - baskets or animal stomachs that were coated in tar as a form of waterproofing - to store water and adapt to harsh conditions. Irrigation of the Colorado River enabled the Chemeheuvi to establish some agricultural plots. George Armstrong, a colonial outsider, reported that a half-mile irrigation ditch was built from the Colorado River to transport water to Chemeheuvi land. This water source supported native and non-native crops: maize, wheat, watermelon, potatoes, carrots, beets, and others.